COVID-19 closed Idaho campgrounds. Here’s what will be open for Memorial Day weekend
Dozens of Idaho campgrounds will be open just in time for Memorial Day weekend, officials at various Idaho national forests announced last week. But many others will remain closed — some, as usual, because of snowy mountain conditions, but some because of the coronavirus pandemic.
For weeks, campsites were among the areas of Idaho national forests that were closed to prevent spread of the coronavirus. Some U.S. Forest Service-managed hot springs outside of Boise are still closed, and the Forest Service has directed visitors to keep their groups to 10 people or fewer. But the agency made it a point to try to reopen campsites by Memorial Day weekend, which is often considered the start of camping season.
“We’ve been trying to figure out basically from the beginning how we could get our campgrounds open for Memorial Day, because we know how important it is to our communities with that being the kickoff to the camping season,” said Danelle Highfill, recreation manager for the Boise National Forest.
Normally some Boise National Forest campgrounds are open by early May. Highfill said it was a challenge to prepare the campgrounds thanks to a shortage of cleaning supplies and personal protective equipment, as well as delays in bringing on the Forest Service’s seasonal workforce. Plus, employees had to work around forest visitors who disregarded campground closures, leaving behind garbage and, in some cases, human waste.
“Our developed campgrounds, we can’t just swing open the gate to open them,” Highfill said. “We have to make sure that it’s safe to camp there. … That time frame has been compressed to get going.”
Boise National Forest officials announced last week that they would open 40 campgrounds by May 22. Several of the Boise National Forest campgrounds will remain closed, but the majority of those are inaccessible due to high-elevation snow. The same is true in the Payette National Forest.
“For this Memorial Day weekend, being where it lands in the month of May, the vast majority of our campgrounds are not open but not because of COVID-19,” said Brian Harris, spokesman for the Payette National Forest, in a phone interview.
Harris said many of the Payette’s campsites are at higher elevations and are not often open by Memorial Day weekend in normal circumstances.
The Sawtooth National Forest, the other national forest nearest Boise, will have fewer campgrounds open than usual for the holiday weekend. All campgrounds in the popular Sawtooth National Recreation Area remain closed.
“All of us try to have all of our campgrounds open and running and serviced by Memorial Day weekend, so this is unusual,” said Julie Thomas, spokeswoman for the Sawtooth National Forest, in a phone interview. “The campgrounds on the SNRA are operated by a concessionaire — we contract a company to take care of the campgrounds and hire a host. … Between all the rules and regulations (because of COVID-19), we couldn’t meet those guidelines to open the campgrounds until later.”
Sawtooth National Recreation Area campsites are slated to open June 5, but their absence could be keenly felt by campers over the long weekend. The area has dozens of camping areas, including what are perhaps Idaho’s most sought-after campsites — those at Redfish Lake.
National forests are already seeing “unprecedented use,” Highfill said, as cooped-up residents head outdoors. With fewer available sites, there could be more competition for open campgrounds. To make matters more complicated, Idaho State Parks and Recreation won’t open its campgrounds until May 30, which could put even more pressure on the national forests.
Dispersed camping, or camping outside of a developed site, is still an option if campgrounds are busy. Forest Service officials stressed that it’s important to follow standard Leave No Trace principles of packing out trash, taking care with campfires and planning ahead. In addition, campers are urged to maintain social distance and prepare to be fully self-contained to avoid spreading the virus.
In spite of the unusual circumstances, the Forest Service is bracing for the usual crowds that come this time of year.
“I fully expect it will be a normal Memorial Day weekend in the mountains,” Thomas said.
Here’s which campgrounds are open and closed:
Boise National Forest
Mountain Home Ranger District, 208-587-7961
- Curlew Creek, Pine, Castle Creek, Evans Creek, Spillway, Tail Waters, Cottonwood, Willow Creek, Badger Creek, Troutdale, Elks Flat, Dog Creek and Irish Point campgrounds open May 22.
- Shafer Butte Campground will open June 14, while Big Trinity Lake, Little Roaring River Lake and Big Roaring River Lake campgrounds open July 15 due to high-elevation conditions.
Idaho City Ranger District, 208-392-6681
- Grayback, Bad Bear, Hayfork, Edna Creek, Whoop Um Up, Ten Mile, Black Rock, Barber Flat, Riverside, Power Plant, Queens River and Willow Creek campgrounds open May 22.
- The Grayback group campground will not open until July 1.
Cascade Ranger District, 208-382-7400
- Amanita, Rainbow, French Creek, South Fork Salmon River, Penny Springs, Picnic Point, Warm Lake, Ice Hole, Golden Gate, Yellowpine and Shoreline campgrounds open May 20.
- Summit Lake, Penn Basin, Buck Mountain and Trout Creek campgrounds open June 5 due to high-elevation conditions.
- The Shoreline group campground will not open until July 1.
Lowman Ranger District, 208-259-3361
- Pine Flats, Little Deadwood, Park Creek, Helende and Bonneville campgrounds open May 21.
- Kirkham Campground will tentatively open July 1.
- Mountain View campground will be closed for the season for renovations.
- Bull Trout, Deer Flats, Bear Valley, Fir Creek, Barney’s, Cozy Cove, Hower’s and Riverside campgrounds will open June 26 due to high-elevation conditions.
Emmett Ranger District, 208-365-7000
- Silver Creek, Hot Springs, Tie Creek, Rattlesnake, Hardscrabble, Trail Creek, Boiling Springs, Big Eddy, Swinging Bridge, Canyon Creek and Cold Springs campgrounds will open May 22.
- Peace Valley and Hot Springs group campgrounds will not open until July 1.
- Antelope, Antelope Annex, Sage Hen, Cartwright Ridge, Hollywood and Eastside campgrounds in the Sage Hen Reservoir area will open July 1 due to logging operations in the area.
Sawtooth National Forest
Fairfield Ranger District, (208) 764-3202
- Bear Creek Transfer Camp, Bird Creek, Bounds, Canyon, Chaparral, Five Points, Hunter Creek Transfer Camp, Pioneer, Willow Creek, Willow Creek Transfer Camp, Abbott and Baumgartner campgrounds will open May 20.
Ketchum Ranger District, (208) 622-5371
- Boundary, Boundary Creek, Federal Gulch, Sawmill, Copper Creek and East Fork of Baker Creek campgrounds will open May 22.
Minidoka Ranger District, (208) 678-0430
- South Hills: Schipper, Steer Basin, Pettit, Lower and Upper Penstemon, Porcupine Springs, Diamondfield Jack, FS Flats, Third Fork, and Bear Gulch campgrounds will open May 20.
- Sublett: Sublett and Mill Flat campgrounds open May 20.
- Raft River: Clear Creek Campground will open May 20.
- Albion: Bennett Spring Campground will open May 20.
Sawtooth National Recreation Area
No campgrounds in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area are open, regardless of whether they are reservation or non-reservation. They are slated to open June 5.
Payette National Forest
Many campsites in the Payette National Forest are inaccessible due to snow. Others are accessible but are not yet being serviced with trash removal, toilet paper stocking and restroom cleaning. To find out if a particular campsite is open and/or being serviced, call the Payette National Forest at 208-634-0700.
This story was originally published May 19, 2020 at 4:00 AM.
