Idaho State Parks unveils new, expansive Farragut State Park campground in time for Memorial Day weekend
May 22-Idaho State Parks and Recreation is making an earnest bid to provide the best camping accommodations for that annual camping trip to Farragut State Park.
On Wednesday, the agency unveiled a suite of upgraded campsites across the state's northern end. While Round Lake State Park is now home to two new tree houses, Farragut State Park gets its own cushy options for overnight stays in a new campground.
The 4,000 -acre park nestled on the southern tip of Lake Pend Oreille offers a slew of recreational opportunities on and off dry land, and is expected to see sunny skies all Memorial Day weekend.
Rachel Fewkes, a meteorologist with the Spokane branch of the National Weather Service, said the forecast calls for temperatures in the upper 70s, climbing to the 80s by Monday. Overnight temps will be in the 40s and 50s.
"We stay dry through the holiday weekend and then rain moves back in, with chances for thunderstorms kind of late Monday afternoon, Monday evening," Fewkes said.
The $6.3 million Peterson campground is a group camping site that can host up to 150 people between the Gold Creek Camp and Cedar Mountain Camp subsections. The 11.5-acre site is northwest of the park's central entrance, and was originally developed when the park was a World War II-era naval training station, according to department records.
The space boasts an expansive shower and bathroom facility, two dining pavilions with running water and four cabins that sleep up to four people each. Each half of the campground also now boasts 10 full hookup RV sites, five tent pads double the average size and a group fire pit. There will be large grassy gathering areas once the seed takes root.
Parks spokesman Will Armbruster said the upgrades were designed with group use in mind. The space is meant to take the pressure of school outings and family gatherings off smaller, traditional campgrounds. Friends and family can camp together, in tents, RVs or a cabin, at one location.
"It's really a great space for weddings and events," Armbruster said. "You rent out that whole camp for yourself and your group, and it's absolutely gorgeous, and then you have your own little private area of the park."
Farragut is among the most frequented of Idaho's wild areas, according to department data. In 2025, the park hosted more than 500,000 day users and nearly 27,000 camping reservations, behind only Lucky Peak, Thousand Springs and Ponderosa state parks.
"When COVID hit we saw a lot of use in state parks, and as a result, we got quite a bit of money to do these sorts of projects throughout the state to offer new things for our visitors," Armbruster said.
The cabins, while state of the art, resemble tiny homes in more urban settings. They are not quite to the scale and prestige of the recently unveiled tree houses at Round Lake State Park, but they offer similar amenities. There are beds, a small dining table and power for heating, cooling and lighting.
The project was funded through appropriations by the Idaho State Legislature and American Rescue Plan Act money granted during the pandemic, Armbruster said. Many governments locally and nationally have used the relief funding to make large investments in "generational" resources, like facilities and parks.
"All parks agencies throughout the country have been fortunate to see this funding, because there's oftentimes a lot of deferred maintenance that happens in the parks and recreation world," Armbruster said. "This was much needed."
Other recent improvements made to Farragut include new restroom fixtures and a roof at the facility at Buttonhook Bay, which has been closed for years. The dock at the lakeside location was also replaced. At the Eagle Boat Launch, which opened Friday, crews rebuilt and repaved the access road.
"One of the things we always get complaints for is poor roads," Armbruster said.
Fewkes cautioned against recreating in the water this time of year, despite the warm temperatures expected over Memorial Day weekend. Water temperatures for most rivers and lakes in the area are still hanging in the low to mid -50s.
"We advise people to always wear a life jacket if recreating on or near the water, keep a close eye on kids," Fewkes said. "And alcohol enhances hypothermia, so, you want to avoid mixing those two: alcohol and the cold water."
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This story was originally published May 22, 2026 at 7:11 PM.