Best Tent Camping near Glenrock, WY

Let me start by explaining that 3-stars is usually the highest an RV Park will get from me. I am tempted to give it 4, but some pretty great places have a 4 from me (like Yellowstone). I believe that rating everything high, kind of causes the system of starring to lose perspective. 1 Star=Never Again, 3 is average, and 5 Stars=I don’t ever want to leave. As much as I car camp for convenience, I prefer more remote spaces, which is not an RV Park (so there is my bias). 3 is an average rating and this is a really nice spot—but being in the middle of not-much in South Eastern Wyoming, it’s hard to be totally wowed. Additionally, we camped here during the total eclipse of 2017. As a result, the Park was at maximum capacity, and I believe, expanding. The owners are super hospitable. Even with the event in progress, they did choose to charge more to camp rather than overcrowd the campers (much appreciated and very honest). There is an excellent game room. The showers are very clean. There is laundry and a small play area. The RV sites are the typical pull through RV Park sites, and not spacious. The campground, like much of Wyoming is flat, sunny, and with a gravel “yard” that replaced the tall, golden yellow grasses that stretch across these dry plains.

We camped in a tent. The owners had created new tent sites that were directly on the North Platte River. These tent sites, and the staff friendliness are earning the 3 stars. There were trees for shade and a nice breeze coming over the water. There was a good deal more privacy than the RV sites. My understanding was that these were intended to remain as permanent tent sites even after the eclipse. There are no hook-ups at all for the tent sites, and campers cannot back into their camp for convenient grabbing of stuff—a very short walk is required (but far enough to notice the distance). In some ways, this distance from the car, and the line of trees made the campsite feel a little more remote and like resting at an oasis in the desert.

We stayed here for 4 days. We weren’t sure what to expect from such a small town but we’re pleasantly surprised. This KOA Has putt putt golf for $2,activities, a tennis court, basketball and swimming. Also something extra is a s’more shack and coffee cabin. There are ample amount of RV and tent sites. They offer cable and WiFi. We were frustrated with the WiFi as it was very spotty. There are 3 cabins with picnic benches and grill, and a yurt that they use for activities. As there is a fire ban right now there were no fire rings. The shop has RV and other essentials needed if you need. Also has a few groceries and souvenirs. Staff are helpful and kind and we had a nice stay.

The campground(CG) was easy to find and check-in was a breeze. We were originally in site 53 right across from the office but that would have been way too small so we were moved to site 43 which is a long FHUs pull-through. The manager spent time chatting with us about the CG and interesting happenings this last season. The utilities were smartly placed in the middle of the site. WiFi was above average. There were a few seasonal residents who were working in the area. We got a solid variety of OTA channels and were able to get our satellite to connect. The trees in the CG are young so provide some shade. Our site didn’t have cable but some do. There are also premium sites down by the North Platte river that runs adjacent to the CG. There are also tent sites by the river. There is a fiber optic cable facility near the CG that runs 24/7 to include weekends, so there is some noise during the night i.e. backup beeping from forklifts. However, our air conditioner and/or sound machine easily drowned out the noise. As this CG is right outside Casper, there are a ton of amenities nearby. There are nice areas to walk our pups by the river. We enjoyed our two nights stay to include doing some fly fishing in the river at the CG and would definitely come back.

Esterbrook Campground is a great place to take the family. It is located about 30 miles from the town of Douglas and thankfully the road to the campground is paved most of that 30 miles and the last part is a gravel road but it is pretty well maintained. You can easily get there in a smaller sedan car. You can call ahead and get a reservation, however we didn't and still was able to get a spot. This campground isn't very busy, so you could always luck out and get a spot without calling ahead of time. The campground was pretty quiet, and we didn't have anyone to our left and right which was nice. Gave us some room! Before hand I did some research and they said they had potable water, however they did not. They had something that looked like it could be a potable water spot, but it was not in working condition. So definitely bring your own water. I would say that this campground isn't well designed, meaning you really are tent camping because they don't have very many amenities- they call it a "primitive campground." They also do not have a dump station. There is some hikes nearby, which we did one morning. Beautiful views from the top. You can also hike a little ways to a river close by where you can fish. I would say if you are looking for a place to get away last minute and you don't care if there is many amenities, then you would like this place.

Lovely campground beside a large natural arch in rural Wyoming. Not only can you pitch your tent with this impressive geological formation as your view, but the North Platte River runs underneath the arch and right up against the campground. There's a short hiking trail that leaves from the campground and brings you up on top of the arch, giving you a better view of the river, an old power plant, and the surrounding red rock. 

Campground is free but there's a three day limit. Check in with the campground host/park manager at the office across from the campground to check in. Really friendly folks and well-maintained park overall.