Looking for the best dispersed camping near Rock River? Dispersed camping is an excellent way to get away from it all and to disconnect. Search dispersed campsites you've visited before, or discover new spots and read camper reviews.
Setting up your own campsite away from developed fee sites, also known as dispersed camping, is allowed in most places. From getting away from it all to just enjoying a weekend with friends, dispersed camping can make for a great story. Across the forests, opportunities range from dispersed camping miles into wilderness or just off a forest road in designated dispersed areas. Make sure to bring everything you need when dispersed camping, as water, restrooms, and fire rings may not be available nearby, and always remember to follow Leave No Trace principles.
Use the links below to explore the wide range of dispersed opportunities the forests and grasslands have to offer. For comprehensive information on dispersed camping opportunities, please contact the ranger district office in the area you plan to visit.
Setting up your own campsite away from developed fee sites, also known as dispersed camping, is allowed in most places. From getting away from it all to just enjoying a weekend with friends, dispersed camping can make for a great story. Across the forests, opportunities range from dispersed camping miles into wilderness or just off a forest road in designated dispersed areas. Make sure to bring everything you need when dispersed camping, as water, restrooms, and fire rings may not be available nearby, and always remember to follow Leave No Trace principles.
Use the links below to explore the wide range of dispersed opportunities the forests and grasslands have to offer. For comprehensive information on dispersed camping opportunities, please contact the ranger district office in the area you plan to visit.
This walk-in dispersed campground provides access to biking, hiking and fishing.
Guide
Loads of sites along the FS roads out here, you don’t have to look hard, easier with more ground clearance
Guide
Stayed 5 days here (stat limit 16 days). Close to Summit Rest Area (potable water March-October, flush toilets), Laramie for restocks, and the Vedauwoo Recreation Area. So much free camping here, only downsides are wind, & road noise. Absolutely beautiful views of the valley. Would stay again 100%
Scout
Very few other boondockers, and well dispersed. Very quiet with minimal traffic.
Guide
A dirt road about 1.25 miles leading to a boat ramp, with parking for cars/ trailers. There is a bridge with a 12ton limit per vehicle. more allowed if you are towing. peaceful and quiet at night with a very nice trail and bridge over the river . This is not really a campsite, just a nice free place to spend the night and then move on, but you can stay up to 5 days. had dirty bathrooms, no toilet paper.
Guide
Good Verizon service, was able to work remote. Got pretty windy but it was nice on the hot days. Idk if I’d swim in the water. There was a pit toilet. Good view of the mountains. Agree with review below that it’s not a destination spot, but if you’re in the area I’d do a night
ScoutClearly marked directing you to the location. Bumpy dirt road until you reach the lot. It’s a parking lot camping location. Clearly marked camping area designated (5 days max). Clean, quiet, will stay again.
Guide
There are only a handful of sites, but we were fortunate to find one. The road was a little rough, but our lifted trailer of 22 feet in length cleared it just fine. There were other campers present. All were very friendly and quiet. There are hiking trails at the beginning of the road. There is also a potable water station and trash disposal at the Summit Rest Area just up the road. There was some trash at our site, but it was minimal, and we picked it up. Someone left us some great firewood, which we appreciated. We were very comfortable here. We stopped at the trailhead to pay the fee. There were envelopes and a pen.
Ranger
Good spot . Road was very iffy for my 2wd sedan, but I made it. Perfect on the way in or out of medicine bow.
Ranger
Stayed one night at the coordinates of camper 1 . Had a great time with my dog, very close to medicine bow, and awesome views of the river. Heard no cars throughout the night, there were three other campers I believe .
RangerStopped in late, made it fine with 2w low clearance, I stayed at the first spot, I’m not sure how many there were. Light traffic throughout the night, but overall peaceful stay.
GuideLovely location with secluded spots. The stars and view were awesome and the wind blew just right all night.
TravelerCoordinates are accurate to camp location spot, it is right off the highway, giving you easy access. I recommend getting there early because minimal site locations. It was a bit windy when we went but found a grouping of trees. We also were lucky enough to see a moose walk right behind our campsite. It stopped and noticed us but eventually walked off.
Scoutwouldn't recommend if you are tent camping, but i was very comfortable in my car despite very strong winds. ATT is intermittent but works nonetheless! no toilet paper in toilets so bring your own! nice quiet spot but as others have said, it's definitely not a destination spot
Traveler
Very peaceful campground, right by a lake with a nice view. People came and went throughout the day to go fishing at the lake and some with ATVs.
During the night there was only one other group of campers but its a fairly large campground with plenty of spots so they were far away. The total amount of offroading is ~3 miles as most of the drive is paved road. The dirt road is well taken care of and almost any car could make it. This area seemed to be part of a wildfire as there are many trees cut down that have scorch marks. The lake is relatively small but theres another body of water just across the far end. I didnt venture over there but youre able to see it across the lake.
