Idaho’s most popular public campsites require long-term planning

It’s already time to book camping reservations for visits next summer to the most popular state and federal parks.

Most national park and national forest camping destinations become available six months in advance online through recreation.gov.

Idaho state parks book sites nine months in advance. Recreation.gov extends the reservation window to one year for state group sites.

Memorial Day 2017 is May 29, so that holiday weekend has already gone on sale for Idaho state parks.

The most popular parks usually are Priest Lake and Farragut in North Idaho and Ponderosa in McCall.

Ponderosa was almost fully booked last week for the Memorial Day weekend.

“If it’s a weekend, especially a holiday weekend, you need to utilize the nine-month window for sure,” said Jennifer Okerlund, the communications manager for Idaho State Parks and Recreation.

One date to keep an eye on next year: Aug. 21. That’s when a solar eclipse is scheduled to move across the United States, including a direct path across Idaho.

“I would expect we’re going to have a lot of things booked up really fast for that eclipse,” said Jenni Blake, a recreation staff officer for the Sawtooth National Forest.

Most popular: Priest Lake in Coolin. The Lionhead group camp, which includes a cabin that sleeps 12 and surrounding RV hookups, nearly brought down the reservation system when it was first implemented.

“It’s just a beloved park, and families have been going there for decades,” Okerlund said. “It has white-sand beaches, which are pretty unique to anywhere else in the state. Priest Lake, on its own, is aesthetically one of the most beautiful bodies of water we have in the state of Idaho. A lot of boaters choose to stay at Priest Lake because of the easy access for them. It’s surrounded by other federal and state lands, so it’s seen as a jumping-off point to a lot of trails in the area.”

Alternative gem: If you’re not a planner, try Lake Cascade. “For the longest time, whenever people would call and ask about Fourth of July, the best camping bet in the area would have been Lake Cascade because it has so many sites scattered around the lake,” Okerlund said. “We have areas that are more primitive. For folks that will accept more primitive or are looking for a more primitive experience, Lake Cascade is a little jewel that will typically have a site for you.”

Most popular: The three campgrounds that accept reservations at Redfish Lake south of Stanley: Point, Glacier View and Outlet. The entire Sawtooth Valley is a reservation challenge, but particularly the ones with easy access to scenic Redfish and its namesake lodge.

The pace of reservations last year triggered a review to make sure the system wasn’t being misused.

“This last year, we did get a notice because Redfish filled up immediately. There were some concerns that somebody was reserving them and selling them to somebody else,” Blake said.

Alternative gem: Alturas Lake Inlet Campground is about 25 miles south of Stanley. It’s a quieter, less-commercial setting than Redfish, but trail access isn’t as convenient. “Stanley Lake is a similar situation – more low-key,” Blake said.

Most popular: Upper Payette Lake. Fishing, canoeing, hiking and biking (there’s a 1-mile paved trail) are among the popular activities at this gorgeous spot in the mountains 19 miles north of McCall. It’s a no-wake lake. Half of the campground is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

“For summer, you definitely have to do it six months out,” said Brian Harris, public affairs officer for the Payette.

Alternative gem: Cold Springs Campground is less than one mile from Lost Valley Reservoir, which offers strong fishing and a chance to see the rare Northern Idaho ground squirrel. It’s 10 miles west of New Meadows. “It doesn’t get used all that much because people don’t know much about it,” Harris said.