Fishing Bridge Wyoming Trip Feedback Please

kedanie wrote:
Well it looks like the Fishing bridge haters have arrived.

Most seem to talk about how miserable it is in the campground. Well, if you are looking for a campground to just hang out in, there are better options. If , however you are like most who travel to Yellowstone, the campground is not what you come to see. The actual time most will spend in the campground is eating dinner and sleeping. Most get up early, take a lunch with them, spend all day out in the park and return for dinner. Then it is out again to view animals in the evening or Ranger presentations at the many campfire programs, then back to get cleaned up and off to bed in preparation for the next day.

Fishing Bridge stays full for the most of the summer for a very good reason, convenience. If you don't like it, thanks for staying away and leaving room for those who do.

Keith

Totally agree! If you want to "camp" (hang around the campground all day), it's not for you. When I'm in Yellowstone, I'm out seeing the park from early in the morning 'til late in the evening. When I get back want a place with hookups to charge camera, phone, etc for the next days outing! Love this Park!!!

littlemo wrote:

kedanie wrote:
Well it looks like the Fishing bridge haters have arrived.

Most seem to talk about how miserable it is in the campground. Well, if you are looking for a campground to just hang out in, there are better options. If , however you are like most who travel to Yellowstone, the campground is not what you come to see. The actual time most will spend in the campground is eating dinner and sleeping. Most get up early, take a lunch with them, spend all day out in the park and return for dinner. Then it is out again to view animals in the evening or Ranger presentations at the many campfire programs, then back to get cleaned up and off to bed in preparation for the next day.

Fishing Bridge stays full for the most of the summer for a very good reason, convenience. If you don't like it, thanks for staying away and leaving room for those who do.

Keith

Totally agree! If you want to "camp" (hang around the campground all day), it's not for you. When I'm in Yellowstone, I'm out seeing the park from early in the morning 'til late in the evening. When I get back want a place with hookups to charge camera, phone, etc for the next days outing! Love this Park!!!

You guys crack me up. :R Just because someone doesn't want to camp in an RV Park doesn't mean they're sitting around at camp all day. WE spend all day hiking, exploring, sightseeing and geocaching, always taking off after an early breakfast and returning for a late dinner.

We were gone from around 9am - 7pm every day in Yellowstone. When we got back to camp we didn't watch TV and play with electronics. Instead we got a fire going and prepped a gourmet meal, which we cooked outdoors while watching the sunset. After dinner, we enjoyed a glass of wine and each others company, while watching the stars and listening to the sounds of nature. At Norris Campground we watched bison roaming along Gibbon River right from our camp chairs each evening. We have a Class B so phones and cameras charged via the inverter.

To each his own, so if you like Fishing Bridge that's awesome. But for us, the true Yellowstone experience included going to sleep each night and waking up each morning in a real campground. It was as meaningful to us as all the geysers, hot springs and wildlife we saw during the day.

I guess that all of the previous comments about personal preferences is just that. Each of us has our own priorities and expectations for what makes a "camping" experience for us, so why not accept the OP questions about Yellowstone without the qualifiers of "best"?!? :B:@ If you have kids, FB has great ranger programs, while I'm not sure what the others offer and it seems to be the most centrally located of the campgrounds.

Our 3 times into Yellowstone over the past 6 years we have dry camped and enjoyed it. Love Madison campground. HOWEVER, now that I am on a CPAP machine, we will probably make reservations for Fishing Bridge next spring on our way north, just for the electrical hookups and yes, it is handy to recharge camera batteries!!

As stated in previous posts, by mid May, you shouldn't have to worry about temp problems, except for maybe at night and draining your water hose. You'll be ahead of the big crowds anytime before school is out. We have also been there the last week of Aug. and no problem getting a dry camping spot. The families are pretty much cleared out and much easier to get around after Labor Day. In Sept. the bull elk are out gathering their clan and the bison bulls are doing battle as well. May see more young wildlife in May.

Figure out what type of amenities are most important for you and your family and select the campground that best fits those priorities and enjoy the park for what it has to offer. It truly is one of natures wonders. If the campground isn't what you expected, well, there is always next time and a different spot!!:B

I have staid at FB but would not recommend it if you do not have to stay there. I did so because of the length of my trailer.

The other campgrounds were nicer in that they had tables, fire rings and more space between trailers.

If you are small enough to fit else where and do not need full hook ups I would stay elsewhere. I wish I was smaller I would stay at three to four different campgrounds moving every couple of days seeing different parts of the park.

