I love horse camping, and my favorite place to go is Castle Rocks State Park in Idaho. This is one of the most gorgeous places I’ve ever been to in my life, and that I can ride my horse there makes it an even sweeter destination. If you’re thinking about going to Castle Rocks State Park to go horse camping, there are a few things to consider first.
No matter where you’re standing in camp, or on the trails, this place has breathtaking views. I’ve never been anywhere with such a wild and beautiful landscape. There are plenty of good equestrian trails for horses and riders of all levels, and it’s a great destination for mountain biking, rock hounding, hiking and rock climbing too!
While I ABSOLUTELY love the trails and scenery, the equestrian campground could have been designed a little better. It’s kind of like a non-horse person designed it. You will have issues if you bring more than one horse per trailer, the manure receptacle is a real pain, and the closest bathroom (vault toilet) is about a half-mile round trip from camp.
Equestrian Campground Facility
There is a designated loop just for equestrian campers. That being said, non-equestrians can also camp there and take up the spots, so that kind of sucks. When we were there, there were two non-horse people camping in the equestrian loop, even though there were PLENTY of open spots in the non-horse areas. There are ONLY six equestrian campsites by the way!
I’ve been at other campgrounds where non-horse people can use the horse-sites, and it’s always a pain. They’re taking up a spot with stalls, or you have to watch to make sure their kids don’t get bit or injured while feeding your horses treats or running around unsupervised.
It’s just not a good idea to let non-horse folk camp in horse sites. Not only does it take up a precious site with horse facilities, it also makes the camping experience less enjoyable for horse owners who now have to keep an eye on kids and adult campers who aren’t horse savvy, or are loud or spooking the horses.
The horse camping sites are mostly back-in, but I think there was at least one that was a pull-through. I think the campsites run between $24-$29 a night. If you have an Idaho Parks Pass, you can get a little discount too. Each site is beautiful and relatively private with plenty of sagebrush and trees surrounding them, so you do feel pretty secluded, even if camp is relatively packed.
Campsites Not Well Designed For Multiple Horses
The campsites have water, electric, a picnic table, a fire ring and ONE stall. There is one 12×12 pipe stall for every campsite. I don’t know about you, but I tend to bring more than one horse in my (three-horse) trailer, and this setup isn’t practical or safe, for a number of reasons.
The website says each campsite has a stall big enough for two horses, but that’s not actually true. In a pinch, we put our horse and pony together in one, and even then, it was a REALLY bad idea. Like, DON’T DO IT. Thankfully, it was just for one night (until we could get the big “community” corral), and they get along, and we gave them plenty of hay to stay busy.
I still didn’t sleep very well wondering if one of them was going to get cranky and try to kick the other one, who would have had no way to escape. Really, don’t put two full-size horses in a stall. It’s a recipe for an injury.
Even if other campsites were open, and you could use one of the additional stalls, your horses would be separated by a great distance, and not even be able to see each other. I am not trying to listen to one of my horses call for the other one all night. That’s not a relaxing camping trip for anybody, other campers included. I’m not trying give my horse an ulcer on a camping trip either!
One night we were there, a trainer stopped in just for the night to layover with her two Retired Race Horse Project horses, and she ended up having to leave IN THE DARK to go to another place (who knows how far down the road) that would have accommodations for both horses. There is just NO SAFE WAY to house two horses in those stalls.
There is a “community” corral, about the size of a small round pen. This is basically a first-come-first-serve corral. The first night we got there, it was occupied, but we got it as soon as the other people left the next day. My horses were SO thankful to be able to actually walk around, instead of standing tightly in a one-horse-sized stall. I think morale was getting pretty low too, because Bamboozal was starting to get grumpy before we moved into the big corral.
Manure Receptacle is TERRIBLE
The second problem with the equestrian campground is the manure receptacle. This thing is basically like a big steel mailbox. You have to open a very narrow “mail” slot that you have to shoot the poop into. Forget a wheelbarrow, it won’t work. Even a manure bucket, you’re going to have to hoist up and then tilt it into the mail slot style opening and then FORCEFULLY shake it in. Or, you would have to shoot the poop in shovel by shovel.
It’s shallow and fills up quickly too. It’s almost laughable, and I’m sure it deters people from cleaning their pens. The lady that left the community corral before we got it left a lot of manure and old hay in the corral, and what she did scoop out, she just shoveled over the fence into the sagebrush! What a mess.
Where is The Bathroom?!
Another downfall of the Castle Rocks State Park Equestrian Campground is its proximity to a bathroom. It’s far, VERY far. The first time I ever went to this campground, I didn’t have a toilet in my trailer, and I was either peeing in the grass, because I couldn’t make it to the bathroom or hiking as fast as I could either a half mile away to the vault toilet, or over a mile to the real bathroom!
