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Camper submitted image from Rex Hale Campground

Rex Hale Campground

Located 15 miles from Yellowstone's east entrance along US Highway 14, Rex Hale Campground sits in a level valley beside the Shoshone River within campgrounds near Shoshone National Forest. The Forest Service facility accommodates both tents and RVs across approximately 30 sites, with eight sites offering electrical hookups and water connections on the campground's right side.

The Shoshone River flows along the southern edge of the property, accessible via footpaths that lead down to the water. Sites are spacious and gravel-surfaced, though tree cover remains minimal throughout the campground. Brent K. notes the campground "was quiet" apart from "the occasional running generator." Wind can be significant—strong enough to damage improperly secured tents, according to multiple reports.

Each site includes a fire ring, picnic table, bear box, and lantern pole. Vault toilets are distributed throughout the campground and consistently receive positive mentions for cleanliness. Potable water comes from spigots located near the restroom facilities. The campground operates on an honor system when hosts are absent, with fees ranging from $15 for non-electric sites to $20 for those with hookups.

Reservations are available through Recreation.gov, though first-come sites often remain available outside peak summer months. The season typically runs from mid-May through mid-September. No dump station exists on-site, but Buffalo Bill State Park near Cody provides this service. Cell coverage is limited to nonexistent throughout the area.

Bear activity occurs regularly in the region—grizzly bears and cubs have been spotted within minutes of the campground entrance. The facility is named for a firefighter who died in the 1937 Blackwater Fire, with a memorial located 1.5 miles away. Nearby alternatives include Newton Creek Campground and Clearwater Campground for those seeking additional options along the Yellowstone corridor.

Description

Overview

Rex Hale Campground is located along the Buffalo Bill Scenic Byway about 36 miles west of Cody, in northwestern Wyoming. It is just over 16 miles east of Yellowstone National Park's east entrance. The surrounding area offers many outdoor recreational opportunities, including fishing, hiking and viewing local wildlife. The campground is named after Rex Hale, one of 15 firefighters who died in the 1937 Blackwater Fire, which burned more than 1,700 acres of Forest Service lands within the Shoshone National Forest.

Recreation

Great opportunities for hiking, fishing, scenic driving and wildlife viewing are available around the campground. The North Fork of the Shoshone River is a popular fly-fishing location for rainbow and Yellowstone cutthroat trout. A firefighter memorial is located along the highway, just over a mile west of the campground. Forest Service Trail 758 leads to two additional memorials, which mark the locations where other firefighters lost their lives in the Blackwater Fire. Mummy Cave is less than a mile from the campground. This historical site was discovered in 1957 and found to have been occupied for a period of over 9,000 years. Many artifacts, including a mummified ancient inhabitant, were excavated from the large alcove, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.

Facilities

The campground offers several campsites, some of which have electric hookups. Each site is equipped with a table, campfire ring and food storage locker. Potable water, vault toilets, and trash collection are provided. Campers are allowed to gather firewood in the area.

Natural Features

The campground is situated near the banks of the North Fork of the Shoshone River and offers views of spectacular red cliffs, where bighorn sheep may be seen early in the season. A wide variety of wildlife lives in the surrounding area. Visitors often glimpse grizzly bears, deer, elk, bison, moose, fox, coyotes and bald eagles.

Nearby Attractions

Pahaska Tepee, west of the campground, is home to Buffalo Bill's original hunting lodge, built in 1904. Tours are offered daily between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Pahaska also offers guided horseback rides, a gift shop, restaurant and lodging. Yellowstone National Park's east entrance is 18 miles from the campground via the Buffalo Bill Cody Scenic Byway. The park offers unparalleled wildlife viewing opportunities, as well as breathtaking scenery and unique geological features. The small, historic city of Cody offers a variety of dining, lodging and shopping options. The Buffalo Bill Historical Center offers extensive displays of Greater Yellowstone natural history, Plains Indians artifacts, western art, firearms, Buffalo Bill memorabilia and a wild sheep exhibit.

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NOTICE: At this time, we are not accepting reservations for the listed campgrounds, but rather are available first-come/first-served. NOTE: The Clearwater Group site and the Sunlight Rangers Cabin continue to accept reservations.Please continue to monitor Recreation.gov to see if reservation status changes.

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Location

Public Campground

Rex Hale Campground is located in Wyoming

Directions

From Cody, Wyo., follow Sheridan Avenue west through Cody until the road leaves town and becomes the Buffalo Bill Cody Scenic Byway (U.S. Highway 14/16/20). The campground is located 36 miles from Cody, on the south side of the highway. It is between Newton Campground to the west and Clearwater Campground to the east.

