Do you love the outdoors and horses? If you're looking for a rustic but comfortable experience, horse camping in Broken Bow is the way to go. Equestrian camping is an adventurous and unique way to experience the city. With our help, you'll find the best Nebraska equestrian campsites from scenic to easily accessible.
Bessey Recreation Complex and campground is located in central Nebraska, adjacent to Middle Loup River, offering visitors opportunities to enjoy the scenery, relax, and recreate. Download the Recreation.gov app from your app store to pay online for first-come, first-serve sites.
Waterfront activities are popular and plentiful at this facility. Adjacent to the campground, Middle Loup River is shallow and steady flowing, providing good conditions for tubing and canoeing. A seven acre pond stocked with largemouth bass, blue gill, trout and catfish offers great fishing for the whole family. There is also an accessible fishing pier.
The Nebraska National Forest, Bessey Ranger District is located in western Nebraska. The campground within the Bessey Recreation Complex is located next to the Charles E. Bessey Nursery, oldest tree nursery in the Forest Service. Wildlife in the area abounds. Prairie chicken, sharp-tailed grouse, mule-deer, whitetailed deer, pronghorn antelope, prairie dogs, turkeys, coyotes, bobwhite quail, eagles, hawks and falcons all find habitat in surrounding ecosystems.
Drive or hike to the Scott Lookout Tower for a fantastic panoramic view of Nebraska's sand hills and prairies.
$15 / night
$7 - $195 / night
Scout
Clean, campground, everything you need is available. The river access is nice and our dogs enjoyed swimming. The train is annoying, blaring its horn at least hourly, if not more often.
LegendBessey NF Rec Campground : (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good
(72 yr olds in 27’ trailer.)
Overall Rating: 3.5. There are some nice sites, but many are in groups o 2 or 3. I took pics of some of my favorite somewhat secluded sites
Price 2024: $10 for electric sites and $15 for non-electric sites- both prices are w interagency pass
Security: no
Usage during visit: 1/2
Visual Privacy Between Adjacent Sites: most sites no
Site Spacing: depends on the site
Pad surface: gravel
Reservations: Yes. Current night and 3 nights out are first come first serve.
Campground Noise: Some OHV noise and voices during the day. Was quiet at night. Note there are a lot of OHVs in the campground.
Outside Road Noise: none
Through Traffic in campground:
Electric Hookup: some sites
Sewer Hookup: no
Dump Station: ye
Potable Water Available: spigots throughout the cg
Bathroom: yes
Showers: yes
Pull Throughs: some
Cell Service (AT&T): 2 to 3 bars
Setting: near a river with lush tree growth.
Recent Weather: highs are mid 70s to 80s
Solar: some sites.
Insects: not many right now.
Host: yes
Rig Size: large rigs fit in some sites.
Sites: sites near the water beginning with number 33 are not that great. They don’t have a good view. I took pics of some of my favorite trailer sites. Most of them, our 26’ trailer will fit in.
Traveler
The sites are mostly level and well groomed grass with 2 new concrete handicap spots. The 30 amp and 50 amp power was proper voltage and dependable. Access to clear line of site to south for Dish or Directv is difficult due to heavy tree population. Non-Nebraska resident requires $14 pass in addition to the $30 fee with electric. Potable water is available and dump station is easily accessible with a rinse water source. Ingress and egress is good with gravel road surfaces in park. The restrooms and showers are very clean and accessible.
GuideDecided to cut our drive in half by staying here on our way to Smith Falls. It was a Monday night but it was very quiet other than the hum of the mosquitos!
-Side note: the vault bathrooms were a whole lot cleaner than some of our past experiences at other State Parks
TravelerGreat spot with lots of trees and good sized sites. I arrived on a Sunday afternoon and they were only half full & by night only a few more people came. Bugs were pretty bad. Unfortunately a bad storm moved in so we weren’t able to enjoy the evening. The trees kept us protected from the wind and hail. Would come back again!
