Green River Lakes Dispersed Camping

Video: https://youtu.be/zAumhI89nZM

Take a dead-end dirt road, and send it deep into Wyoming's utterly spectacular Wind River Mountains where a pair of large natural high alpine lakes and the mighty Green River flows from its headwaters.

This is truly one of the most aesthetically stunning boondocking sites we've ever found, and that's saying a lot. When you arrive at the end of FR-650 there's a cattle guard 1/4 mile before the lake, and only camping in designated sites (i.e., the Green River Lake Campground https://www.campendium.com/green-river-lakes-campground) is permitted beyond that point. However, for the entire 19-mile stretch from the end of pavement to that cattle guard, the road is sprinkled with exceptional boondocking sites on both sites, all along the Green River which flows crystal clear below the lakes.

The further you go up FR-650 the more scenic the boondocking spots get. We landed in the final spot along the riverbank just outside of that cattle guard, only a quarter mile from the lake, which allowed easy access to the lake for kayaking. On the Sunday before the 4th of July we found only one (count 'me, one!) other boat on the water as we paddled, a family in a drift boat. After paddling, we relaxed in camp as the Green River floated past and we watched pronghorn graze in the meadows lining the opposite bank. Another drift boat with fishermen asked if they could use our camp to pull their boat from the water, and we happily obliged. Yes, it's that kind of peaceful!

A word of caution: that 19 miles of dirt FR-650 is heavily washboarded and has small rocks embedded within it, even though it's graded. As a result, count on it taking an hour to drive that 19 miles. On our way out we lost two bumper end caps from the vibration, and the emergency exit clamps on our dinette window repeatedly let go. But if any place was worth the inconvenience, this is it.

FYI there's no cell service out here. Zero. You're back to asphalt and well down WY-352 before you get your first burst of notifications, even boosted.

There are dozens of already impacted dispersed sites along the dirt road leading to Green River Lakes. We chose a spot over looking the river and good distance from the road. No amenities or phone service. We were surprised how busy the road is going back to Green River Lakes. It's a very dusty and washboard road. Was happy to put some distance between our that and our site.

BLM Perfection, friends. It’ll take you about 2 hours down a pot-holed + washboard gravel road (19 miles took us 2 hours in our ‘17 Navion) but it’s worth it. NOTE: this is NOT big rig friendly, nor are the sites!
Nestled amongst the Wind River Mountains outside Cora, WY, there are what seems like endless BLM options either right next to the Green River or cradled up against the opposite mountainside. The view from our spot had the Green River on one side and stunning Square Top Mountain on the other. Yosemite-worthy views! This area is located at 8,000’ elevation, so even in July the weather was lovely. They don’t call these mountains the Windy’s for nothin’: we broke our awning in the flash of a second when a super strong gust came outta nowhere (it wasn’t even out halfway!) and our water heater broke on this trip but I tell ya we’d do it all over again. Our rig took a beating on that road - but after you’ve survived the drive you really ought to make it worth it and stay awhile.

We stayed 5 nights after the July 4th holiday and were lucky enough to nab the best site (in our opinion) that is the last site at the end of the road and closest to the Green River Lakes Campground (and closest to the hiking trails!) -- the first night we cheekily drove down and asked the lovely couple (Hi, Stan and Lara!) if they’d be willing to share (as the site is large) and they were so sweet to oblige us! Interestingly, after they left on the 4th day (Friday) we were fully expecting someone else to do the same which we would have happily shared the site. But no one came! We noticed that the seeming popularity of this place was really the after-effect of the 4th holiday weekend, and we were relieved to know that even on the weekends it has plenty of sites to enjoy. By day 6 we decided to leave - mostly run out by the mosquitoes if we're honest. Otherwise I think we might have seriously considered staying the entire 14 day limit! Wildlife sightings included many a Pronghorn, ducks, 2 female moose, 3 river otters, heron, many many white-tailed prairie dogs, and of course the fly-fishermen/women were a’ plenty! Fishing is good here, supposedly. Be warned: there are LOTS of mosquitoes and flies in summer. Like, A LOT.

My husband enjoyed hiking most days and the landscape is technically the CDT - exciting! Most hikes are flat, so easily enjoyable for most! Immensely scenic. He was especially thrilled that he was even able to hike a pass at OVER 10,000 ft! The Green River Lakes Campground seemed to be dry (there are toilets and one water spigot to refill our water, which was great) and there was a host on-site there with wood for sale. Interestingly, the campground sites didn’t have the views as wonderfully as us BLMers did. You would be hard-pressed to find scenery anywhere else in the nation, friends. It’s a brutal trek to get there - but we promise you it’ll be worth all the hassle.

*Note: we DID see a road grader parked outside the Green River Lakes Campground - but we almost hope they don’t grade the road regularly - because if they did so this place would be accessible to too many people! ;)

I've spent a lot of time backpacking in the Wind River Range but this was my first time with a travel trailer. This is easily one of my favorite dispersed camping sites on national forest. The views every day were national park worthy with majestic peaks and abundant wildlife.

We drove the road in early September 2019 and it was in pretty good condition: very few sections of washboard or pot holes. The road and campground was busy, but not Yellowstone or Tetons busy. Once you get off the pavement on the drive in you also lose cell service. It's a very remote area so make sure you have all your needed supplies beforehand. There are quite a few dispersed sites along the road but they can fill up when it's busy.

Absolutely beautiful. Best BLM I’ve ever stayed on easily. The road was washboard for 19 miles and it took our 2WD van over an hour to manage it. But it is truly worth it to go the full 19 miles. Don’t stop short, keep going. At the end all the sites have gorgeous views and relative privacy. We were here mid October so we nearly had the place to ourselves. Quite a few hunters in trucks booking it down the dirt road but honestly couldn’t be bothered to mind. There’s a campsite closer to the lake but the sites don’t have the views you deserve and why pay money unless to support the state park. Pit vault toilets in the proper campsite were really clean for COVID and only a 5 minute walk away. We will be back someday and we’ll max the day limit for sure.