Best Dispersed Camping near Ten Sleep, WY

Wonderful dispersed camping spot! It’s a big area for multiple groups. There may be other people around you depending when you go. Next to some rushing water which is nice!

This is a one of those secret locations that you look for, the one you don't want to give away but show all your friends pictures of it. If this was a fishing spot you wouldn't tell other anglers about it. If it was a special hunting location you would keep your lips sealed.

Crazy woman canyon gets it's name from a few different legends, but that's not the point of this gem. The tranquility, peace, towering canyon walls that make you feel so small, the freedom of the outdoors and back country quietness, that's what this place should be known for.

We saw wildlife, we relaxed with the sound of the river, this was an unforgettable experience.

Keep in mind there are no facilities here, no toilets, no potable water, no showers, you need to pack in and pack out. This is true back-country camping. The roads are narrow and traffic goes both ways, we had to pass another truck and were just inches from the edge with rushing water below. But this is Wyoming, this is the wild west, one of the great frontiers of the American expansion.

Come here, it's worth it.

The specific location given is about 4.5 miles in from hwy 16, and there are numerous areas to set up your camper on the way in. The farther you go, the more private it is. The dirt roads are well maintained, but still a fair amount of rock, so slower speeds are safer. The entire Bighorn NF area is saturated with dispersed camping.

The limit is 2 weeks, and Ranger request that you move about 5 miles, if you want to stay longer. There are locals who come to ride their dirt bikes and ATV's in the area, more so on the weekends, but has not been too much of a nuisance. There is plenty of deadwood in the areas to gather as firewood, and Canyon Creek has a brisk stream of water flowing. Satellite images show it dry.

Elevation of this area is about 9500', so temps are cool and comfortable even in August.

Very dark and clear night sky is great for star gazing. And there is a park dump/fresh water station a very short distance away. Not sure about other cell services, but Zero T-mobile signal, but I had just purchased the Starlink system before heading this way and I'm getting high-speed internet and Wi-Fi calling, in the middle of nowhere! This is my favorite boondocking area so far. Note, this area is suitable for most Big Rigs

We enjoyed our stay here, many spots to pick from, but a few things to be advised about. 

1. When we arrived it looked like a lot of the locals"dropped" their campers there for storage to avoid paying storage fees. However, while we were there the National Forest staff came in several times and started tagging these RVs and most of them were removed within a week or so. 

2. This place is a haven for SxS and ATV traffic on the weekend so it can get loud and very dusty 

3. Hundreds of free-range cattle, so if you are not comfortable with them walking in and through your campsite you may want to pick another location. 

4. There is only one place in all the area that has cell coverage and turns out we camped on that hill without knowing it so we had traffic all day with people parking in and around our campers to use their phones. 

We did a video review of this spot  if you are interested here is the link https://youtu.be/gpm9THujEow 

We enjoyed our stay even with those items we listed above, would stay here again for sure. Thank you to the National Forest Staff for patrolling this area!!!

Visited in August 2024

The Bighorns have an abundance of great dispersed camping, but this site stands out as being much more protected from road noise and general traffic. Bonus points for the gorgeous creek running through. Several camping locations along a steep but 2WD-friendly road, some of them suitable for large groups.

I was planning on just checking out the canyon road for a day trip and then heading out to camp somewhere else. But when I arrived, I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of dispersed camping sites right on the edge of the river, and decided to stay! Most sites had stone fire rings. Very quiet and not much traffic aside from other daytime visitors. The river provided the perfect white noise to fall asleep to. No cell service for AT&T when in the canyon, but I had service just before driving down.

The camping spots ate right next to the canyon toad which weaves through. So many large boulders which look incredible. And there is a nice river.

You can bring a small sedan into the canyon road its not bumpy. First come first serve i was able to find a spot.

Crazy Woman Canyon Road starts high on an open hilltop and then descends deep into a lush and beautiful canyon. The road follows the river with large boulders stacked upon each other to make up the canyon walls. This canyon worth exploring! If you go at the right time, you may even see some wildlife.

The road was dirt but it was easy to navigate but take it slow and be careful as there are a couple of rough spots. Hesitate travel on this road after a heavy rain, as any kind of washout or slick conditions could make travel hazardous. During and after a storm the road may be impassable, even with a four-wheel-drive vehicle.

There are many free dispersed primitive campsites along this road, including one next to a nice waterfall.

Gorgeous views, creek is so peaceful. A bunch of dispersed sites.

Don’t think we found the exact spot this individual stayed at as we came up on a pay campground known as doyle, but if you drive past it and over a cow guard there is a place to park your car and more primitive dispersed like sites available. Solid views and a little away from other campers.

We ventured out here in our 26’ bumper pull camper for the night of 6/19. Several trailers and campers looked like they had been posted up there for a while. 

Pros:

-Lots of pull off spots accessible for car camping and very small campers

-Beautiful wildflowers at this time of year-remote and peaceful!

-main dirt was mostly manageable with our camper, some potholes and mud though 

Cons:-

very rainy, hence lots of mud, when we went

-most of the campsites seemed to be washed out right now and unaccessible with our camper

-no accessible turnarounds with the camper until Circle Pond Campground at the end of the road

-bugs were really bad

-no Verizon cell signal

-single lane dirt road just had a couple sporadic pull offs to allow for passing vehicles from other direction

There are many spots along Circle Park Rd. You can be in the woods or out in the open like I was so I could get solar and starlink. Lots have stone fire rings. Verizon coverage is decent along the road, but I turned off on FR 375 and the Verizon died where I was 44.283926, -106.962595 . I spent time looking for moose, but never saw one until one triggered my security camera. I guess I needed to just get up early and sit on my porch. I found water and a dump site in Buffalo at the Cenex gas station. It was free. Be aware that folks will bring their dirt bikes and ATVs. A local pulled up 100 feet from me over a weekend, ran his generator until 11 and blasted country music, and his kids ran dirty bikes all Friday and Saturday in a circle next to my camp. There's plenty of other forest roads near here if that thing concerns you.

Crazy Woman Road lives up to her name. The road is one lane with a few wide spots to pass oncoming vehicles. It starts off flat but drops steeply and continues the downward angle. It’s 15 miles if you go all the way to 87 and 5 miles until private land starts and no camping there. I would not be comfortable taking a heavy load this way. We passed 3 camps that were not bad to get to if they are open. After a bit of driving you come upon an open area to camp. People set up their tent camp across the road too. We loved this spot! It’s right next to a river with rapids that are steep enough to be considered small waterfalls. There are 5 fire pits here that are spaced around the outside of the area. You would be hard pressed to get larger trailers in here. We loved sitting by the water on some large boulders. The water is great white noise too.

I made the mistake of biking down this road forgetting I had to go back up the hill, it’s a big hill, u don’t need much clearance on ur car but it’s kinda gnarly, don’t take a trailer/camper

Awesome camping. Beautiful views. Water available from steam. No restrooms and no trash

Tried to camp here last Thursday, but both entrances are closed for construction Monday-Friday.

Like camping in a deserted trailer hood. Trailers park and then are deserted leaving no room for anyone else

Nice, quiet with good view and fire pit. Camping right next to the creek, listen to water and birds humming, perfect white noise to sleep with. We get there early evening before sunset and another camper but is.

Currently closed about 10 minutes from where google maps was taking us without an indication why.