GuideGreat camping spot within Medicine Bow National Forest. Some of this area requires a $5 day fee which can be paid online or using an envelop system with cash.
When you first pull onto FS RD 200 you will wind down past many easy to reach sites with 2wd. Small RVs should be fine as well. As you continue on, you will come across multiple splits in the road leading to more sites. If you are going when there is still a lot of snow melt (through late June) I would recommend 4x4 the further back you go.
I personally camped across from the Keystone Reservoir and it included a level site and a nice fire ring.
Traveler
Such a tranquil setting, we had the whole place to ourselves. About 3 miles off the beaten path , through the T&A Ranch. We will return.
ScoutStoped by and there are no camping signs everywhere
Scout
Stopped here on my way through. Got here around 3pm only 2 other people. Only a few spots are larger for 5th wheels etc. road was pretty bumpy coming down, you pass a few farms and a lot of private property which can be confusing. Boat launch doesn’t allow camping, camping is right around the bend. Right next to the river and absolutely beautiful. NO OPEN FIRES. Close to houses, secluded but not entirely out in nature by yourself. Would definitely camp again! Easy to find, good Verizon cell reception. Quiet spot.
Guide
The washboard road coming off the highway is harsh but it smooths out when you get closer to camp. There are at least three camp site I saw that are all secluded by boulders and trees. Each one has established fire sites. Others have chopped trees and branches from the nearby trees, but I'm not sure if that is accepted.
On a Sunday night, a group of younger people were drinking and enjoying a fire. They weren't too loud and packed up and left before it got too late. It looked like it gets pretty popular so I'd get there early if you're planning to go on a weekend.
You'll hear distant gunshots from hunters in case you or others in your party are sensitive to that. There were also plenty of gnats in early October!
Scout
We have a 36 ft fifthwheel. The road has washboard and is quite steep in places. The biggest issue was finding a place to turn around. We did find a place to stay but most were already filled with hunting campers that had been brought up and left. I'm guessing hunting season starts next week and they have staked their claim. No sites are level so bring your legos. We work from our camper so cell service was important. T-mobile was dismal, but Verizon was usable with a solid 4G 2bars. The location is beautiful and remote. Lots of trees and the aspen are turning yellow. Probably won't come back again but plan to hike around and enjoy the area while we are here.
GuideWe found a great spot right next to the river on forest road 330C near North Fork Campground. The area was fairly busy on Labor Day weekend but we were basically isolated in this spot. One family was camping a little further up the road, but we had zero traffic on our road and the spot was beautiful. We were nestled up against the Little Laramie River which was awesome. We did explore the area a little and found numerous dispersed camping spots in/around the area but none as nice as the spot that we settled on. The exact coordinates are:
41.35475° N, -106.16955° W
TravelerNice isolated spot in the National Forest, 5 mi from the main highway. Nice view with few fire rings. No one was around.
GuideA truly scenic spot where I saw that people were able to pull up an RV. I tent camped tucked into the forest a bit. The birch was dripping sap all night and I think I would have put my tent in the open if I had known. Some nice little fire pits. Don’t miss the turn into the camp circle, you’ll drive yourself up the mountain which is not very car friendly. Lastly there were swarms of mosquitoes who were out with vengeance, I managed to keep them at bay with few bites but don’t come Ill prepared to deal with skeeters
GuideIt was a nice area next to the river. Some tall grass but that wasn’t much a bother. I had no issues with mosquitoes. There are ground toilets, I do recommend packing in your own toilet paper because there was none while I was there. Several other people were camping nearby with no problems. It is next to a farm, which meant various wild and farm animal noises all night which kept me on my toes.
Video is of some of the noises going on throughout the night
Scoutthis was our second choice for a camp site, our 1st was the bridge upstream, and it was so grown up with weed there was no place to put a tent
GuideReview July 2023
FS 726 & FS728 (aka Govertment Gulch/Government Gully)
Medicine Bow NF
Laramie, WY
41.2430,-105.4487
14nt Stay Limit. $0
Elev 8743'
Ver 2-3b, ATT 3b, No booster
Dirt/Grass
Road is in good shape.
Dump & Water available at the Prison Museum, Water also available at the Maverick by the gas pumps.
Propane available at 3 locations, we used the 'Fly Shop', who were also a wealth of information on local happenings & fishing.
Laundry at Spic & Span. $3.00 wash, $1.00 for 32min dryer
Walmart & Ridleys for groceries. Farmers Market friday afternoons in season.
Some noise from I80 depending on wind direction.
