Best Tent Camping near Scottsbluff, NE

Open May 1– October 1. Got the second to last site on a Wednesday in July(you can reserve sites after the campground opens on May 1). We chose this campground for its proximity to Scottsbluff. Although there is a tent site area, the campground was filled mostly with large RVs. The hosts were very friendly and welcoming and even though it was not a large campground, the host escorted us to our site. He offered several times to deliver firewood to us if we wanted. Reasonable cost for sites($10 tent camping,$20 water and electric,$25 for full hook-up). Best sites are the ones at the end of the rows as they have a nice patch of lawn. Alcoholic beverages are permitted but must be consumed inside your rig/tent. WiFi is available but not a strong signal; using our own data worked much better. Restrooms were reasonably clean(accessed via a code) and there are showers. This campground is located within a city park and there are other facilities(fitness trail, dog park, and supposedly a zoo). I did a little exploring but rain was imminent so I didn’t wander far, however, the facilities outside the campground looked like they could have used a little TLC. Of course, there is a nearby train!

Staff is extremely friendly. I took a shower immediately upon arrival and it was not a good experience. There were 3 stalls for women with no shower curtains covering each stall. Only 1 stall actually worked (barely). It took up to 7 minutes for the water to get warm and the pressure was a trinkle at best. I could not wash my hair because I would never get the soap out. Parking pad is dirt and weeds. Limited picnic tables. No fire pits. No propane. The train is across the road and loud horns. The last train we heard was 10p and it rain approximately every 40 minutes. Cash only to pay for site-$45 for 30 amp. The sunset was beautiful.

We had some difficulty locating this park and eventually asked a local where it was (Google maps will not direct you to the right place; the “campground” is located on East 11th Street and First Avenue). It is located uphill from the downtown area so don’t confuse it with another city park closer to downtown. Now, to review the campground. Western Nebraska campgrounds are unlike other places we are used to – perhaps it is because of summer heat (and biting flies) but most seem to be geared toward RVs. This one has three "sites", although they are not separated in any way save for the electrical and water hook-ups. Just room for three rigs on a gravel area. No tents for sure. Across the street from these “sites” is a nice lawn area with lots of trees and a covered picnic pavilion, which could make your stay more pleasant, as long as a group isn’t using it. There was a persistent barking dog nearby while I was checking it out. About the only redeeming thing I can think of for this place is the price: free for the first two nights but you would need to pay$10 per night after (I guess to discourage people from living there). Close to Chimney Rock and about 25 miles from Scotts Bluff but otherwise not much in the area.

Ranger review of Wildcat Hills SRA. If you love to hike and want to truly feel like you are away from it all check out Wildcat Hills. This beautiful recreation area just South of Gering Nebraska is just minutes away from geological wonders such as Chimney Rock, Jailhouse Rock and Scott’s Bluff National Memorial Park. Wildcat offers Archery, gun range, biking, hiking, picnicking, a playground, nature center and hunting. I’d add that if you are a bird watcher you need to get to Wildcat hills. There are also big horn sheep, wildcats, rattle snakes, elk, and deer in the area although we didn’t see any in our two days and nights at the park. There is a huge nature center that will provide a great place to cool off, stay dry or just for learning for the sake of learning. 4 main trail heads interconnect through rough, minimally maintained hiking trails that climb up to 5,000 feet. Backpack a lunch to the bottom of the canyon and try to find the Game of Thrones shelter (my pet name for it). I’ve given this park 4 stars because we were fortunate enough to camp at the group site that an area boy-scout troop updated. There are two other camp sites along the dirt road leading to the group site. Those 12 total sites are very close together and I wouldn’t recommend anything more than a pop up camper in those spots which are right on the road. If you have to camp in one of those 12 sites I’d rate the camping at 2 or 3 stars. this park hits it out of the ball park with the hiking and nature center.

Ranger review INNO INH 330 Aero Light Bike Rack

I had the opportunity to review the INNO INH 330 Aerolight QM bike rack. I have put hundreds of miles on this 2 bike rack from state parks to urban use. INNO has created a rack that is worthy of consideration among high end bike racks. The INNO arrived in a large clean and well packaged box and was nearly fully assembled. There are a number of pros and cons to be considered with this rack as with any product. I’ve listed those below.

Pros: Well made light metal and plastic construction that I believe will hold up for a very long time. Innovative locking cable for piece of mind. Fits both 1.5” and 2” receiver. Quiet ride. Exceptionally study bike securement if you don’t have attachment and you have a triangular bike frame. Protects your bike from banging into other bike like on hanging style racks.

Cons: awkward fit on height bar strap if you have a water bottle or bike tire pump attachment. If you are mounting different bikes often there a few adjustment steps that will take some time before you can secure your bike. The pins that secure the arms in the lower and upper positions can stick and require some force to pull out and place. I think some WD40 would probably resolve that issue. Bikes without the traditional triangle frame do not strap well to the veritable bar.

In the end, I’d give this rack 3.5 stars I would give it 4 if it fit my son’s non-triangle frame bike. I recommend that you consider the INNO and determine if it will fit your bikes and your needs. This rack has become my go to if I only need to take my bike or one other. Find your local retailer and try it out with your bikes.

Sorry about the oddly formatted photos. They flipped during upload.

We stayed at this campground in late fall. There are very few campgrounds available in this area after the summer ends, so selection was limited. Reservations are made via phone or submitted online form. Although the staff was very attentive, from the confirmation phone call to the registration, we were a bit put off that the sites were very open and close together. In addition, when the employee called to ask about what we needed for our reservation, she implied full hook up, including cable in our mind. When we arrived we discovered there were very few sites that had cable available, and so our sons were disappointed that they would not be spoiled for the weekend (they don't get cable TV at home!). This RV park appears to be owned by the city of Gering, NE.

The view of Scotts Bluff National Monument from the campground is beautiful, especially in the evening. I enjoyed watching the sun go down and hit the bluffs with that perfect golden glow (so much better than cable TV, right?), but was also put off that there were no fire rings, so we could not have a campfire at our site either. They do have raised grills for charcoal (or maybe small wood) and each site has a picnic table.

On the plus side, there is a playground attached to the property that has updated equipment that our sons enjoyed.