yellowstone park-i want to camp in one place, where should I

[Bocephus660]

i will be making a trip to yellowstone park later this month. i will be coming in from livingson and heading south down into the park. my plan is to unhook the 5th wheel at a campsite, leave it there for my 3-4 day visit at the park, sight see numerous places, and return to my site every evening. i am looking for advice as to which camp site i should chose. i will mostly be around the southern loop and will drive out to beartooth pass and cheif joseph highway one of the days as well.

1. i would prefer something i can call ahead and reserve
2. i dont need full hookups, but electricity would be nice (not a necessity though) (if no electricity, i would need to be able to run the generator to recharge)
3. i will have a dog with me (im not sure if some areas have a "no pet" policy or not...??

[TexasShadow]

If you can't get into Fishing Bridge, try Bridge Bay next and then Canyon. Any of these 3 will be ok for getting around the park to sight see, etc.

[Wheel_Estate]

the name of the park outside west gate is probaly Yellowstone Grizzly RV Park (West Yellowstone, MT) we have stayed there ...and enjoyed the camping

[D_E_Bishop]

naturist wrote:
I'm trying to keep from pointing and laughing.

You do realize, I hope, that Yellowstone is the most visited National Park in the entire US, and July/August are the height of busy season. Reservations or blind dumb luck are the only way to get into any accommodations in the park, and reservations fill up 100% months in advance. But you might catch a cancellation. Finally, dogs are pretty much not welcome anywhere in the park, so you'll have to keep it on a short leash.

The only campground in Yellowstone that has ANY hookups in Yellowstone is at Fishing Bridge. You might consider trying the campground at Flagg Ranch, which is the northernmost campground in Grand Tetons NP, but is only 6 miles outside the southern gate of Yellowstone. When we were there a year ago in June, it had just reopened after being closed for a while for renovations. They may have some openings, and that's pretty close. Go for it, check the Yellowstone reservation system, it is possible you'll get lucky. But do not count on being able to have your pick of multiple open sites.

I kinda think that the most visited NP is The Great Smokey Mountains, followed by , Grand Canyon, Yosemite and FORTH, Yellowstone. It doesn't make any difference when it comes to finding a place because as the replies all say good luck at this point in time. There is a highly recommended campground in West Yellowstone just outside the West entrance to YS, can't remember the name. Actually there are several in the West YS area.

We have always stayed in the park because the DW is a wizz at getting last minute reservations.

[ReneeG]

Reservations right now will definitely be a problem but check anyway. You didn't say what size your fiver is. For us, we would not stay in the park due to the size of ours (35' 5') unless we could get an end site in Madison so that we wouldn't have to drive around a loop to get to it (internal loop roads are tight then add units sticking into it and you've got a problem), or Bridge Bay in the open area up front. Bridge bay takes a lot of motorhomes and yes they allow generators. Some of the Bridge Bay sites in the back can accommodate big fifth wheels in back in spots. As for outside the park and you're coming from Livingston - you'll be coming in the Gardner North Entrance. Check if you can get a spot at the CG at Mammoth there. If you were coming in through Bozeman, I would highly recommend Baker's Hole FS CG just 2 miles North of West Yellowstone, MT. It's a first come first serve but well worth a little planning to get in. It's a beautiful FS CG on the Madison River, scenic, and big rig friendly. Most sites have electricity and there is water at the entrance to fillup and if you miss it like we did, there are threadless faucets throughout that with a "water thief" you can tap into, which we did. What we do to get into Baker's Hole is first drive in and check if we can get a spot. If not, we go into town and stay at an RV park for the night - we prefer Grizzly but any will do. Plus if you stay at an RV park, you can fill up your water and dump your tanks. Then the next morning we drive our truck over to the CG and get a site, pay for it then go back and get our rig. We always check in with the hosts when doing this so they know we are not saving a spot per say. They actually told us to do this when we stopped and talked to them about available spots coming open after driving through and not finding one. Flagg Ranch and Colter Bay campgrounds (there are two - RV hookups ($$) and dry ($) are also good choices but much, much further from Yellowstone than Grizzly or Baker's Hole.

[WyoTraveler]

I have been taking a dog to Nat'l Parks for over 50 years. Never a problem but not on trails, or in buildings and they must be kept on a short leash. They just expect pet owners to be responsible and abide by the rules. It could be very warm in an RV for a pet in July or August. My dog liked to stay in the PU bed when I was towing an RV and parked to see sites.

[littlemo]

Here is a link to the campground in YNP that allow generators.
Here

I would go ahead and call to see if you can get in at Fishing Bridge and continue to check periodically for cancellations.

I think if you get to the campgrounds early enough in morning you may be able to get a space. (except FB)

If you've never been there you're in for a treat.
If you HAVE been there you're still in for a treat.

Have fun!

[naturist]

I'm trying to keep from pointing and laughing.

You do realize, I hope, that Yellowstone is the most visited National Park in the entire US, and July/August are the height of busy season. Reservations or blind dumb luck are the only way to get into any accommodations in the park, and reservations fill up 100% months in advance. But you might catch a cancellation. Finally, dogs are pretty much not welcome anywhere in the park, so you'll have to keep it on a short leash.

The only campground in Yellowstone that has ANY hookups in Yellowstone is at Fishing Bridge. You might consider trying the campground at Flagg Ranch, which is the northernmost campground in Grand Tetons NP, but is only 6 miles outside the southern gate of Yellowstone. When we were there a year ago in June, it had just reopened after being closed for a while for renovations. They may have some openings, and that's pretty close. Go for it, check the Yellowstone reservation system, it is possible you'll get lucky. But do not count on being able to have your pick of multiple open sites.