After that trip, I got myself a portable camping toilet to wiz in. It’s basically a toilet seat on a bucket. I put a trash bag in it, and kitty littler, and I only use it to go number 1.
I change the bag every day, and it’s really improved my personal horse camping quality of life, especially in the middle of the night! Nobody wants to hike a half-mile or more away from camp in the middle of the night to go pee, especially if it’s cold!
Breathtaking Views While Horse Camping
Okay, now I’ve told you all the crappy stuff about the design and layout of the campground, it’s time to get to the really good stuff! The views at this horse camping destination are SECOND TO NONE. The scenery will literally take your breath away sometimes. From sunrises to sunsets, and every hour in between, there are gorgeous views.
It’s not just the rock formations and mountains that are gorgeous, the foliage, birds and wildlife here are also amazing for viewing. I’ve been horse camping in North Carolina, Virginia, Missouri, Tennessee, Nebraska, South Dakota and Idaho, and this is hands-down, the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen in my life.
This campground is essentially out in the middle of nowhere in the wilderness, and that means the stargazing is phenomenal! Watch for shooting stars! Bring your constellation guide, and look for the Milky Way too. The darkness in the night sky is sure to make you think of more primitive times, when people used to find their way by the stars.
Footing on The Trails
The footing on the trails is pretty damn good. If you’re horse camping at a new place for the first time, you always want to err on the side of caution and bring hoof protection. This is especially important for barefooters. Our horses are barefoot year-round and have incredibly tough and strong hooves. That being said, we do use hoof boots for protection on tough, rocky, abrasive or very hard ground.
There are rocks here. It is called Castle Rocks State Park, after all. On one of our horses, she just wears front boots here, but on the other, he wears all four. The last thing you need is a tender-footed horse at the end of a long trail ride. That could spoil the rest of your trip.
If you’re not sure about the footing, just boot up. I would always rather have booted when I didn’t need to, than not booted when a horse really needed the extra protection. If you ride a shod horse, it never hurts to bring a hoof boot along with you to use in the event of a spare tire.
Technical Difficulty of Trails
Over all, the majority of these trails, especially leading into and out of camp are really easy. My old horse Bamboozal has a touch of arthritis and doesn’t do a lot of steep hills. Gradual climbs are okay, but the steep hills are hard on his old body, so I try to avoid really technical stuff like that.
The first day, we did about a 10 miler, and there were some single-track, some wide trails, some rocky areas, a creek crossing, a few open fields and some riding beside a road. We had a few gradual climbs, but nothing too steep for my old boy.
The second day, we did more riding near the main road to go check out some of the popular rock formations for rock climbers. The horses couldn’t believe people were hanging onto the sides of these big rocks, so that was a little exciting!
There were also one or two areas in the road with blind curves, and some of the drivers were not horse-savvy. They drove way too fast by us, and that was a little scary, but overall, everything went okay. Next time, I think we will stick to the more wilderness trails, and avoid the places heavily trafficked by non-horse rock climbing people.
Definitely go check those places out, but don’t go on horseback.
If you want more technical trails, there are plenty of routes to take that include more elevation. Get a trail map from the visitor center. It’s easy to follow, and there is also a map at the trailhead. We’ve done a ton of exploring on these trails in the few times we’ve been there, and it’s a pretty easy place to ride.
I don’t think you could get lost here very easily. There are so many large visual landmarks, so you’re not likely to lose your way.
Campground Staff and Park Rangers are Helpful and Friendly
Another great thing about horse camping at Castle Rocks State Park in Idaho is that the campground staff and Park Rangers are all very friendly and helpful. They do come and check on sites daily, and are very friendly and knowledgeable.
If you have any questions or need something, they can point you in the right direction and help get your problem solved.
Pros
- The scenery is breathtaking.
- The trails are gorgeous.
- There are trails for every level of horse.
- The campground is beautiful.
- The footing on the trails is pretty good.
- Campground staff and Park Rangers are nice and helpful.
Cons
- Each campsite only has ONE stall.
- Each stall is far away from the others and separated by trees and brush, so each horse essentially has to be alone.
- The manure receptacle is laughable.
- The bathroom is WAY too far from camp.
In Conclusion
In conclusion, I absolutely adore horse camping at this place. Unfortunately, it seems like a non-horse person designed the equestrian campground. With a few improvements like more than one stall per campsite, a better solution for manure and a closer bathroom (really, even a portajohn would do), this could be a real A+ horse camping destination.
Even with its shortcomings, this is my favorite place in the world to horse camp, and I will surely be going back in the future. What is your favorite place to go horse camping, or what is a place on your bucket list?
Until next time, Happy Trails!