Best Tent Camping near Lysite, WY

Basic sites, both drive through and back in, as well as several tent sites. Each site has picnic table and fire pit. Essentially just boondocking for $32.25 a night. Pay station takes credit cards. On the plus side, it is next to a lake and the surrounding scenery (sagebrush country) is nice, like many BLM areas. Good Verizon connectivity.

Easy to get to and private campsite. A little circular dirt parking area was a good spot for us to setup our trailer for the night. There is enough space for multiple RV's or tent camping. There are no amenities but great views and privacy. There is no Verizon cell phone service and TONS of broken glass and there is ample room if you want to setup a tent, but there is debris in the area. Don't let this deter you from this FREE campsite as there is tons to see and do. You can hike up bluffs and walk through the old 1880's coal mining town. We would stay at this location again as its very convenient to get to if in route out west.

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Overnight with a small camper. Extremely beautiful location. No amenities. The site is a very small, dirt lot where you can park a camper or set up a tent in the grassland. Extremely beautiful sagebrush and very interesting rock formations! My 4 year old loved playing in the mud puddles… and collecting shiny spent cartridges… while we leveled the camper. Mosquitos up the wazoo after the recent rain. Two trails come off the dirt lot.

We are sharing the site with a small group (3-4) in a tent and there is a camper van who parked off the road down a ways.

There are lots of campsites at Boysen State Park. I called the phone number and talked to a nice ranger. She suggested Upper Wind River campsite since we did not have boat and wanted to have a nice tent spot. We camped 1 week before site changed from reservation to FF. We planned on staying 2 nights but it was so relaxing we ended up staying 4. 1 day we went to Marina and swim beach. Another day we went to Thermopolis and checked out Dino museum and hot springs. Last day we just hung around camp and relaxed. Campsite had a park for kids. No showers but plenty of water so we set up privacy tent and we’re able to shower when we wanted. If we were there during peak season I bet it would feel a little crowded but was perfect the time of year we went because there were maybe 10 sites filled out of the 80ish there.

We recently stayed at Crippled Spider Ranch, and it exceeded all my expectations. Nestled in the beautiful landscape near Thermopolis, Wyoming, this ranch offers a truly unique camping experience that caters to adventurers, families, and solo travelers alike.

Campsites & Amenities: The ranch has 71 spacious spots, including full and partial hookups for RVs, and plenty of space for dry camping. The sites are well-maintained, and the full hookups provide everything you need for a comfortable stay. For those looking for an extended stay, they even offer 15% off for bookings over 7 days!

Activities & Attractions: One of the best parts of Crippled Spider Ranch is the variety of activities on-site and nearby. There’s something for everyone—whether it’s hiking on the BLM land that borders the property, petting zoo visits for the kids, or even learning to ranch and milk cows! The property is also a great base for rock hounding and exploring Wyoming’s natural beauty. You can even hunt (seasonal) or target shoot, making it perfect for outdoor enthusiasts.

For those interested in history, the ranch is near the historic Oregon Trail, and there are great opportunities for treasure hunters like metal detecting and exploring old ghost towns.

Staff & Hospitality: The hospitality here is second to none! The staff are friendly, welcoming, and go above and beyond to make sure your stay is enjoyable. You’ll feel like family from the moment you arrive. They even offer fresh, free-range eggs from their chickens and have a fun “catch-and-cook” option if you’re into farm-to-table experiences.

Sustainability & Eco-Friendly Focus: Crippled Spider Ranch also takes pride in its sustainable practices, from responsible livestock management to preserving the surrounding wilderness. This ranch is a great choice for eco-conscious travelers who want to enjoy nature responsibly.

Overall Experience: Crippled Spider Ranch is the perfect blend of adventure, relaxation, and Wyoming charm. Whether you’re a family looking for a weekend getaway or a solo adventurer seeking peace and quiet in the great outdoors, this place is a must-visit. I’ll definitely be back for more!

