U.S. Forest Service · Bighorn National Forest · Shell, WY

Ranger Creek Recreation Area

Ranger Creek Group Campground is located just off the Bighorn Scenic Byway (U.S. Highway 14) at an elevation of 7,500 feet. The Bighorn National Forest offers a wide variety of activities, including hiking, fishing, scenic driving and a number of historic sites.

Closed for the season Reservable · Recreation.gov 12 sites 75 ft max No hookupsPets okFires ok

More like this: reservable in Wyoming · big rigs in Wyoming · pets allowed in Wyoming · group sites in Wyoming

Check availability on Recreation.gov ↗

Photos courtesy of GCC · Recreation.gov

1fire
active

Pk · 20 mi away · 1,645 acres

Interagency incident data as of 2026-10-16

Incident details ↓

Site mix

Standard, no hookups		11
group standard area nonelectric		1

Most sites here open on Recreation.gov six months ahead, at 10 a.m. Eastern. Sold out is not final: cancellations come back into the pool, most of them two to three days out. How to catch one

Site guide

Will my RV fit

Towing a trailerRear or front mounted accessoriesi

Tow vehicle length, ftTrailer length, ft

The longest site here provides 75 feet of vehicle capacity. Most sites are shorter.

Have the trailer VIN? It carries the trailer length.

12 sites in 2 loops. Tap a filter to narrow the list; the map follows.

Site	Loop	Type	Entry	Fits, ft	Surface	Shade	Waterfront	People / vehicles	Fires	Accessible
001	East	Standard	Back-in	66	Gravel	Partial		8 / 2	Yes
002	East	Standard	Back-in	75	Gravel	Partial		8 / 2	Yes
003	East	Standard	Back-in	51	Gravel	Partial		8 / 2	Yes
004	East	Standard	Back-in	48	Gravel		Riverfront	8 / 2	Yes
005	East	Standard	Back-in	50	Gravel		Riverfront	8 / 2	Yes
006	West	Standard	Back-in	60	Gravel	Partial		8 / 2	Yes
007	West	Standard	Back-in	60	Gravel	Partial		8 / 2	Yes
008	West	Standard	Back-in	30	Gravel	Partial	Riverfront	8 / 2	Yes
009	West	Standard	Back-in	20	Gravel	Partial	Riverfront	8 / 2	Yes
010	West	Standard	Back-in	20	Gravel	Partial	Riverfront	8 / 2	Yes	Yes

Per-site records as published by the managing agency on Recreation.gov. Blank cells mean the agency listed nothing for that site. Check-in 02:00 PM, checkout 02:00 PM.

Amenities & rules

Hookups	None
Max vehicle length	75 ft
Equipment	RVs & trailers, Tents
Pets	Allowed
Campfires	Allowed, subject to restrictions
Tent pads	Yes
Fees	Group reservation prices depend on number of people in a group; extra fees will be charged for exceeding the number of people stated in the reservation and will be collected at the campground.
Accessibility	Sites 010, 011 are listed accessible

The campground offers one large group site that can accommodate up to 150 people for overnight camping or day-use picnicking. A shelter covers several picnic and serving tables, and a campfire ring and grill are on-site. Accessible vault toilets, drinking water and trash collection are provided. The nearest dump station is 20 miles away at Burgess Junction.

Individual sites vary. Confirm on Recreation.gov or with the managing office.

Season & status

Status	Closed for the season. Forest Service sites close for the season; check the official page for the reopening date.
Season	Memorial Day - Labor Day
Forest	Bighorn National Forest
Booking	Group site can be reserved by calling Toll Free 1-877-444-6777 (International 518-885-3639 or TDD 877-833-6777) or online.
Fees	$20 per night. Additional vehicle $9. Limit 2 vehicles per site and 8 people per site. Group Fees: $90 for 1-35, $110 for 36-60, $130 for 61-120, $160 over 120 (150 people maximum) 1 site reservable.
Rules	14 day stay limit

Bighorn National Forest recreation page ↗

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →

The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Shell, 14 miles from the campground at 4,242 feet, station USC00488124 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 10 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 28 inches a year on the same inches scale.

Getting there

Located 34 miles east of Greybull, Wyoming on U.S. Highway 14. Turn off onto Paintrock Lake Road (Forest Road 17). Ranger Creek Campground is 3.5 miles from the turnoff, 2 miles beyond Shell Creek Campground.

Nearest town	Shell, Wyoming
Coordinates	44.5458° N, 107.4992° W · Directions ↗

Good to know

The administering organization is Rustic Freedom/Gallatin Canyon Campgrounds; e-mail: [email protected]

Charges and cancellations

This cancellation processing fee is retained by the reservation service contractor along with the non-refundable reservation fee. All requests for the return of the non-refundable reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee will be declined by the campground concessionaire as they did not receive these fees (these are the fees retained by the reservation contractor, a different entity).

Fire nearby

Wildfire
Pk
20 mi from the campground · 1,645 acres · 85% contained

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge. Call the managing office before you drive.

Supplies & services

Outdoor gear	Sportsman's Warehouse ↗	31.3 mi
Dump station	Leigh Creek RV Dump Station ↗	32.8 mi

Locations © OpenStreetMap contributors. Call ahead; hours change seasonally.

