Keyhole State Park, the perfect stop for your drive in to Yellowstone
Written: Aug 19 '02 (Updated Aug 20 '02)
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Pros: The night sky, wildlife, and the location to Yellowston and Devils tower
Cons: The number of RVs, noise, and facilities.
The Bottom Line: The view of the Night sky is like nowhere else on earth. The park also offers camping, fishing, and boating. Great stop before Yellowstone/Devils Tower.
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| wvabackpacker's Full Review: Keyhole State Park |
Keyhole State Park
On our non-stop drive to Yellowstone Nation Park this summer—driving finally got to us. About an hour into Wyoming going westbound on I-90 we saw a sign for a lake with camping.
~Directions-
Near the Wyoming-South Dakota border take exit 165 off of I-90. This is where it gets interesting. First off, you are already in the middle of nowhere. Second, as soon as you get off the interstate and onto a beat-up tiny two-lane blacktopped road, you really realize that you could get no further from civilization.
Follow the signs. It takes about 10 minutes to get to the first campgrounds from the interstate. The road is bumpy, not painted very well, and old. However, immediately off the interstate there is this gate built into the pavement. It looks like a large grate with round bars going in one direction, not two. It is designed to keep livestock from getting out of their area while allowing cars to drive through open ranges. This was my first encounter with a “ground gate” like this. At first, we drove very slowly across it because we were unsure of what it was. This was the wrong way to go across it. The slower you go, the bumpier your ride. If you go across it fast (about 20mph or more) you don’t feel the bumps. They just make a loud noise similar to the rumble strips on the freeway. You’ll find these “gates” all over Keyhole and Wyoming.
~Some background information-
According to a brochure I picked up, Keyhole Reservoir, not Lake, is approximately 15,000 acres of water at an elevation of around 4,000 feet.
Originally the area was an Indian reservation for the Sioux Native American Indian tribes. The Black Hills gold rush (circa 1874) created conflicts between Indians and would-be gold miners. Eventually the Sioux Indian Tribes lost control of their land.
Keyhole was the brand of livestock used by the McKean brothers who had a ranch in the area. This must explain the open ranges still in effect today.
~Camping for free, I mean fee-
I hate RVs. Anywhere that can be reached by RVs means there will be fees. Anywhere. RVs tremendously increase wear and tear on natural resources. Their 7-8 mile per gallon fuel economy doesn’t help the environment. They are noisy themselves (ever tried to sleep in a tent while an RV generator runs at 2am so someone can watch T.V.?). And worst of all they bring crowds with little concern of land. However, this review is not on RVs and I would appreciate it if RVs were left from the comments. We can discuss them in another Epinion.
As you can probably guess, this park is heavily used for RV camping. I should have guessed when I drove down the nearly destroyed road. As I stated earlier, with RVs come fees. The fees are also aimed at tourists and not residents.
Wyoming resident fees are as follows. $2 a day for the use of a site all day. $1 a day for the use of an historic site all day. $6 a night for camping overnight. Non-resident fees are as follows. $4 a day for the use of a site all day. $2 a day for the use of an historic site all day. And $12 a night for camping overnight. Those fees are in effect most of the year. We were their during peak tourist season (July) and they were charging a whopping $18 a night for a campsite and $9 to use the site during the day. Annual daily use permits can be obtained for $25-residents and $40-non-residents. Annual overnight camping permits are available for $30-residents and $60-non-residents. If you’re going to be staying for more than a week a year I’d buy the pass.
~The campsites-
Not the best in the world and not the worst either. We spent one night and Keyhole on the way to Yellowstone and one night on the way back. We stayed in different parts of the lake each night. The campsites are basic. There are no water, electricity, or sewage connections. At each site you get a fire bit, a picnic table, and a gravel “driveway” to park your car or RV. Pull through sites are available for those huge RVs and trailers. Most of the sites I saw didn’t look very level so if you have a mobile camper, you’d better make sure you have those stabilizers.