Ray552 wrote:
If you are small enough to fit else where and do not need full hook ups I would stay elsewhere. I wish I was smaller I would stay at three to four different campgrounds moving every couple of days seeing different parts of the park.

We downsized from a FW/truck combo to a 19' Class B about 8 months before we went to Yellowstone. We really discovered the joys of owning a small rig on that trip. We stayed at five different campgrounds in the Yellowstone/Grand Teton area. We loved not being married to one spot. We wouldn't have done that in our fiver. Fishing Bridge was the only campground that was NOT full over Memorial Day Weekend.

I had heard all the negative comments about Fishing Bridge too and was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. The sites are small but there was plenty of room for our MH & Jeep. We did not use the campground's showers or restrooms or the laundry so I can't comment on them.

No...there wasn't room for canopies and awnings or rugs. I don't think there was even a table! No fire ring that I recall. It's not a "resort" nor really a camping campground so in that respect it might be considered a "parking lot" but then that's what you're doing there anyway. PARKING. Who sits in camp all day when you're in Yellowstone anyway?

It is expensive though and the geezer pass is not honored.

We were there in mid August and it. was. crowded. One of the reasons is the humongous tour buses that disgorge their passengers all at one time to swarm the point of interest. Then there are the jams. Elk jams. Deer jams. Swan jams. and the big Buffalo Jams. You don't anywhere fast in Yellowstone!

dodge guy wrote:
also is there a private campground along the Beartooth hwy?

There are campgrounds along Beartooth but I think most are National Forest CGs. I *think* the Top of the World store has a small campground associated with it.

We did the Beartooth/Chief Joseph drive as a day trip from Buffalo Bill State Park just west of Cody. Absolutely gorgeous, amazing drive. Loved it!

KarenS144 wrote:
...but then that's what you're doing there anyway. PARKING. Who sits in camp all day when you're in Yellowstone anyway?

No one sits at camp all day at Yellowstone. But MOST people who go there want to be immersed in it's natural beauty 24/7. That's why all 400+ dry camping sites at Bridge Bay were taken when we were there -- yet we had no trouble getting into Fishing Bridge at 6pm, on a holiday weekend, without a reservation. It appears that many would rather step out of their camper and see trees, water and buffalo -- instead of a wall of other RVs. I know I certainly would.

SwanInWA wrote:

KarenS144 wrote:
...but then that's what you're doing there anyway. PARKING. Who sits in camp all day when you're in Yellowstone anyway?

No one sits at camp all day at Yellowstone. But MOST people who go there want to be immersed in it's natural beauty 24/7. That's why all 400+ dry camping sites at Bridge Bay were taken when we were there -- yet we had no trouble getting into Fishing Bridge at 6pm, on a holiday weekend, without a reservation. It appears that many would rather step out of their camper and see trees, water and buffalo -- instead of a wall of other RVs. I know I certainly would.

When we go back we will try a different CG and I also love being farther away from others and seeing nature as close to nature as we can get BUT to slam Fishing Bridge because it has small sites and it's really not for "camping" is doing a disservice to those that are asking about it. The forest in front of our site looked pretty up close and personal and a whole lot like the forest through out the rest of the park.

And for those that need hook ups for cPAP machines (like my DH) may not have a choice. We're good for a couple of nights without running the gen to recharge bats but will need to do so before the 3rd night. Then you've got to deal with the gen haters who shoot daggers at your & your site even when you run it in the time frame. I don't like hearing gens either so I understand... sorry drifting from the topic.

And drifting a bit farther from the topic.. We camped in Theodore Roosevelt Nat Park in late July. AMAZING place. We had our own herd of buffalo in camp on our campsite and a wild stallion that cruised through our campsite a couple of times. We were sort of trapped in the Jeep when we got back to camp one evening for 15 minutes or so while the buffalo herd moved through.

KarenS144 wrote:
...BUT to slam Fishing Bridge because it has small sites and it's really not for "camping" is doing a disservice to those that are asking about it.

It's not really though. Most people expect camping to include some sort of fire ring, and at the very least a picnic table. None of the positive reviews (except yours) even mention that FB doesn't have either. The negative reviews are just as important as the positive ones in making an informed decision.

I'd rather see people "slam" Fishing Bridge itself, instead of the people reviewing it. Several posters on this thread stated that people who want a "real campground" must be sitting on their butts at camp all day. THAT is ludicrous. We all have different needs and wants.