Rig: 34' 5th Wheel, 13'4" Profile
Confusion about this road being closed.
FS 726 & 728 ARE on the Forrest Svc usage map.
We found FS728 to have a structure at the entrance from old HWY30. It looked like there might be a road back behind it, but we didn't want to risk trespass to find out.
FS726 IS open from the Old HWY 30 side (Exit 323 off I80), and able to camp within 100' of the road.
There is an open meadow at the entrance that can hold several rigs (any size) with reasonable spacing, but we were alone here most of the time so it wasn't an issue. There are spots further up that can hold small to medium sized rigs, or larger if you are adventurous/really good at leveling. Some have gorgous views overlooking the valley & snow capped mountains in the distance. We double checked with a Ranger before settting up and have had Rangers drive through twice since we've been here. No issues what so ever.
So why the confusion?
Looking at older maps, there appears to have once been an entrance to FS726 further West that no longer exists? It is accesible from Old HWY 30, at the 323 exit.
Additionally the road names 'Government Gully' & 'Government Gulch' used in some reviews are apparently not/no longer are FS726, although they seem to run together for a short bit? It's very confusing.
Highly recommend using a FS Usage Map when scouting this area to make certain you are where you think you are as the roads aren't the best marked we've ever seen and those that are there are pretty faded. If in doubt, the FS office in town was extremely kind & helpful in showing us where we could fit.
Our Spot:
We wound up here after 2hrs scouting out Pole Mountain/Pilot Hill area on the other side of I80.
This was the week before July 4th, and it was crowded with both campers, and RV's that seem to have been placed to mark their spot for the holiday (Slides not out, no camping stuff out etc). No judgements, they were within their 14day limit. Just had a hard time finding a spot on that side of I80.
Spots are pretty far back (although roads were pretty good), not many spots open, lots of cow patties, and not the levelist of sites. Gorgeous area, but we were here to see friends in Laramie and would be back & forth to town a lot, so didn't want a long drive just to get back to the highway each day.
We found it easy to find a spot on this side of I80 (everyone's on the other side).
The whole area is rolling meadows & forrest, so be prepared to spend some time leveling. In fact if you can, take a rest stop, have a snack, destress before entering & leveling... it might save a marraige.
Wildlife here has been fantastic. Pronghorns in the morning as I have my coffee, and Elk in the evenings... Every...Day.
There is no off roading in this area. It is marked at the entrance, and has wooden cross fences with signage at the back of the established sites further up the road. They take that 100' from road seriously.... nice about it... but to quote Gandolf 'You go thus far & no farther'.
CAUTIONS:
Exit 323 U25mph (really sharp).
This U curve is no joke. It's sharp, it's uphill/downhill grade, tilts slightly kind of like a roller coaster in the middle, and is a blind curve because of the trees. Not such a problem coming off Exit 323, the problem is more other drivers coming downhill at the curve from Old HWY30. We've seen 2 wipeouts that missed the curve (one a semi) and slide across oncoming (entrance to FS726) traffic. By the skid marks & disturbed ground, this isn't the first accident at this curve.
Brakes & Towing:
This is a mountain area. In only 6 days going back & forth the 8m to town to visit friends, we've seen 2 5th wheels pulling off I80 smoking like crazy, and 2 on the side of the road.
WIND:
Seriously, it gets windy here, and with no warning. Park accordingly, don't leave awnings out unattended, secure ground stuff. Our preffered scouted spot was beautiful until we moved the rig to it & found that there was no way to get level without putting our beam to the wind. After 3 tries, we opted for our 2nd choice where we could position nose to the wind & still get 'levelish'. Are we perfectly level, nope, but we aren't 'welcome to the carnival fun house' unlevel either :)
TravelerWe arrived around sunset for a quick night on our road trip heading West. There were some bugs out but nothing crazy. Peaceful sounds of birds and waterfowl. Fell asleep to thunderstorms way off in the distance. We stayed at first spot near the closest pit toilet, was a tad dirty but serviceable. Probably wouldn’t recommend for multiple nights and definitely not a destination type location but worked for us, lucky to have no major winds.
Dispersed camping near Rock River, Wyoming, offers a chance to immerse yourself in nature while enjoying the freedom of camping without the constraints of traditional campgrounds. With stunning landscapes and a variety of outdoor activities, this area is perfect for those seeking adventure and tranquility.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular dispersed campsite near Rock River, WY?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dispersed campground near Rock River, WY is White Rock Canyon Dispersed Site with a 3.3-star rating from 4 reviews.
What is the best site to find dispersed camping near Rock River, WY?
TheDyrt.com has all 27 dispersed camping locations near Rock River, WY, with real photos and reviews from campers.