Tip: Be sure to book early for special events, and don’t forget to check out the nearby mineral hot springs in Thermopolis!

The campground is SAND with some scrub weeds on it, as expected in the middle of Wyoming. Paid over the phone, never saw the host at all, even as we were setting up and breaking down.

Definitely have your doormat out or you will track sand all over your rig.

Just passing through for a one nighter, you can't beat the price. Hosts were very friendly when making the phone reservation. Would stay again, but definitely not for long term.

This site has multiple campgrounds. You have to reserve them online through Reserveamerica.com, and it is NOT an easy site to navigate. Otherwise, we were driving through & this was an excellent spot for the kids to cool off in the water & spend the night. There were trees for some shade. It has vault toilets & a water pump. Campsite has a nice tent pad, firering, & picnic table. There were bugs, but we were not bothered by mosquitoes. Sunset & sunrise were beautiful!

We stayed in site 51, we tried to get site 53 but it said it was already reserved, turned out it wasn't. Some things are out od the parks control, rhe trains foe instance that sound like they are coming through your tent. Traffic is horrid and goes on moat od the night. But these two sites have a much bigger problem that the park can do something about. There is a giant light that makes it like noon at the dead of night, all night long! The only thing the light is good for is the bugs, which there are so many bugs, go to the light when it comes on. The bugs weren't of the biting type, most anyway, they just liked to fly into your face. Then there were the wasps. My son got stung and the neighboring site also got stung, all in a 20 minute span. They were everywhere. Even worse, shortly after 9 am on Monday, sprinklers came on! In the sites, 51 was OK, possibly due to a plugged sprinkler but site 53 was soaked. Their tent, their chairs, their concrete picnic table where they were cooking breakfast! Quite hours are not really enforced, leashed dogs aren't always enforced. They do have a giant list of fines for breaking rules but I don't see enforcement. We did visit the lake and didn't see a lot there that would have been better. We won't return to this campground though.

Booked what looked like a decent site by the river and found it to be unusable when we arrived. I was considering just occupying a different site since the place was nearly empty. Thankfully a sheriff's vehicle was driving thru (which I mistook for a park ranger). He told me he'd try to help us get a different spot by calling the park office but on realizing that he had no cell service, he volunteered to drive to the office to see what he could get done for us. He returned after a short while with instructions for us to camp in an empty pull-through spot. We were very thankful for his help.

The good-

Beautiful canyon!!

Shade from big cottonwoods (it was 97 degrees!)

Some sites well spaced

Vault toilet was clean and supplied

There's good fishing there for big trout but unfortunately I was fishing this time around

The bad-

No cell or WIFI

A lot of strangely laid out sites, some ridiculously close to one another and unlevel 

Sprinklers in some areas that sprinkle your site, tent or whatever's exposed

Highway noise is bad - in a canyon sound bounces off the walls, many trucks on the road with much use of jake brakes and to top it all off, the occasional 2AM freight train rolling by on the other side of the river

Gravel and sand sites with concrete slab and shade for picnic table. No or very little shade. Lots of ants and mosquitoes.

Cooled off nice at night and very quiet for our stay mid week. Pit toilet , no showers but available fresh water.

Stayed right at the lake for one night with my small RV. No hookups, but ok if self contained. Campspots are spread apart enough that running generators from other campers ( it was a hot day) weren’t to noisy.

The stark beauty of this primitive camping area was beyond words. At the end of a long dirt road, you will find this diamond in the rough. Featuring just a handful of small sites, the remoteness of this area is well-suited for outdoor adventure enthusiasts. Enjoy your morning coffee with a view of the water, mountain range in the distance and curious herd of pronghorn, investigating your presence from a nearby ridge. Perfect campground for star-gazing and just getting away from it all.

-Bring your own water

+Nice vault toilet (and a great view from the outhouse door!)

Lot going on at this campground. Lake view a an extremely long train going through a mountain. Wild!