~Bathrooms, if you can call ‘em that-
The Marina and some of the stores located through the park have showers and running water available at a price. All of the campsites come with one or two pit-toilet houses. For the most part the park personnel keep them clean and stocked with toilet paper. Since the park is heavily used the pit toilets aren’t in the best shape. People throw trash and food in them which attracts a ton of flies. However, for a park with a large water source there are not many mosquitoes around.
~Fire, fire, fire-
Each site has a fire pit and fires are permitted only in fire pits. Don’t fret, the fire pits are pretty nice. Each has a grill that can be folded over the pit or off the pit. The pits are about a foot deep and surrounded by a large metal ring. You may burn any down or dead wood you can find in the park but you cannot cut down any live wood. Peak fire season is from June-August and this year campfires were not permitted, even in the fire rings. Maybe next time.
~Quiet Time…Not!-
The biggest disappointment to me was the level of noise in the park at night. Quiet time hours are from 10pm-6am and they are not enforced. The first night we were there and RV beeped all night long, neighbors across the cove were noisy, and some more neighbors down the street in the same campground had a party. Also most of the campsites are on the lake or very close to it and boats were running all hours of the night. The second night we were there wasn’t as bad as the first, but there were noisy people and several RVs that arrived and left in the middle of the night.
~Rangers out to get ‘cha-
Don’t be fooled by the pay by honor system. To obtain a campsite you get an envelope near a campground, put your money in it, and drop it off in a large metal pole. Around 5am rangers came around checking parking tags and enforced the rules. Anyone who didn’t pay or display their tag got a ticket. Anyone who parked an RV, car or trailer off the road and not in a campsite or designated parking area got a ticket too. No wheels are permitted off the pavement or gravel. I saw a lot of tickets in the morning, so don’t just park your car or RV anywhere—you’ve been warned.
~The Lake, and all its mush-
The lake (reservoir) itself was okay. However, it was pretty cold when we were there in the middle of July. The water was green (algae) and you could see approximately two feet into the water. Most of the coves are lined with boats since I didn’t see any docks. The bottom of the lake is covered in decaying matter and algae which make it feel very mushy. I would give the lake an average rating.
~Other activities-
The park offers fishing, boating, hiking, camping, bird watching, and site seeing. As for hiking the terrain is not difficult. I find that most people were camping, fishing, or boating.
~Weather in July-
When we visited the temperature stayed around 80F with a relatively low humidity. Needless to say it was nice.
~The Night Sky-
This is what I loved most about this park. When the Sun goes down take a couple of folding chairs and a flashlight and wander from the lights of the RVs to one of the many fields in the park. Since the land is relatively flat with very little artificial light sources, there are no obstructions to the night sky. You could see everything! I don’t think I’ve ever in my life seen as many stars, meteors (shooting stars), and satellites. Yes, satellites—you could see artificial satellites moving through the sky at a great distance. The view of the Milky was also spectacular. Even the Yellowstone backcountry didn’t offer such a view. Enjoy it.
~Wild Animals-
Deer. Ton’s of deer everywhere. While we saw many of the ground gates I described earlier, I never saw any domesticated animals but I did see a ton of deer. They were everywhere.
~Devil’s Tower-
From one side of the park, Devil’s Tower (America’s first national monument) is approximately 16 miles away. Devil’s Tower has a prairie dog colony, offers rock climbing, and some national history. I highly suggest a visit since you are so close.
~Nearby-
Nearby are the towns of Pine Haven and Moorcroft. Lodging, food, gas, and stores are available in both towns.
~Conclusion-
Would I visit again?…yeah, as a stop on the way to Yellowstone. Otherwise I wouldn’t ever go near the place again. Yellowstone is about eight hours away and Keyhole really is a great place to stop before heading in the next day. It’s in the perfect spot to make the trip a day at a time. The night sky view in Keyhole is spectacular but in reality this is just a giant RV park with expensive camping fees and no discounts for tents or backcountry sites. Three stars.
Recommended:
Yes
Best time to go: June-August
Recommended for: Anybody
Review Topic: Campgrounds & Lodging
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Member: Jeremy Hays
Location: Columbus, OH, USA
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Maybe I'll write another review someday...lots of new gear...
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