Campfire Lodge and Resort right on the Madison is a nice small quaint place. It is about 18 miles to the Park but in that area 18 miles is like 2 miles elsewhere. They also have a very good Cafe' there.
If you need hookups, definitely try Grizzly. Expensive, but worth it. Well run, quiet, clean, not too tight at all. Maybe ask for one of the sites on the south or west side of the park, next to the national forest. If you camp there in cold weather, you have to unhook your sewer and water every night so they don't freeze. No big deal.
2012 Fun Finder X-139 "Boondock Style" (axle-flipped and extra insulation)
2013 Toyota Tacoma Off-Road (semi-beefy tires and components) Our trips -- pix and text About our trailer
5talents wrote: We have looked online at all the campgrounds near Yellowstone/Grand Tetons. They all appear to be parking lots or have no hook-ups. We just want some grass and a picnic table. Is that too much to ask? Anyone have a suggestion of a place to camp? We are about to give up and just go to Fishing Bridge. We figure if we have to stay in a parking lot we might as well be close to the park.
If you want a nice RV park with grass and a picnic table that you can sit around outside your RV, why go all the way to Yellowstone? Just go to some local park and enjoy the grass.
Most all that travel to Yellowstone spend most all of their time away from the campsite exploring the vast park. The only time spent in the campground is to eat and sleep after a long day in the park.
There is only one campground inside Yellowstone with hookups, Fishing Bridge. If you can dry camp there are plenty of other campgrounds that will let you enjoy the park. Camping outside the park means driving in and out each day, just adding to your time on the road. If you want to enjoy all that Yellowstone has to offer, staying inside the park is a must.
Keith
Keith, Gloria & Charlie(Spoiled Rotten Boston Terrier)
2010 Damon Astoria 3470
2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland
USAF 1968-1976 Viet Nam Veteran
You are going way to far and will be extremely disappointed if the success or failure of your Yellowstone trip will be in any way influenced by how large and how green your RV site is. We stay in Gardiner, Montana at a wonderful park, and there are small plots of grass, but the entire area is high mountain desert country, grass is a luxury and a fragile one at that. When we return for the fall, the grass in the sites have been pretty much trampled to death, even though they water extensively. Every year for the past 7 years we have been there, the owner brings in a truckload of sod to redo some of the sites. The soil is just pretty much granite sand and rock, not very good for growing sod. Sites at all the parks around Yellowstone are small compared to many places. There is just no private land available, and what can be bought is astronomically priced. Hence, everybody makes use of every square inch, and RV parks are no exception.
5talents wrote: We have looked online at all the campgrounds near Yellowstone/Grand Tetons. They all appear to be parking lots or have no hook-ups. We just want some grass and a picnic table. Is that too much to ask? Anyone have a suggestion of a place to camp? We are about to give up and just go to Fishing Bridge. We figure if we have to stay in a parking lot we might as well be close to the park.
If you want a nice RV park with grass and a picnic table that you can sit around outside your RV, why go all the way to Yellowstone? Just go to some local park and enjoy the grass.
Most all that travel to Yellowstone spend most all of their time away from the campsite exploring the vast park. The only time spent in the campground is to eat and sleep after a long day in the park.
There is only one campground inside Yellowstone with hookups, Fishing Bridge. If you can dry camp there are plenty of other campgrounds that will let you enjoy the park. Camping outside the park means driving in and out each day, just adding to your time on the road. If you want to enjoy all that Yellowstone has to offer, staying inside the park is a must.
Keith
Agree. Going to Yellowstone is for visiting all the things to see within the park. It's not for lounging outside in the afternoon.
I figure if I'm going camping for a week, I'll pick out a nice CG that has large sites, lots of grass and trees, plus lots of amenities.
If I'm going to Yellowstone, or even Yosemite, I'm only interested in a place to park the RV while I'm there.
Erroll, Mary, Duffy the Badger Dog plus "Ollie"
2009 HiLo Towlite 2209T
2005 F150 Supercab 4x4, w/ 5.4L
If hookups are important I’d stay at Fishing Bridge just to reduce the driving time. I put 400 miles on just inside the park last trip. If you can forgo the hookups you’ll have a lot more flexibility where you can camp.
narcodog wrote: Campfire Lodge and Resort right on the Madison is a nice small quaint place. It is about 18 miles to the Park but in that area 18 miles is like 2 miles elsewhere. They also have a very good Cafe' there.
I don't know when you stayed there last but I would not recommend that place. We went two years ago and it was a nightmare. The spots are tight and not good for larger rigs, the facilities were poor to say the least, the one well had been contaminated so using the water was not recommended, the cafe was closed due to people getting sick, and staff were not very pleasant. We had reserved a week there and upon seeing/learning all of the above set out on our first day to seek another campground. The owners reluctantly refunded our prepaid week due to the water contamination issue so we were glad about that.
We stayed at the Yellowstone Holiday RV Campground and Marina on Hebgen Lake (very scenic) for 2 nights and then stayed at Grizzly RV resort in West Yellowstone for another 2 nights. The owners at Yellowstone Holiday RV campground went out of their way to accomodate us due to our circumstances at the other campground. I would highly recommend either of those places and look forward to staying there again on future trips.
2011 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD Crew Cab 4x4
2011 Jayco 26BH
skipnchar wrote: Not many folks to go Yellowstone for the camping. Just a place to stay while touring the park and all of it's attractions.
Grass is not a plant that is native to the mountains
I think you should spend very little time on where you park your RV and the grass at the site. Yellowstone is not a camping or RV destination. There is so much to see and explore that most folks get back to their RV, tent, cabin or hotel room, dead tired from the days hike, walk or drive. All of the campground in the Park are adequate for your time spent exploring the millions of acres there.
Larry
2007 Newmar 37 Mountain Aire, 05 Jeep Wrangler,lifted and chipped toad.
We stayed at Fishing Bridge and it was perfect as a base for exploring the park. Yes, the sites are tight so it looks like a parking lot.
We wanted the full hookups because we had 2 teens with us and wanted plenty of showers as needed without worrying about dumping. The campgound itself is functional, and we were usually up before it was light outside and on the road. At night, we would have dinner, shower, and fall asleep. Most things in the lower park are not a hard drive from Fishing Bridge and the scenery to and from is amazing.
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