The Buffalo Creek Campground is the ideal spot to head to for anyone wanting an RV get-away-from-it-all in Wyoming. The small campground is located just north of the rural community of Arminto in Natrona County. It's a great place to pitch camp if you plan on exploring the Bighorn National Forest or the many trails around Casper Mountain and don't want to be camping with a lot of other folks. The campground sits below the southern peaks of the Bighorn Mountain Range and also makes a good base for visiting the wild and rugged Trapper Creek Wilderness Study Area, another BLM- managed property in Wyoming on the western slopes of the Bighorns.
There are only four primitive campsites at the campground and while the surroundings are a delight of nature, the dense pine trees and dirt access road make it suitable for small rigs only. If you're driving anything longer than that you'll need to look for an alternative campground. The Buffalo Creek Campground is the perfect place to park up and chill out under the trees while listening to the sound of the creek burbling past or spotting some of the area's prolific wildlife. It's a tranquil place for a solitary hike through the woods or alongside the creek and although there are no defined trails around the campground itself, the traffic-free roadways make ideal substitutes. At night, light up the campsite's fire ring, get dinner on the grill and enjoy a meal under the stars while seated at the picnic table. All you'll hear is the occasional hoot of an owl.
When you've had your fill of peace and quiet at the Buffalo Creek Campground, head into nearby Casper. There's lots to see and do there. Visit the Fort Casper Museum, the National Historic Trails Interpretive Center or discover more about the universe at the Casper Planetarium.
The Buffalo Creek campground's remote countryside location is what makes it appealing to many RV campers. While it's not difficult to get to, you will need to negotiate some narrow, dirt-surfaced forest roads to find it. Program Arminto into your navigational app and you'll find yourself turning off from the US 26 between Powder River and Moneta then motoring slowly along Arminto Road into the backcountry - and that's before you reach Arminto. From Arminto to the campground you'll be driving first along the Buffalo Creek Road before veering off onto the Bighorn Mountain Road. From Arminto to the campground is less than twenty miles but expect it to take you over an hour. The roads can become sludgy and impassable after torrential rain.
If you're heading to the Buffalo Creek Campground after RV camping in the Grand Teton National Park or the Bridger-Teton National Forest, you can join the US 26 eastbound near Dubois. It's a trip that will take about two and a half hours. If you're motoring over to the campground after being in Nebraska in the Nebraska National Forest, the journey will take you a little longer. Once you're through Crawford, you'll be on the US 20 followed by the I 25 and setting out on a trip that will be around three and a half hours long.
If there are no campsites available at the Buffalo Creek Campground or your rig is too lengthy to get there, the campgrounds at the Boysen Reservoir are a good alternative. The campgrounds all sit alongside the shores of the reservoir inside the boundaries of the Boysen State Park.
Between the Tamarask Campground, the Tough Creek Campground, the Lower Wind River Campground, and the Upper Wind River Campground there are over two hundred campsites to choose from. All are standard non-electric. The parking pads are gravel-surfaced pull-throughs or back-ins. There are a few campsites at each campground that are ADA accessible.
Amenities at all four campgrounds are good, though drinking water is only available during the busy season. Each campground has flush toilets, showers, boat ramps, and dump stations. There are also campground hosts on duty during the peak months. All the campgrounds are pet-friendly.
All of the campgrounds around Boysen Reservoir operate on the same basis. They are open for twelve months of the year, have two walk-in seasons and one season when reservations must be made before arriving. The walk-in seasons are from 1st January to 30th April and 1st October to 31st December. Peak season is from 1st May to 30th September. Reservations for the peak season can be made via reserveamerica.com.
Trek out of the Buffalo Creek Campground and you'll be heading for a walk in the woods. Through the thick of pine trees, you'll catch glimpses of the Bighorn Mountains. It's not all easy going as you may have to clamber over fallen trees or wade through stony sections of the creek to get where you want to go. It will be a back to nature experience though.
For an endless choice of defined trails head over to Casper Mountain. Try the four and a half mile long Bridle Trail. It's got everything from waterfalls to streams and some stunning scenic overlooks.
Buffalo Creek is a shallow creek that meanders through the countryside at a moderate pace. It's a flow that makes an ideal habitat for brook trout, so if you're a fly fisherman you could hook a tasty treat.
If you want to boat or shore fish for walleye, crappie, largemouth bass or mountain whitefish, head to the Boysen Reservoir. It's just an hour's drive west of the campground and reputed to be one of the best fishing spots in Wyoming.
The National Historic Trails Interpretive Center is a massive installation in Casper that is dedicated to preserving the history of the pioneers and the routes they took when making their journeys to a new life. The center has indoor exhibits distributed throughout eight galleries as well as outdoor displays of wagons and farm machinery.
The center closes on Sundays and Mondays from fall to spring, but opens on Sundays during the summer months.
There are several interesting scenic byways near the Buffalo Creek Campground that will lead you through Wyoming's Black Gold region. Head out from Casper along the WY 259 and the WY 387 and you'll be motoring along the Black Gold Byway through oilfields that brought a boom time to the area in the early 20th century. Drive along the WY 338 and you'll be pulling over to take a look at the interpretive signs dotted along the fifteen mile route explaining the importance of coal mining in the area as well as enjoying the scenery.
Casper was once a military frontier outpost and although nothing of the original fort remains, you can visit the reconstruction to see what life was like there in bygone days. The Fort Casper Museum has several buildings which emulate the originals as well as a stockade and a Mormon ferry. There are also extensive collections of artifacts covering a hundred years of Casper history on display.
Casper Mountain is a superb place to go to practise winter sports. Set out from the Casper Mountain Trails Center and you'll have access to over twenty-five miles of groomed trails perfect for skiing, snowshoeing and sledding. Many of the more popular trails are even illuminated at night so the winter sport fun doesn't stop when it gets dark. The trail center is a one hour drive from the Buffalo Creek Campground and is open all year round. When there's no snow on the ground the network of trails are used for hiking, mountain biking and fat biking.
