Massacre Rocks State Park

Nice overnight stop if you stay in the lower loop of the campground, so as to minimize the road noise. Ask for the senior discount.

Great state park right off I 86. Good private sites nestled into volcanic rock formations bitting up against the Snake River. A little noisy with the interstate close by, but great spot otherwise with its trails, nice oxbow bend in the river, and good climbing rocks for the kids.

I loved it here...clean, nice trails, great views, great verizon signal...the whole state of Idaho is like 4-5 bars on verizon!!! added some photos...recommend the lower loop, better views, upper loop is blocked for the most part...only thing about this part of the state, when heading west or south into Utah, gas up early because they are few and far between...Amer Falls is a few miles before here with a great little food store and fuel...

2nd visit. Decent spot for an overnight and some sites are unique with the lava rock and ash landscape. Most sites are too small feeor tight for larger rigs. Walking paths go through many sites so there's little privacy. Freeway noise is very noticeable.

We originally planned on staying at Willow Bay Recreation Area. We pulled in on a Saturday and oh my goodness. As you enter Willow Bay, you have to drive right between the softball fields. There were hundreds of people there and parked all over the place along both sides of the road. Nothing better than threading a 30’ trailer between parked cars and hordes of people. Finally made it to the registration area and you guessed it, all full!

Luckily we saw the sign for Massacre Rocks on the freeway. This is a nice state park with an upper and lower loop. The lower loop is closer to the water and further from the highway noise.

Each site has 30/50 amp electric and water. There is a nice dump station just down from the visitors center.

In August, it is hot here. Did not spend a lot of time outside till the evening. There is a walking/ hiking path, fishing, kayak rentals and frisbee golf.

Definitely wouldn't pull into this campground during busy season in a big rig without a reservation. Hubby backed our 42' fifth wheel into outer pull-through site #17 (upper loop) no problem, inner pull-through site #42 (lower loop) might work as well and has a much better view. Only a couple of other pull-through sites looked like they might work for us, and maybe a small # of back-ins. Back-in #13 has probably the best view of the river of the upper loop sites.

Nice state park campground...bathrooms/showers clean & ample hot water, nice visitor center where you can rent or buy gear for the disc golf course, river access, boat launch, trails. We kayaked up river from the boat launch past the campground, then floated back down. Took about 2 hrs on this nice, easy section of the river. Paved areas in the campground mostly wheelchair friendly, but hilly.

I loved this campground. We arrived for one night on Saturday at 3pm in June, and there were 3 spots to choose from. I should have taken the lower loop spot, even if it was smaller. There are two loops, lower and upper. The upper loop is over the hill from the river, so there is more road noise from the highway. There are no river views from the upper loop sites. We were in site 5, which did provide nice privacy and it was steps away from the bath/shower house without it being invasive. The lower loop sites almost all have river views, and are over a hill that blocks most of the highway noise. There is a beautiful .7 mile nature path that was perfect for my little boys. I could have stayed here a week! I’ll be back. Plus, the AT&T service was so good, I could FaceTime my wife while walking the nature path!

This park is on the Snake River. We had a wonderful view from our site. There are a few short trails from the campground where you can get down to the river. They weren’t renting kayaks while we were there as the river was running too fast. You can also hike over to see some ruts on the Oregon Trail and drive out to see Register Rock. Be sure to watch the film on the settlers and the incredible journey/ challenges presented while traveling the Oregon Trail.

To start with, it's confusing as to whether or not a person has to pay an extra $5/vehicle upon entry. I read and re-read the information board at the entrance to the rec area and it was unclear if it applied to campers. I drove in to the campground area and the information board doesn't mention that fee so I assumed it did not apply.
I had originally planned on making a reservation so I could get a site large enough for my 33' motorhome and tow. There is a $10 fee to make a reservation. Yes, I could pay it but it seemed high so I took the chance I'd find a site upon arrival. I was really excited to see the site I actually wanted, 42 was open. It's a pull-through in the lower loop that has a great view and, is one of the only sites that would actually accommodate my rig. I didn't check out the upper loop but there are very few sites suitable for big rigs on the lower loop.
It's still not the easiest of sites to set up in, curved and sloped so it took a bit of maneuvering before I could clear the utilities with my slide. I got set up and then plugged in my EMS unit only to find there was no power at the post. I reset the breakers, no luck. I went to a different site with my EMS unit to ensure it was functioning properly, it was. I packed it up and went down the road about 40 miles to Heyburn Riverside RV Park. Not as nice a view but full hookups (that worked) and $5 cheaper.

I was totally surprised by how wonderful it was to camp at Massacre Rocks State Park. Campground is divided into two loops (upper & lower). The upper loop sites oftentimes have more of a 'view' but were not very shaded and are also a little nosier due to the interstate in the distance. The lower loop is closer to the river and generally offers a little more shade and is a little quieter, but there aren't many ""views"" and the sites seemed to be smaller.
Sites are gravel and fairly level (for the most part). Firewood is available for sale in the Visitor's Center (which also has a cute museum inside).
If you're looking for a campground where you can so swimming, this is NOT the campground for you. Currents in the Snake River are very dangerous and signs are posted in many places warning that swimming and cliff diving should not be attempted. Plenty of beautiful walks along the river though and you can even hike a little ways to see the original wagon train ruts from the Oregon Trail.