Explore

Video

Ranger Creek Recreation Area - Campground Walkthrough

Worth a stop

The Shell Falls Visitor Center, at the overlook of Shell Falls, is about 8 miles west. Burgess Junction Visitor Center is 20 miles north. Both centers offer interpretive trails, scenic views and educational displays about natural features like flora and fauna, and area history. Elk View Inn and other nearby lodges provide guided horseback riding and fishing adventures, off-road vehicle rentals and fishing supplies, as well as dining options, showers and general stores. The Red Gulch Dinosaur Tracksite, near the town of Shell, is the largest of its kind in the state and one of only a few in the world from the Middle Jurassic Period. The tracks found here are approximately 167 million years old.

9.9 mi
Coney Creek Trailhead ↗Trailhead
10.7 mi
Twin Lakes Picnic Ground ↗Day use
10.9 mi
Edelman Trailhead ↗Trailhead

Trails nearby

Forest Service trail data →

0.1 mi
Shell Bench ↗
10.6 mi trail · hiking, horse, bike
0.5 mi
Adelaide ↗
5.6 mi trail · hiking, horse, bike, motorcycle and 1 more
1.8 mi
Mail Creek ↗
4.9 mi trail · hiking, horse, bike, motorcycle and 1 more
3.7 mi
Granite Creek
1.1 mi trail · hiking, horse, bike, motorcycle and 2 more

Trailheads within three miles

under 0.1 mi
Adelaide TH ↗
Bighorn National Forest

Trail and trailhead records are the Forest Service's. Distances are straight-line to the nearer trail end. Trail conditions are not tracked here.

Public land it sits in

On Wilderness Atlas →

This campground sits inside Bighorn National Forest.

in
Bighorn National Forest ↗
National Forest · Forest Service · 1,112,948 acres
7.7 mi
Cloud Peak Wilderness ↗
Wilderness · Forest Service · 191,914 acres

Each unit is published as a centre point and an acreage rather than a boundary, so this section stands it in for a circle of the same area. Whether a campground is inside, and how far it is from one it is outside, are both approximate.

Other campgrounds nearby

Medicine Lodge Lake Campground

First-come11.4 mi

On the National Register nearby

On Register Atlas →

Shell Community HallBuilding · Shell · 13.8 mi
Eje Bridge over Shell CreekStructure · Shell · 14.9 mi

Natural features

The campground is situated on the banks of Ranger Creek in the Bighorn Mountains, where craggy granite peaks rise over 13,000 feet above sea level. The area is forested with a mix of pine and aspen trees. An abundance of wildlife lives in the area.

Recreation

Scenic off-road driving is available on Battle Creek Road to Medicine Lodge Lake, Ranger Creek Road to Shell Reservoir, Hunt Mountain Road and the Burgess Overlook Jeep trail. Diverse hiking opportunities vary from loop trails to treks along creeks and over mountain peaks including access to the Cloud Peak Wilderness. The Adelaide Trail, for hiking and horseback riding is nearby, providing access to Shell Creek and the Shell Creek Trail. Many creeks, lakes and ponds dot the region, offering some of the best trout fly-fishing in the state.

Guidebooks for Wyoming

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

Camping Wyoming and the Black Hills
Kenneth Lee Graham, 2023
Find at Bookshop.org
Moon Montana, Wyoming and Idaho Camping
Becky Lomax, 2015
Find at Bookshop.org
Hiking Wyoming's Wind River Range
Ben Adkison, 2023
Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

Do I need a reservation at Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

Sites at Ranger Creek Recreation Area are reservable on Recreation.gov. Group site can be reserved by calling Toll Free 1-877-444-6777 (International 518-885-3639 or TDD 877-833-6777) or online. Any walk-up sites are listed on the booking page.

Source: Recreation.gov

How much does it cost to camp at Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

Group reservation prices depend on number of people in a group; extra fees will be charged for exceeding the number of people stated in the reservation and will be collected at the campground.

Source: Recreation.gov

What time is check-in at Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

Check-in 02:00 PM, checkout 02:00 PM.

Source: Recreation.gov

Is Ranger Creek Recreation Area open right now?

Closed for the season as of Oct 16, 2026. Season Memorial Day - Labor Day.

Source: Forest Service status

How many sites does Ranger Creek Recreation Area have?

12 sites, including 11 standard sites without power and 1 group standard area nonelectric.

Source: Recreation.gov

Will my RV fit at Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

The longest site here provides 75 feet of vehicle capacity. Most sites are shorter. The sidebar tool checks a trailer or motorhome length against every site.

Source: Will my RV fit

Are there showers or a dump station at Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

The nearest dump station is 20 miles away at Burgess Junction.

Source: Recreation.gov

Are pets allowed at Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

Yes, pets are allowed at Ranger Creek Recreation Area. Leash rules apply.

Source: Recreation.gov

Can I have a campfire at Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

Fires are allowed in the provided rings under normal conditions. As of 2026-10-16, there is 1 active fire within 50 miles, so check current restrictions before you light one. 14 day stay limit

Source: Fire nearby

Are there accessible sites at Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

Sites 010 and 011 are listed accessible on Recreation.gov. What that covers (a paved pad, an accessible table, a nearby accessible restroom) is on each site's booking page.

Source: Recreation.gov

What is there to do at Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

Scenic off-road driving is available on Battle Creek Road to Medicine Lodge Lake, Ranger Creek Road to Shell Reservoir, Hunt Mountain Road and the Burgess Overlook Jeep trail. The Recreation section on this page has the rest.

Source: Recreation

What is the nearest town to Ranger Creek Recreation Area?

Shell, Wyoming. The Shell Falls Visitor Center, at the overlook of Shell Falls, is about 8 miles west.

Source: Getting there