U.S. Forest Service · Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest · Montana

South Van Houten Campground

This campground is located across the lake from North Van Houten Campground and surrounded by lodgepole pine. This campsite is equipped with ADA-accessible toilets, water, and fishing access. There is no garbage service at this site, so please pack out what you pack in.

More like this: first-come in Montana · free in Montana · tent only in Montana

Amenities & rules

EquipmentTents
FeesThere is no fee ($0) for this campground.

Individual sites vary. Confirm on Recreation.gov or with the managing office.

Season & status

ForestBeaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest
FeesThere is no fee ($0) for this campground.

Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest recreation page ↗

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near South Van Houten Campground10°20°30°40°50°60°January: 0.59 inches of precipitationFebruary: 0.53 inches of precipitationMarch: 0.83 inches of precipitationApril: 1.05 inches of precipitationMay: 1.50 inches of precipitationJune: 1.94 inches of precipitationJuly: 0.91 inches of precipitationAugust: 0.90 inches of precipitationSeptember: 1.10 inches of precipitationOctober: 0.94 inches of precipitationNovember: 1.01 inches of precipitationDecember: 0.65 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 18.4°F averageFebruary: 19.7°F averageMarch: 27.4°F averageApril: 34.5°F averageMay: 44.0°F averageJune: 51.5°F averageJuly: 59.2°F averageAugust: 57.3°F averageSeptember: 48.9°F averageOctober: 37.8°F averageNovember: 25.2°F averageDecember: 17.2°F average0 in0.5 in1 in1.5 in2 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Jackson, 9 miles from the campground at 6,480 feet, station USC00244447 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 12 inches a year.

Getting there

Coordinates45.2445° N, 113.4755° W · Directions ↗

Fire nearby

  • Wildfire
    Sand Creek

    23 mi from the campground · 35,520 acres · 90% contained

  • Prescribed
    Scf Nz Pile Burn Rx

    32 mi from the campground · 223 acres

  • Prescribed
    Rx D4 Hughes Creek

    46 mi from the campground · 200 acres

  • Prescribed
    Rx D4 West Fork Hand Piles South

    47 mi from the campground

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge. Call the managing office before you drive.

Supplies & services

Dump stationDump station ↗34.2 mi

Locations © OpenStreetMap contributors. Call ahead; hours change seasonally.

Explore

Trail and trailhead records are the Forest Service's. Distances are straight-line to the nearer trail end. Trail conditions are not tracked here.

Public land it sits in

On Wilderness Atlas →

This campground sits inside Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest.

Each unit is published as a centre point and an acreage rather than a boundary, so this section stands it in for a circle of the same area. Whether a campground is inside, and how far it is from one it is outside, are both approximate.

Guidebooks for Montana

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Best Tent Camping: Montana
    Vicky Soderberg and Ken Soderberg, 2017
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Moon Montana, Wyoming and Idaho Camping
    Becky Lomax, 2015
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Camping Montana
    Kenneth L. Graham, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How much does it cost to camp at South Van Houten Campground?

Nothing. South Van Houten Campground is listed as free. There is no fee ($0) for this campground.

Source: Forest Service

Can I bring an RV to South Van Houten Campground?

South Van Houten Campground is listed for tents only.

Source: Forest Service

What if South Van Houten Campground is full?

The nearest public campgrounds are North Van Houten Campground (0.2 mi, first-come), Miner Lake Campground (7.6 mi, first-come), and Reservoir Lake Campground and Picnic Area (8.5 mi, first-come).

Source: Campgrounds nearby