kknowlton wrote:
We found to our chagrin that the Provincial Parks in Canada open reservations in January for the summer - we were too late to reserve good sites there for this summer, and had to make alternate plans. So - January for the Canadian parks. Private parks there, I have no idea, but July and early August would definitely be peak visiting time for the Canadian Rockies, for sure.
Yellowstone opens reservations in May for the FOLLOWING year (i.e. May 2016 to reserve summer 2017 sites). Not sure about the Tetons; we booked our site at Colter Bay RV Park (not the same as Colter Bay CG) in January this year, for this summer.
Ivylog wrote:
We will be doing, and have done about every other year, 2-3 months out West without advanced reservations and I'm 42' plus a car... many of the places we stay at do not take reservations... that includes NPs. I will call a private CG after lunch to see if they have a site for that night when traveling.
At 20'... enjoy your trip and just wing it. A couple days before a long weekend, find a nice spot and stay put until it's over.
thanks for the replies know and ivy.
I do tend to "wing it a bit" but also want to make sure I'm not wasting too much time finding a spot to sleep.
I will be doing some 1st come 1st serve sites, but am not sure how they work. I know I have to be early....but what can I do while I wait? Can I make breakfast, do laundry(if there is laundry there) leave on a bike for a while etc? How long does it usually take to get a spot? I see some places show when they filled up but not how long you have to wait.
I'll likely try to get a spot at one of the campgrounds near yellowstone lake, as they all seem to be by reservation. I'll also check out the canadian CGs and try to get some reservations for some of those. I'll also reserve a spot at lime kiln in WA.
