Best Equestrian Camping near Shoshone National Forest

Turpin Meadow Campground was a happy stumble-upon for us. We went to the Tetons and had no idea how crazy busy it would be, so were forced out of the park to find a place to stay. 

Truthfully, this campground wasn't much, and was kind of difficult to get to (at least the way we went in). It fulfilled all that we wanted it to do though. A place to park our car and utility trailer for the night and wake up early to go into the park. There was water and vault toilets on site, so that was nice. 

This is actually right next to (or apart of?) an equestrian park with lots of horses and horse corrals all around. It was truthfully a little spooky hearing the horses start to whinny in the middle of the night, but we got over that.

Stayed in mid-June when Yellowstone and Teton were brimming with tourists. We had booked a back-up RV spot near the south entrance to Teton, but after looking at it just filled our water there and left (it was basically an open field with 50 of your not best friends in RV's blasting music). Took a chance on Pacific Creek. All of the dispersed camping was taken, but the campground itself, which is at the end of the road, was about empty. For $10 we got a spacious site, table and fire ring. Water was available as were pit toilets. Looks like a great equestrian campground and we saw a few parties with horses. Make sure you make use of the bear boxes, as we saw plenty of bear prints and other sign within 200 yards of our site. Lovely trails leave right from here. The camp host is a Swiss ex-musician and all around nice guy.

Double Cabin Campground is a beautiful area, right next to the Wiggins Fork of the Wind River. Great fishing for brookies and cutthroat trout. There are corrals for horses nearby. There are plenty of places to camp off of the campground too. The only real issue is the camp host is aggressive with his duties. He visits often and even tells campers out of the campground nearby how to camp, maintain fires, and bear safety. Can be overbearing when trying to get away from it all. Other than than, this is a great area to spend time in. The pictures are from some of the just off campground area.

HeadWaters Rv campground is located in the perfect place right between Yellowstone and The Tetons. Perfect for exploring both Parks. The cell service is pretty spotty, but it’s great to just put down your phone and enjoy your surroundings. It is only 5 minutes walk from the campground to Snake River access. Fires are allowed at this campground. There are Rv, tent, and cabins to stay at. The cabins in the camp area are small but have full sized bunk beds and a desk and dresser. These cabins do not have water or electricity, but there are other cabins with power up the road. The tent and Rv spots are on gravel with lots of shade, a picnic table, and fire ring. Rv sites are Electric and water. There are so many activities to do. Along with the activities they have every day there is horse riding, guided fly fishing, hiking trails for everyone, bus tours, jr. rancher classes and so much more Also on site at the campground is a dish washing area next to the clean bathrooms and showers. There is a propane fill, fresh water fill, restaurant, gift shop, ATM machine, gas station, and bear boxes. I would definitely recommend this campground for any duration of trip.

Mid week during mid September and everything was pretty full, so we made the trek out of Tetons and up to this site. The sign at the road says trailhead, but if you keep making your way up, you’ll get to the sites. Bear boxes, rock fire ring, nice pit toilet, a frame to hang food, and horse camping too. Appears to be 4 established sites and a possible dispersed site near the horse area. It was very quiet and peaceful. There’s a map at the front showing all the trails that Box Creek connects to. Also, we saw dumpsters on the road in/out, not far from the turnoff.

A small, clean campground. Just a few minutes up the hill from Gardiner. 15+ campspots. Vault toilets, fire rings, picnic tables. Many spots on grass for comfy tent camping and some with big spots that will fit RVs. Upper part of the campground was very open. It was full of campers with their horse trailers as there are several trails around the campground. Eagle Creek runs along one side of the campground providing the only trees in the campground. 2 campspots tucked in the trees, the rest in the open. $7 per night as of May 2018.

We stopped there after a week of Yellowstone action arriving the Friday morning of the Memorial Day weekend with plans to resupply our little trailer, do some laundry, and get a proper shower just down the hill in Gardiner. A few spots were open. By early afternoon the camp was full. We spent Friday afternoon relaxing, reading, and watching the ridgeline above the campground for the occasional Bison that would pop up. Friday evening was a bit chaotic with the steady stream of vehicles pulling through the grounds looking for a place to camp. We spent part of Saturday resupplying at the grocery store and doing laundry in town. The laundrymat had 3 pay showers. $5 for 10min. While that may seem like a lot of money. When you have a weeks worth of camp stink on you, it’s totally worth it.

While the campground itself is not much to write home about, it’s proximity to Gardiner and the North entrance to Yellowstone made it a great place to stop for a resupply. If we find ourselves back in Gardiner, I would stay there again.