Camping near the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail

The Lewis & Clark Trail isn’t a single path—it’s a vast network of parks, rivers, and historic landmarks connected across 11 states and 3,700 miles from from Illinois to the Oregon Coast. Camp your way along it: Book a Hipcamp site to pitch your tent by a quiet river or park your van near a mountain pass—supporting local conservation and community projects as you go. Each stop offers a chance to learn, reflect, and connect with the land, with local communities, and with the layered history that continues to shape this route, from the banks of the Mississippi River all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

What once took over two years today makes for an unforgettable camping road trip. Start at Camp Dubois in Illinois, where Lewis and Clark began their journey, and trace their path through wide-open prairies, river valleys, and rugged mountain passes. In Omaha, Nebraska, walk the same stretch of the Missouri River they once navigated. Out west, stand on the cliffs in Oregon where the expedition finally reached the Pacific and take in a view that looks nearly unchanged since 1805. Take the chance to connect with this shared history—to experience rivers, mountains, and coastlines that shaped both the journey of the explorers and the lives of the Indigenous communities who guided, fed, and sustained them.