GuideVery nice little campground. Well manicured. Nice tent camping pads. Spots are well shaded. Has modern bathroom with FREE showers. Has primitive toilets scattered everywhere. Have walking, Jeep, ATV trails all over. Nice little pond to catch a few fish. Overall a very nice spot. A little noisy during the day with all the ATV traffic, but nice and quiet at night!
ScoutTrains ran all night every hour, maybe more, and blasted us each time. In the morning we were surrounded anf deafened by atv activity- we couldn't get out of there fast enough.
TravelerCamp hosts were amazing. Gave us firewood. Clean facilities. Well maintained. Gorgeous trees and trails.
TravelerThis campground is a hidden gem. Nice big sites, your not packed it. Beautiful trees all around and we’ll kept. If you need electric you can reserve a site and get 30 or 50. Some sites have water and does have a sanitary dump site. Enjoying our overnight stay
GuideGreat camping trip with friends
ScoutThis is a nice little campground in the Sandhills of Nebraska. Campsites are spaced apart nicely over three loops and many of the sites offer electric hookups. There are numerous water spigots around the campground and there’s also a dump station. The campground has hot showers, a basketball court and horseshoe pits available. A vending machine is located by the registration kiosks. Make sure to bring whatever you need with you because there isn’t much in Thedford or Halsey.
There are lots of OHV trails in the area or there’s also a 2.5 mile hiking trail that leads to a fire lookout tower that’s open to public access.
Be aware that there is a railway crossing at the turnoff from Route 2 so you will hear trains and train horns.
RangerWe enjoyed our brief stay. The campground is very well maintained, workers constantly trimming, cleaning etc.
Right off the Sandhills Scenic Byway, beautiful drive. Our highlight was floating down the Middle Loup River in inner tubes ( Thedford, 15 miles away).
Don't know if we will be back here again, but if we are I'd stay again.
GuideOn our road trip from MN to AZ this was our first stop. A lot of open sites. Sites where roomy and nicely spaced out.
TravelerLove Victoria Springs! It is a hidden gem in the Nebraska Sandhills. It fills up on the weekends but during the week you can have the entire campground to yourself. Beautiful trees, nice shade, and electrical hook-ups.
Scout
This lake is amazing — clean and with a sand base.
Camping isn’t great, as it’s limited and close to others. If you’re looking for remote spots, this is not the place.
That said, this is a reservoir and a wildlife management area, so it’s understandable.
TravelerWe stayed one night on a cross country trip. It was clean and well maintained.
ScoutThis location has the primitive feel with great facilities. If you want to stay to yourself you have plenty of space to do so. If your looking for a group event. They have close RV pads.
Highly recommend checking this campground out!
LegendWe wanted to camp Nebraska's national forest for some time and we were not disappointed. The camp was full to the brim. all sites with hookups were taken, but the overflow is an abandoned, overgrown baseball field. It was great, spacious, close to the showers and flush toilets, and only $8 a night!
I think hookups were only $16, so this is a great deal no matter how you slice it.
Neighboring Thedford has Kayaks and Tanks you can rent. Tanking has become a Nebraska Thing. fitting a group of folks and possibly a keg in a horse tank and floating down river! We hiked to the ranger tower and it was a great hike with a spring fed trough half way up. Much to see in the surrounding area including art galleries, quilt shops, and more. Nice camping supply store right in Halsey.
LegendVictoria Springs has 2 different areas for camping. One area is for tent camping ($15 a day) and has a small lake with paddle boats to use. The lake has an algae issue right now. This area has a picnic shelter and playground that is dated. There are 2 cute cabins available for rent which have fire rings and picnic tables. The other area is for RVs and you can have electric $20)or electric and water($30). Each site has a fire ring and picnic shelter and is on grass. There is a basketball hoop that needs help and horseshoe area which is overgrown. A little bit of upkeep and elbow grease and this would be a great getaway.
