Bighorn National Forest
Dispersed camping is generally allowed
On national forest and grassland, camping outside developed campgrounds is generally permitted unless an area is posted closed or a local order says otherwise. Stay on existing surfaces, camp away from water and trailheads, and check the forest's current orders before you go — fire restrictions change through the season.
Rules change with fire season and local order. Checked 2026-08-05. Confirm on the managing office’s official page
- Area
- 1,739 sq mi
- Managed by
- Forest Service
- Campgrounds
- 34
- Longest rig
- 100 ft
Where the land is, and what fits
The official Forest Service boundary with every campground we hold inside it. Tell it how long your rig is and the map keeps only what takes it — public land rarely matches the shape people picture, and neither does what you can actually get into.
Official unit boundary · USDA Forest Service · 34 campgrounds shown
- Bald Mountain Campgroundto 80 ft · 15 sitesJune - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Boulder Park Campgroundto 60 ft · 32 sitesMemorial Day -Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Circle Park Campgroundto 50 ft · 10 sitesMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Dead Swede Campgroundto 60 ft · 21 sitesMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Deer Park CampgroundMemorial Day - Labor Day · First-come, first-served
- Doyle CampgroundMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- East Fork CampgroundMemorial Day - Labor Day · First-come, first-served
- Hettinger Group CampgroundMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Hunter Campgroundto 40 ft · 9 sitesMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Island Park Campgroundto 75 ft · 10 sites · Pull-throughMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Lake View CampgroundMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Leigh Creek Campgroundto 54 ft · 11 sitesMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Lost Cabin Campgroundto 90 ft · 19 sites · Pull-throughMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Lower Paintrock Lake CampgroundJune - Labor Day · First-come, first-served
- Medicine Lodge Lake CampgroundJune - Labor Day · First-come, first-served
- Middle Fork Campgroundto 80 ft · 9 sites · Pull-throughMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Muddy Guard Cabin1 sites · ElectricJanuary · Reservations accepted
- North Tongue Campgroundto 100 ft · 12 sites · Pull-throughMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Owen Creek Campgroundto 50 ft · 8 sitesMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Pine Island Group CampgroundMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Pole Creek Cabin1 sitesJanuary · Reservations accepted
- Porcupine CampgroundJune - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Prune Creek Campgroundto 55 ft · 21 sitesMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Ranger Creek CampgroundMemorial Day - Labor Day · First-come, first-served
- Ranger Creek Recreation Areato 75 ft · 12 sitesMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Shell Creek Campgroundto 75 ft · 15 sites · Pull-throughMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Shell Reservoir Camping AreaJune
- Sibley Lake Campgroundto 85 ft · 25 sites · ElectricMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Sitting Bull Campgroundto 60 ft · 41 sitesMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- South Fork CampgroundMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Tie Flume Campgroundto 80 ft · 27 sites · Pull-throughMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Tie Hack Campgroundto 45 ft · 20 sitesMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- West Tensleep Lake Campgroundto 45 ft · 10 sites · Pull-throughJune - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
- Willow Park Group CampgroundMemorial Day - Labor Day · Reservations accepted
Bighorn National Forest
The Bighorn National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in northern Wyoming, United States and consists of over 1.1 million acres (4,500 km2). Created as a US Forest Reserve in 1897, it is one of the oldest government-protected forest lands in the U.S. The forest is well east of the continental divide and extends from the Montana border for a distance of 80 miles (130 km) along the spine of the Bighorn Mountains, an outlying mountain range separated from the rest of the Rocky Mountains by Bighorn Basin. Elevations range from 5,000 feet (1,500 m) along the sagebrush and grass-covered lowlands at the foot of the mountains, to 13,189 feet (4,020 m) on top of Cloud Peak, the highest point in the Bighorn Mountains. Around 99% of the land is above 1,500 metres (4,900 ft). The forest is named after the Bighorn River, which is partially fed by streams found in the forest. Streams in the range are fed primarily by snowmelt and snowmelt mixed with driving rainfall.
Extract from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA. Agency description not published.
No vehicles past these lines
Designated wilderness is closed to every wheeled vehicle, including bicycles. You can walk in and camp; you cannot drive or park a rig inside one.
- Cloud Peak Wilderness191,914 acres
Byways through this country
Places worth pulling over
Drive to Bighorn the long way
Byway plans the road in, not just the destination — real places along the way, weighted to what you like, with nothing invented.