Campground · Yellowstone National Park
A wooded camp, with a short walk to Lewis Lake.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Yellowstone Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Yellowstone National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Yellowstone audio tourRecorded for this place
Lewis Lake Picnic Area“Up ahead is Lewis Lake Picnic Area, a simple meal stop among the trees near the campground entrance. It's a useful break on the drive between the South Entrance and West Thumb, with nine picnic tables.”
Plays as you drive up to Lewis Lake Campground in the Parkwolf Yellowstone Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“First time driving through a national park. We used the Yellowstone tour on grand loop Road and it’s just like having a tour guide in your car with you.”
Guide
At 7,800 feet, Lewis Lake Campground is an 85-site campground on the road between Yellowstone’s South Entrance and West Thumb, about eight miles from the entrance. The lake’s southeast shore is a short walk away, with a boat ramp near the campground’s information and registration area. It suits a quiet southern stay with lake access; central and northern sights mean more driving from here. All sites are reservable, so arrange one before you make it your base.
This is a basic campground, not a full-service one: there are no hookups, showers, camp store, or food sales. Sites have picnic tables and fire rings, and bear-resistant food boxes are available at many of them. Vault toilets and potable water are seasonal. The campsites vary in size, spacing, and levelness, so don’t assume every pad is equally roomy or flat. RVs and trailers are allowed, but the combined vehicle-and-trailer length limit is 25 feet. The restrooms are accessible, but there are no accessible campsites.
Canoes, kayaks, and motorboats are allowed on Lewis Lake. Boaters need a park boat permit and an aquatic invasive species inspection by park staff before launching. It’s an easy lake outing from camp, but make the permit and inspection part of your plan.
At 7,800 feet, conditions can feel colder than the lowlands: snow is possible in any month, and summer nights can dip below freezing. Bring layers even for a warm-weather stay.
Wildlife
713 sightingsGrizzly BearMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
743 sightingsWolfMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
5,273 sightingsBisonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
3,258 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
397 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,494 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Yellowstone. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ChallengingPitchstone Plateau Trail16.3 mi · 9 hr · 2.8 mi awayA long point-to-point hike over Yellowstone’s young lava plateau.
ChallengingHeart Lake Trail15.5 mi · 9 hr · 2.9 mi awayA long day reaches a lake below Mount Sheridan.
ModerateLewis River Channel/Dogshead Trail10.8 mi · 6.5 hr · 3.1 mi awayTwo lakes and a river channel, with little climbing.Parkwolf’s Yellowstone ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
