The best camping near Billings, Montana.

In Billings, the landscape rolls out before you like a series of postcards come to life. Lose yourself among jagged canyons cut clean by the Yellowstone River, or hike along the base of the snow-capped Bighorn Mountains. Custer-Gallatin National Forest is only about an hour's drive away, an expansive natural preserve that bighorn sheep, bison, and grizzly bears all call home. This area is full of ecological diversity, as well as outdoor recreation opportunities, including word-class fishing and over 1,500 miles of well-maintained mountain biking and hiking trails. Watching the clouds roll in over the plains, changing color from white to gray to blue, is a privilege shared only by the most dedicated Big Sky adventurers. Join the ranks and at the foot of towering Big Pryor Mountain, chill beachside at Cooney Reservoir State Park, or head south to Yellowstone, the country's first and most popular National Park, which lies just across the Montana-Wyoming border. Throughout the area, you can hang your hat at primitive campgrounds, ranches, one-of-a-kind lookout houses and ranger cabins, all nestled in the peaks and valleys right outside of the big city. Just be warned, you may never want to leave.