Tips for Finding a Last Minute Campsite in Yellowstone, Glacier
If you're like most Montanans, you want to get out and enjoy the final few weekends of camping before the kids get back in school and the crazy rush of Fall sports and everything else gets into gear.
Here's the problem: people are piling into Montana from all over the country and campgrounds are filling up like never before. If you didn't book a reservation months, or maybe even over a year ago, you're out of luck.
So here are some tips I came across thanks to some of the friendly volunteers I came across this weekend. They told me some of these campgrounds, even though they have been booked for months, haven't really been full all summer. Here's why: there are constantly no-shows or last-minute cancellations.
So here are a couple of things you can do especially if you live here in Montana or Wyoming and you want to book a last-minute camping trip in our national parks like Glacier and Yellowstone.
First, call the campgrounds.
There's a chance they may have an opening at the last minute. Since you live closer to the parks, it's a lot easier to get up and go and fill the spot with your camper or your tent.
Second, I was told about a website called Campflare.com.
Apparently, what these guys will do is alert you when a campsite comes available at the place you are hoping to camp.
How does Campflare work? According to their website:
We are powered by Recreation.gov and use their data to find out immediately when a campsite becomes available. If the campsite matches your request, we notify you of the opening.
So there you go. If you're willing to stay flexible, and you're looking to get in some last-minute summer trips, maybe this will work, especially for all the locals who want to enjoy our own backyard a little more instead of letting all the out-of-staters have all the fun.
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