Free Camping at Pawnee National Grassland

South of Cheyenne, Wyoming there is a very nice rest area/welcome center. It has cool exhibits, area information, restrooms, a free dump and even free tea/coffee. As you head further south on the I-85 you’ll cross into Colorado and eventually find the Pawnee National Grassland.

It was great to have access to free camping at Pawnee National Grassland within decent driving distance to both Fort Collins and Cheyenne. While we were in southwest Wyoming we decided to zip down to Fort Collins to try and sell some of our most recent Lost Coast Longboarding hand painted longboards. We were very happy to have the Pawnee National Grasslands as a home base between Fort Collins and Cheyenne.

Basic Area Camping Information

Cost: Free

Ownership: Forest Service

Length of Stay: 14 days

Directions: From Cheyenne, take the I-85 South for 24 miles and then turn left onto CR 114. Now is a good time to look at the Pawnee National Grassland Area Motor Vehicle Use Map. This map shows the roads throughout the Pawnee National Grasslands as well as where dispersed camping is allowed. Some of the land within these grasslands are private and camping is not allowed. Decide how far into the grasslands you would like to go (or not go) and then head to that area and set up camp!

Road Conditions: The roads are primarily dirt but they are easily accessible by all vehicles.

Solar: Excellent; no shade

Cell Service: Some areas may have cell service but ours did not.

Water: None; fill up before you get here.

Our Experience Camping at Pawnee National Grassland

When we first arrived at Pawnee National Grassland we looked at the MVU Map to get an idea of where to camp. As we were driving along the dirt road we noticed the wide open space. Nothing but cows and grassland for as far as we could see. Although there are some recreation opportunities here, we knew that our stay would be short so we just picked a convenient spot. It didn’t seem to matter much how far into the grasslands area we went because all of the spots had vast views and plenty of peace and solitude.

The sunrises, sunsets and stars were great here. But our favorite part of our experience camping at Pawnee National Grassland had to be waking up to our trailer shaking. Then looking out and seeing that we were surrounded by cows. Some were just hanging out eating, some were licking our spare tire cover, and some were scratching against our corners. They were adorable!

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This is a great boondocking location to find silence, peace, and solitude. We did not encounter any other campers and our only neighbors were cows. It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere but a great place to relax if you happen to be in this area of the middle of nowhere!

We love to find free places to camp where have no preconceptions or expectations. This allows us to be open to really experiencing a new area, learn more about the country and see new things. Check out some of the other places that we’ve boondocked!

At each of our camp spots throughout our travels you can be sure that we are appreciating our surroundings. But at the same time we are working hard on our one of a kind hand painted longboards! And of course, collecting information about the areas we visit to share here on our blog! Thank you for reading our articles, we appreciate it more than you think. Please take the time to check out our latest lineup of longboards and our own screen printed t shirts at our Lost Coast Longboarding shop!