Address

203A YELLOWSTONE AVE
Cody, WY 82414

Coordinates

44.4566667 N
109.7258333 W

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Connectivity

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Connectivity

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Access

Drive-In
Park next to your site
Walk-In
Park in a lot, walk to your site.

Site Types

Tent Sites
RV Sites
Standard (Tent/RV)
Group

Features

For Campers

Trash
Reservable
Drinking Water
Electric Hookups
Toilets
Alcohol

For Vehicles

Water Hookups
Big Rig Friendly

Contact

General Info

Reservations

Make reservation

Drive Time

2 hrs 24 min from Billings, MT
3 hrs 40 min from Bozeman, MT
6 hrs 54 min from Idaho Falls, ID
7 hrs 37 min from Pocatello, ID

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5 Stars

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4.5

out of 5

14 Reviews

Numerous guests pointed out the spacious, level sites with mountain views and clean facilities just 15 minutes from Yellowstone. Many campers appreciated the peaceful riverside location and affordable rates, though some noted limited amenities like no showers.

Joachim M.

Guide

Reviewed Sep. 3, 2023

Decent

An amazing camp host, Tom, made us feel welcome and gave good advice. Good view, electricity hookup, and fairly quiet, even though it is close to the road. Not the best toilets, no shower, dumping, or water, however we were told that the larger campsites in Yellowstone would allow dumping free of charge for the Rex Hale guests.

Site005

Month of VisitAugust

Kristi

Traveler

Reviewed Jul. 25, 2022

Great little campground

Nice little quiet campground outside of east entrance of Y’stone. Super hot during day but cooled down considerably at night. Sites are spaced out well. Vault toilets were well’ish maintained.

Month of VisitJuly

Patrick W.

Ranger

Reviewed Jul. 19, 2022

Nice spot east of Yellowstone

Stopped here for one night with no reservation. Really scenic, and quiet even though we weren’t too far off the main road. Pretty river behind our site. Sites offered decent room to spread out.

Month of VisitJune

Patrick W.

Ranger

Reviewed Jul. 19, 2022

Another great Wyoming campground

Stopped here for one night with no reservation. Really scenic, and quiet even though we weren’t too far off the main road. Pretty river behind our site. Sites offered decent room to spread out.

Month of VisitJune

Tarrah C.

Legend

Reviewed Jul. 13, 2022

Nice

This was a one night stop for me. It was lovely to wake up next the the river and eat breakfast. The site had bear boxes and dumpsters. The bathrooms were clean.

Site6

Month of VisitJuly

(11) View All

Deken S.

Guide

Reviewed Jun. 25, 2022

Clean, quiet, close to Yellowstone. Primitive

We loved it, wish we could have stayed longer. But, Yellowstone was closed and was going to be for a while and we had reservations down the road so we moved on

Site5

Month of VisitJune

Brent K.

Guide

Reviewed Oct. 30, 2021

Quiet Campground East of Yellowstone NP

This campground is conveniently located about 15 miles from the east entrance of Yellowstone NP. It is very scenic set against the backdrop of the Shoshone River, which there are a couple of footpaths down to the river's shore. Apart from the occasional running generator, the campground was quiet.

There are the ususal amenities of a tent pad, fire pit, picnic table, and bear bin available. The vault restrooms were clean throughout our stay.

There is little to no tree cover throughout the campground, but worse than the lack of shade was the wind, which was bad even by Wyoming standards.

Month of VisitJuly

(8) View All

MickandKarla W.

Legend

Reviewed Oct. 11, 2021

Great Campground

Access to Rex Hale was easy following the website instructions. Basically, you follow the signs through Cody to Yellowstone National Park via US 14, the park is right off US 14. There was no formal check-in. We had a reservation and that was noted on the post at our back-in site 9 with 50/30 AMP. There was confusion on our part whether we needed to get water before or after arriving based on several campground(CG) reviews. We called the ranger station the day prior who confirmed the water was on at the CG. Then we found out upon arrival that the sites as you come into the CG on the right side of the road up to site 12 have not only electric but also water! This was a recent addition and why water had been nonexistent or off in recent CG reviews. We were told there was a camp host but the host had actually already departed for the season. There was no cell signal nor OTA channels. There are about 30 sites with only sites 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 11, and 12 having electric and, now, water. The middle sites, the far CG end to the east and along the riverside of the CG have no utilities. There are water spigots periodically placed throughout the CG. There are several vault toilets but no showers. There is no dump station in the CG, but there is one in Buffalo Bill State Park near Cody. We were staying at an RV park in Cody and just dumped there. We were very impressed with this CG and really enjoyed our spacious site, the mountain views and the peacefulness of the place. We were here when they closed the CG for the season on 20 September and would definitely come back.

