Rumbaugh Ridge Designated Campsites

This campground is one of the few that will be open on the south shore of Hebgen Lake after the end of September. It has 4 to 5 designated sites, which are roughly defined, but are marked. I would not attempt to access the campground with a trailer larger than 30 feet due to the tight spaces, deep ruts, and tight corners with trees. I'm not sure any of the sites are very level. No. 2 for sure was not, but it was a beautiful location. We borrowed a thick round of firewood from one of the neighbors to fill in a deep rut to get our trailer out.

Access: Take Denny Creek Road, just north of the KOA campground on the West Yellowstone Hwy. Be careful to not take West Denny Creek Road just to the South of the KOA campground. Denny Creek Road will start out as a paved road for the first 2.5 miles, but then will turn into a washboarded gravel road that will rattle everything in your rig. At about mile 7.5, there will be a sign on the left side of the road that identifies the road leading to the Rumbaugh Ridge Summer Homes. Just across the sign, on the right side will be another short narrow dirt road that drops down to the campground. However, there is no signage off of Denny Creek Road for the campground. Site #1 is on the left side of the narrow dirt road, but it would be hard to get into it with anything other than a van. Sites #2, 3, 4, and 5 are further down the dirt road about 50 to 75 feet and are on the bank of Hebgen Lake.

There is a rutted out boat ramp that can be used to launch.

There is no services, or picnic tables. However, there are rock fire rings.

Very few bugs in October, mainly files.

Hebgen Lake is known for it's large brown and rainbow trout. However, the fishing was off the 2 days we were there, possibly due to a toxic algae bloom. It is indeed a beautiful lake and moose and elk are often seen at the campground.

Hopefully, you will have nice neighbors as we did in October. However, we did hear a story of one group that were there to party with loud music that ruined the serenity for the rest.

Great spot next to the creek. It is at the end of the dirt road and nicely secluded. If you are adventurous you can go through the forrest to the lake. It is a marshy shore so not a good lake access. We had no encounters with bears, but we were vigilant about keeping our stuff stored inside the truck. The rangers visited every day to warn us of bears. There isn’t an official sign to turn off the road, but the two campsites (A&B) are well marked. The dirt road down is best with high clearance 4 wheel drive vehicle. Bring mosquito repellent. The horseflies were bad during the day.