Fishing Bridge Yellowstone

We stayed at Red Rock RV Park in 2014 for about two weeks. Great place, great people and great location. We saw Moose and a Grizzly Bear there. And the rumors are that Big Foot lives in the woods, across the road from the park.

When we were there the "B.F.R.O. (Big Foot Research Organization), which my, then 9YO loves, were filming in the area.

Started reading more on the parks around Yellowstone everyone is talking about. I have read on some other sites to stay in Idaho

We stayed at Red Rock RV Park for several days on a visit to Yellowstone a few years ago. It is also in Island Park, ID. We enjoyed the area in its own right. It is about a 20 mile drive in to the West Entrance.

Bonefish wrote:
Started reading more on the parks around Yellowstone everyone is talking about. I have read on some other sites to stay in Idaho. What SP is in Idaho that is fairly close to Yellowstone. The other thing we have 4 small dogs thinking of finding a boarding kennel for our day trips to the park. Any within the area? I have not decided what time of next year we will be leaving. My plan was start out around the middle of May from TX, we will not be in a rush either.

Sharon

The Idaho State Park closest to Yellowstone is Henry's Lake State Park - here is the web site.

Henry's Lake State Park

I don't see much on-line for pet boarding in the area - you might check with the Chamber of Commerce in West Yellowstone.

We also stayed in FB this August and yes it is crowded/tight but we were out most days anyway sightseeing which is why we were there! We went To West Yellowstone on Friday and before we got out of the park we met a string of vehicles about 3 miles long. We thought it was animals somewhere, but when we finally got to the exit/gate we figured out that it was just backlog from So many coming into the park!! The entrance had all 3 gates open & there was still many waiting at to get in! I'll have to admit it was close to noon, probably 12:30ish so if you choose to stay in West Yellowstone or Baker's Hole CG, I'd suggest going into the park really early to miss that mess! Probably it being a Friday didn't help any but I'd avoid it if I could!

Also, another tip...If you use the laundry at FB go by 8:00 am. We got there shortly after & just in time to get several machines. Most people needed several machines like we did thus creating a backlog there too, but everyone was very patient.

Started reading more on the parks around Yellowstone everyone is talking about. I have read on some other sites to stay in Idaho. What SP is in Idaho that is fairly close to Yellowstone. The other thing we have 4 small dogs thinking of finding a boarding kennel for our day trips to the park. Any within the area? I have not decided what time of next year we will be leaving. My plan was start out around the middle of May from TX, we will not be in a rush either.

Sharon

We stayed in Fishing Bridge in 2001 so our experience is old....we stayed there for full hook-ups. There was room under our awning for our,table to eat. Like mentioned...it was a place to sleep...we spent days in Yellowstone. I do remember at the time, no canvas campers, only self-contained units allowed in this campground...we got lots of info on bears when we checked in...and instructions to keep everything food related in camper or car. Our last night there, while eating dinner, Rangers came around instructing everyone to put all food things away at night...grills, table, chairs, table cloths...Bears had been sighted in area. That night, I woke to sound of something walking between our camper and Tahoe...window at head of our bed was open. I then heard a growl as the "footsteps" walked around our camper...yikes! The next morning, campers out talking about the 2 bears wandering around the campers! That, and the herd of bison that galloped down the road past our site...exciting...but understood the "no canvas rule"!!! There was a fire outside East entrance...driving wildlife into Park....

We stayed at Fishing bridge this July for 7 nights.

Full hookups and located close enough to Yellowstone Lake, Hayden Valley, Canyon, Tower and Lamar Valley made it the prefect location for us. Very friendly neighbors every night(8 sets of neighbors) made up for the tight spacing and honestly, we did a late breakfast, then a grilled/cold lunch on the road while sightseeing and late dinner back at camper, so extra space would not have been used by us.

Now the Old Faithful, Norris, Madison, and Mammoth was a haul and might have been better spend coming from West Yellowstone.

If I had to do it over again I would do 4 nights at Fishing Bridge and 3 nights West Yellowstone.

I did enjoy getting up early and having the park pretty much to myself until about 9:30 am everyday, but by 10:00 am everyone was arriving or driving about.

Dean

For starters, nothing in YNP is "centrally located" except Norris Canyon Road which cuts across the middle of the park east/west. Everything else is on the "Grand Loop" road. So there is some other point on the Grand Loop that's as far away as you can get from Fishing Bridge without leaving the park.
Fishing Bridge was retro fitted for hookups. YNP was created in 1872. The Model T was created in 1908.
If you're looking for FHUs including WIFI and Cable, Grizzly is two blocks from Yellowstone's west gate and 14 miles from the Grand Loop. But those 14 miles aren't in a tunnel. You're in the park and can enjoy the "Buffalo Jams" as they cross the road every morning. (Don't try to drive through them. They have skulls as hard as concrete and brains the size of a pea.) One morning on the way in, I saw a young lady with a severely dented car door complaining to a ranger. Buffalo don't carry collision insurance.
And if you go while schools are in session, crowds will be smaller. Before the middle of June or after Labor Day. And be advised that YNP is 8,000 ft. above sea level, so bring a light jacket or sweater. You'll need it when the sun is rising or setting.
Finally, when you're that close, you also have to visit Grand Teton NP. Its directly south of YNP but completely different. Even wildlife. Moose and elk are abundant, but no buffalo unless one gets lost. There are two side roads you need to explore. Signal Mountain Road goes all the way to the top of Signal Mountain, and there's a viewing platform at the top where you can see for miles. I saw a hot air balloon floating by below me.
And the Jenny Lake Loop road has a small turnout that holds about six cars. Sit on one of the rocks next to the lake and feel your blood pressure drop about 30 points. Humans could not possibly create something that beautiful.
Then drive into Jackson. Stop in at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar. Most of the bar stools are saddles, so saddle up and order a burger and a beer.

Fishing bridge reservation are not site specific only my length - when you check in they assign a site number

If you can do without hookups for your stay, Madison, Bridge Bay or perhaps Canyon (depending on the size of your rig) may work well for you. They also take reservations, and yes, you should get them as far ahead as possible (a year is not out of the question).

Fishing Bridge is indeed tight and there are no picnic tables; you park your tow vehicle or toad right next to your camper. Backing into your site can be - well, interesting. Location is great, but we also prefer Grizzly. Baker's Hole is very nice, but as others noted - first come, first served only.

From our stay in FB last year, I'd say all the loops are pretty tight. It didn't seem that other sites were very much bigger than ours. The CG road - at least last year - was in bad shape, lots of big potholes. Perhaps it's been fixed; haven't been there this year.