The best TENT SITES camping near
Bloomfield , SOUTH DAKOTA

This park is a nice little stop in a super small town. We came through just to visit the Ingall’s homestead and enjoyed this peace and quiet so much we decided to stay for four days.

It’s self service, so first come first served. We were the only ones here for a day or so and then a few others came, but it never filled up. You just put your cash in a lock box.

All the sites have electrical and there’s water available in a few sites. Splitter on the spout makes it easy for two campers to share the water.

The back in spots have plenty of shade. The pull throughs are in direct sun. But all the spots are freshly graveled and we’ll maintained.

There’s a playground for the kids and clean bathrooms with showers.

The town is super small, so don’t expect to have a touristy experience or anything. But if you’re on your way to the ingall’s homestead, or just need a place to park for a night or two, the spot is great.

Nice pebble beach, playgrounds, and walking areas. Flat camper parking. Power was great and showers were clean. Electric only. There is an area to dump waste on the exit. Stopped on Sunday on the way westward and the place was empty, stopped Friday on the way home and it was packed. Lots of kids and families, and almost every spot was full. Happy to see folks having fun. It was just a little busy for us. On the second time through one of the three bathrooms was very dirty, sad before the weekend- the showers remained clean. On the Friday stop there were a lot of people, some spots had 3-4 cars parked in the grass- it was too bad they allowed that. If one was to go here to find some quiet do so during the week or late weekend. It worked just fine as a quick overnight stop on our route. Lots of families having fun. Slept well. Well groomed area. Pretty views of lake. A little windy.

Great place to spend the night. Only a few campsites. Workers are great. Dirt road going to it.

Only “issue” is the Grey water dump is on a slight hill, with the ground washed away, and people sometimes park around it.

Close to beach, fishing dock and close to playground for kids!

Joy Ranch campground is a hidden campground outside Watertown SD. If you are wanting to enjoy a peaceful weekend with your family, Cowboy Campground is the place for you!

Camp host greeted us upon arrival and helped put water on. We stayed 2 nights, in town for a wedding. Most of the sites were flooded with only 3 available, we were the only TT along with the camp host. Showers were clean and ADA. The beach was mere feet out the rear of the trailer. Watertown is close with plenty to do if one needs to wander.

I’ll admit - I chose this campground because I am a HUGE Laura Ingalls Wilder nerd and it is on one of the lakes where she and Almanzo took their Sunday drives and just a few miles from the LIW Memorial Society in DeSmet. Apart from all that, this is a gem of a campground. We were fortunate to get a site right on Lake Thompson. There are clean and modern restrooms available with free showers. A hiking/biking trail goes along the lake, through the campground and to the swimming beach. Friendly staff - great facilities.

Very nice quiet campground when we stayed in May. Campground Host on site

We have traveled in a RV for 6 years and been to 48 states (3 or 4 times each), visited 300 plus small towns and I can say this was one of my favorite camp spots. There are only 4 RV lots, and they are pretty close together, but we stayed before season, so we had the place practically to ourselves. For $30, we had W&E, fire pit (firewood not sold), picnic table and free access to the homestead. Bathrooms were so clean and smelled like cedar wood.  There is a dump station but be fore warned it's on a slope, so emptying your tanks completely will be a challenge. Also a sign says grey water only, this is not true, you can dump your black water too. Since we were off season, during the day, they had school trips daily, so there were a lot of children, having fun playing right behind our rig. But it was only for a short period of time during the afternoon. There's a museum right next to the sites, which is always open. There's also is a tower you can climb to get some really great views. Several houses and buildings are on the property you can explore and hay rides are available. They also have a nice country store where you can by your souvenirs. If your a Laura Ingalls Wilder fan, like me, this is a must stop, if only for a night! I also want to mention that the camp hosts and gal that ran the store, couldn't have been nicer.

We decided not to stay here because it’s right in town and very visible. There are a few RV spots and room for tents. They have a great playground. If you’re timing is right you can catch a ballgame without leaving you campsite. 

Town is a block away. It’s a beautiful small town. They had a burger deal that drew a crowd. Certainly worth some time walking around.