ScoutNice secluded campground.
Legend
Davis creek is a 67 camp site (25 primitive/2 ADA, 42 electric/3 ADA) nestled in rolling hills of Valley county Nebraska on the Davis Creek reservoir. Camping is permitted year round although water is only available April 1 to November 30th. There is also a camp host in the RV section from April-Nov. There are no established trails for hiking but the gravel roads throughout the camp are used for walking and bike riding.
This is a lake and campground that went from very primitive just over 20 years ago to a top notch natural resource district campground and recreation area. The NRD is investing heavily in this campground with large shelters, shower house (bring quarters), 2 boat ramp areas, large fish cleaning station, ADA ramps, fishing docks, and a small swimming beach. The rumor from the locals is that the entire campground will be electric in the near future. I was really impressed to find free WiFi added in 2019! The WiFi was strong and reliable everywhere in the campground.
I camped on site 72 which is an electrical site capable of facilitating smaller RV’s, campers or tents. Site 72 was near water, a brick restroom building and the shower building. You’ll be hard pressed to find any adequate shade at any of the sites here although the row of 60’s will offer some late day/evening shade. All of the sites have very nice concrete pads with large fire rings with grilling grates in addition to large concrete pads with picnic tables. There is plenty of green space at most sites and at 72 we set up horseshoe stakes and had all the room we needed.
The lake: we took our kayaks out and did some fishing on this campout. Access to the lake is easy with nice wide boat ramps at two different let in’s. This is a popular fishing and water sport lake that does allow skiing and high speed water sports. If you like to fish I recommend going to the inlet a couple of miles North of the campground, it seems to be the most popular spot for on water and shore-line fishing. We trolled lines behind our kayaks and caught white bass on this Memorial Day weekend in 2019.
ADA site: There was a really nicely designed ADA site next to site 72 that I think is worth mentioning here. The site was flat with a concrete path that connected the site to the walking path to the restrooms. The fire ring and picnic table were also designed for those wheelchair bound. I’ve attached some pictures below. If you have disabilities you’ll have access to everything you need at this campground.
GuideNice spot and water access. Great showers and fire pits. Small and private.
TravelerNuda sholls campground at calamus state recreation area is a nice little spot to setup for a few days and enjoy the 4,500 acre calamus reservoir. There are roughly 30 sites in this particular area. Half are first come first serve and the other half are by reservation. All sites are electrical only. There is a nice modern shower and bath facility to utilize if you want to conserve your fresh water tank. Toilets are free and it only costs $1.25 for a 7 minute hot shower. My family and I have created many memories here and hope to make many more
GuideWhat a wonderful place with so many trees. If you get the chance to up the fire tower and talk to the park ranger.
LegendHalsey National Forests campground is called Bessey Recreation Campground and has cabins, Rv sites, tent sites, as well as group and family sites. The Rv sites are Electric and gravel and are fairly level. They have picnic tables and fire rings and are spacious. And of course plenty of shade since you are in a forest.
There is a Nursery which grows the trees for the forest, a Look Out Tower which offers a panoramic view of the Sandhills, hunting, fishing, scenic drives, wildlife viewing, hiking and ATV trails, along with other activities.
It is a nice place to stop over and see.
GuideBeing new not much for trees. It was nice to have clean showers close to the camp site.
TravelerA lot of campsite. Can rent boats and jet skies. Multiple convenient stores. About five miles from nearest town. Nice swimming and fishing spots. Love going there.
Nebraska offers fantastic opportunities for horse camping, allowing equestrians to explore the scenic landscapes while enjoying the great outdoors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular equestrian campsite near Broken Bow, NE?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular equestrian campground near Broken Bow, NE is Victoria Springs State Rec Area with a 4.1-star rating from 9 reviews.
What is the best site to find equestrian camping near Broken Bow, NE?
TheDyrt.com has all 4 equestrian camping locations near Broken Bow, NE, with real photos and reviews from campers.
