Rex Hale

Rex Hale Campground is located along the Buffalo Bill Scenic Byway about 36 miles west of Cody, in northwestern Wyoming, and roughly 16 miles east of Yellowstone National Park's east entrance. It is named after Rex Hale, one of 15 firefighters who died in the 1937 Blackwater Fire, which burned more than 1,700 acres of Forest Service lands within the Shoshone National Forest. The North Fork of the Shoshone River is a popular fly-fishing location for rainbow and Yellowstone cutthroat trout, and hiking, scenic driving and wildlife viewing are all available around the campground. A firefighter memorial stands along the highway just over a mile west, and Forest Service Trail 758 leads to two more memorials marking where other firefighters lost their lives in the Blackwater Fire. Mummy Cave is less than a mile from the campground; discovered in 1957, the large alcove was found to have been occupied for a period of over 9,000 years, and many artifacts, including a mummified ancient inhabitant, were excavated from it. The site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981. The campground offers several campsites, some with electric hookups. Each site is equipped with a table, campfire ring and food storage locker. Potable water, vault toilets and trash collection are provided, and campers are allowed to gather firewood in the area. Situated near the banks of the North Fork of the Shoshone River, the campground offers views of spectacular red cliffs, where bighorn sheep may be seen early in the season. Visitors often glimpse grizzly bears, deer, elk, bison, moose, fox, coyotes and bald eagles. Pahaska Tepee, west of the campground, is home to Buffalo Bill's original hunting lodge, built in 1904, with tours offered daily between Memorial Day and Labor Day alongside guided horseback rides, a gift shop, restaurant and lodging. The small, historic city of Cody offers dining, lodging and shopping, and the Buffalo Bill Historical Center holds extensive displays of Greater Yellowstone natural history, Plains Indians artifacts, western art, firearms, Buffalo Bill memorabilia and a wild sheep exhibit.