Site12

Month of VisitSeptember

(10) View All

N I.

Legend

Reviewed Oct. 1, 2021

Beauty in the Valley

Open: May Mid - Sep Mid

Reservations: 877-444-6777 or recreation.gov

Fees: $20.00 for single with electric

$15.00 for single with no electric

Accessible to persons with mobility issues

water pit toilet bear boxes fire ring picnic table lantern pole

Nice wide and clean sites with flat surface topped with gravel. Campground is more or less level but the background views are just amazing. The campground has sites that are great for the larger RV's and one of the few along the 14/16/20 highway that has electricity. Most of the sites are open which works for solar but not so great in the summer with the heat. There are a lot of trees but they are a bit scrawny. The Shoshone River runs along the side of the campground.

The campground was named after a firefighter who died in the Blackwater Fire in 1937. There is a Fire Fighter Memorial about 1 1/2 miles from the campground

Month of VisitSeptember

(16) View All

Ryan H.

Scout

Reviewed Sep. 7, 2020

Great spot if available

Great camp site! Not far from entrance of Yellowstone. Restroom was very clean. If you find one available, stay!!

Sarah V.

Traveler

Reviewed Aug. 19, 2020

Beautiful setting close to Yellowstone

The mountains surrounding this campground are breathtaking. There is a small river running through the south part of the grounds, and you can hear it at night. It’s very quiet and relaxing. Few amenities, but great if you don’t need them.

(5) View All

Meg K.

Traveler

Reviewed Aug. 2, 2020

Stunning scenery!!

Just 15 miles outside of Yellowstone, with several inexpensive first come first serve sites. Near the beautiful Shoshone River, private area. Heavy duty metal containers for food storage against bears. Fire pit and picnic table in each spot. Clean bathrooms.

Tonya Y.

Guide

Reviewed Jun. 25, 2017

Great quiet little campground, minutes from Yellowstone

We were visiting Yellowstone and camped here, just 15 or so minutes from the Northeasr entrance. It was early June and we did not have a reservation, but we almost has the place to ourselves. We were tent camping, but each site could be tent or RV.

it is a nice flat campground full of beautiful wildflowers and scrub bushes. Vault toilets which were super clean and drinking water from faucets outside the bathrooms.

Steel bear boxes at each campsight which I would suggest using as we saw a mmma Grizzly and two cubs not 15 minutes from camp as we entered Yellowstone.

We paid in the honor system as we never saw a sign of the camp hosts being present. We paid $10 a night with our senior pass

We didn't see much wildlife in camp, but there was evidence of them and a beautiful river runs behind the camp.

Wehave a great Big Agnes tent I would suggest that you secure your tent well, and use all guy lines . It was unbelievably windy and two other campers' tents were mangled when we arrived at the site, due to wind.

Although it is fairly close to the highway, it drops down into a small valley and we could not see or hear the cars going by.

Site18

Month of VisitJune

(10) View All

Gretchen B.

Ranger

Reviewed Jun. 24, 2017

Near east gate of Yellowstone

This campground has pros and cons. It lacks trees, but has neat craggy rock formations surrounding it. There are both sites with and without RV hookups and a river flows past the campground. From the campground it's only about a 15 minute drive to the east gate of Yellowstone National Park. In the other direction, Cody, WY and its world-class museum are about a 45 minute drive.

Month of VisitJune

Frequently Asked Questions

What amenities are available at Rex Hale Campground?

Rex Hale Campground offers basic amenities including clean pit toilets, fire rings, picnic tables, lantern poles, and bear boxes for food storage. Some sites have electric hookups (30/50 AMP), while others are non-electric. The campground has both tent and RV camping options with nice wide campsites. There's access to the Shoshone River with footpaths leading down to the shore. Note that the campground doesn't provide showers, water hookups, or a dump station, though nearby facilities in Yellowstone may offer dumping services.

Where is Rex Hale Campground located in Wyoming?

Rex Hale Campground is located in northwest Wyoming, approximately 15 miles from the East Entrance of Yellowstone National Park. The campground sits along the scenic Shoshone River and is easily accessible from US Highway 14. You can reach it by following the signs through Cody toward Yellowstone National Park. The campground is surrounded by breathtaking mountains and craggy rock formations, offering a picturesque setting for campers exploring the greater Yellowstone area.

Do I need reservations for Rex Hale Campground?

Reservations are available for Rex Hale Campground and can be made through recreation.gov or by calling 877-444-6777. While some sites are first-come, first-served, making a reservation is recommended during peak season (May through September) when visiting Yellowstone area campgrounds. During quieter periods in early June or shoulder seasons, you might find availability without a reservation. The campground is typically open from mid-May through mid-September.

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