Camping and Traveling in the west in Winter

[brholt]

We are thinking about going up to Eastern South Dakota to visit relatives in January, from Austin TX, and then heading back west to Seattle in February with hopefully a stop in Yellowstone (I know the Mammoth campground is open year round). For the sake of this question let’s just say we follow I-90 with a diversion to Yellowstone.

I don’t need to discuss winter driving issues, grew up in Minnesota, and I have a good idea of the capacity of my camper, Arctic Fox truck camper, to handle cold weather. Let’s suppose for the sake of this discussion we plan on fully up using the camper with internal water etc.

What I don’t have any knowledge about is are any campgrounds available on the route? Can you get fresh water at places? Dump your tanks? Does anybody have any experience or advice to offer? Or suggestions for any reference one could use?

Thanks
Brad

[JimK-NY]

If you decide to visit Mammoth in January-February you can count on night time temps below 0 degrees. Last year there were quite a few nights with temps of minus 20 and even lower than minus 30. Think twice about what this means for RV camping without an hook ups.

[patperry2766]

Drove from Ft Worth to Jackson WY couple years back in January. I-80 was closed a couple of times because of high winds blowing semis' over. It was completely shut down about 10PM and didn't reopen till 3PM the next day. Not sure if they have the same problem farther north.

I believe the road condition map that I used on that trip was wyoroad.info.

[ktmrfs]

In NW states, federal campgrounds start closing in late sept, you will find few if any open. Same with many RV parks, and county campgrounds. In Oregon the majority of state parks campgrounds have at least some of the sites open year round. A few are closed in the winter. But given your route, you won't be in Oregon. Washington has at least some of the statepark campgrounds open in the winter. I think there are some RV parks open year round in the Spokane/western Idaho area in the winter. There are few if any between missoula and spokane open in the winter.

Going north from yellowstone there may be RV spots open in Bozeman and/or Missoula. More than likely in the larger (for the area) cities are a combo RVparks/mobile home parks, sometimes of pretty questionable reputation. Open year round because 1/2 or more of the "park" is permanent mobile homes.

[pianotuna]

There is a wonderful thread on winter camping in the full time forum. In your situation it is a "must read".

I've boondocked at -37 c (-34 f).

[Lwiddis]

It can be a real challenge even if you are prepared. Water freezing is my primary concern.

[ppine]

If you live in Seattle it may be hard for you to conceive of the kind of weather that can show up on the Northern Plains, not to mention the Yellowstone Plateau in February.

[TexasShadow]

Truck stops will be your best bet. Many Flying Js have parking for rvs apart from trucks, but not all, but you can park with the trucks if necessary. their dump stations may be open.
your own water freezing will be something you'll have to watch carefully.

[cummins2014]

mowermech wrote:
Many RV parks close after October 15th (at the latest). A few (very few) are open year-round. Most USFS campgrounds and State Parks close shortly after Labor Day. Be prepared to dry camp in rest areas or parking lots. Facilities for filling fresh water tanks and dumping waste tanks may be few and far between.
Keep in mind that chains may be required on mountain passes, especially on towing vehicles, and chains may be required on the towed unit as well. If you do not have tire chains, you may have to park and wait until chain requirements are lifted. Some stores that sell tire chains will buy them back if they are not used.
Winter travel in an RV over I-90 can be done, IF you are prepared for lack of facilities and winter weather.
Good luck

I-90 ,same as I-80 thru Wyoming well traveled in the winter. Its amazing its a mess one day, and great the next. They do a pretty good job of keeping them clear, got to watch the weather . Traveled a lot on those highways. My big concern would be any freezing with that campers water system, that may be a challenge. Although I camped one night going thru Cheyenne last winter, but it was only down to 12 degrees 🙂 Ran the furnace all night, some lights on in the basement of the fifth wheel, and all was well.

[mowermech]

Many RV parks close after October 15th (at the latest). A few (very few) are open year-round. Most USFS campgrounds and State Parks close shortly after Labor Day. Be prepared to dry camp in rest areas or parking lots. Facilities for filling fresh water tanks and dumping waste tanks may be few and far between.
Keep in mind that chains may be required on mountain passes, especially on towing vehicles, and chains may be required on the towed unit as well. If you do not have tire chains, you may have to park and wait until chain requirements are lifted. Some stores that sell tire chains will buy them back if they are not used.
Winter travel in an RV over I-90 can be done, IF you are prepared for lack of facilities and winter weather.
Good luck

[ppine]

Yellowstone in Feb in a truck camper could be a survival mission. It was -36 degrees F in my driveway. The Plateau can be even colder. There is plenty of public land but finding RV facilities is going to be a challenge. You might try checking with truck stops. They have all kinds of facilities for winter conditions in Wyo.

[Horsedoc]

Chances are pretty strong you are going to seen snow, a lot of snow, on I-90.
Been there heading west to east in a F-150 . Not a lot of fun, especially with a semi blowing by. Southern boys are not too crazy about blizzards \

[8ntw8tn]

Once you get north of Kansas I think it'll be pretty tough finding an rv park that's open. It's quite possible that you can find a Corps of Engineers park or state park open but it's very unlikely they will have fresh water available. The COE and state park dump stations might be available, but I doubt you'll be able to flush your tank or wash out the sewer hose. As a general rule, the state, federal, and private parks up here shut down the water from the first of November to the first of April. There are KOA's near Sioux City and Sioux Falls and a private park near Tea, SD (Red Barn Campground?) but I doubt they're open during the winter. Hope this helps. Good luck with your search.