Just how bad is Limestone Mountain Rd (Wild Iris)

I saw a few comments about Limestone Mountain Rd shredding tires on the MP page for Wild Iris but they were from 2017 and I haven't found any warnings about the road being particularly rough on any other online resource. Just how bad is the road? Is it ill advised to drive down it in a rental car with no spare? Is it possible to park closer to the highway and hike to the campsites/walls?

Thanks in advance.

The road is several miles long. You could hike in, but I wouldn't recommend it. If you drive slow (10 mph ish) and watch out for rocks, you'll be fine. The road is in good shape. I've actually never seen it rutted out or anything. I think people just drive too fast with thin highway tires and they hit a sharp rock jutting out of the road. If you go slow, you'll be fine.

The road always looks good visually, but there are inconspicuous sharp rocks that can puncture tires. This happened in my vehicle a few years ago when a friend was driving it at a fairly moderate speed (maybe 15 mph?). There was no sound from hitting anything; we just noticed the tire pressure warning light come on. It might have been from driving closer to the edge to give an oncoming car room to get by. Like Dylan said, just drive slower than you would think you need to, and drive really slow or stop if you need to drive near the edge of the road. Doing this, you will almost surely be okay, but there is always a small chance you could get an unlucky puncture.

I’ve heard some stories about it being rough in past years, but I thought it was in pretty good shape a few months ago 

It’s a reasonably maintained road made out of limestone gravel. That means every once in a while someone will pop a tire. A tow is not an easy option as town is 35 minutes away. Spare tire is recommended 

"Is it ill advised to drive down it in a rental car "

Maybe not.

Driving "off-road" may not be permitted in the rental agreement. They can track their cars via GPS and might ding you for extra charges. Some companies will kindly point this out to customers during the rental process. In places like Los Angeles where off-road travel is less likely, it may go unmentioned, or not appear in the agreement. If you purchase rental insurance from the rental company—or have insurance via your credit card or private insurance—you may not be covered if you damage the car while "off road".

I have drug this thing on Limestone Mt. Rd. a few times.

I always thought that Limestone Road was excellent and suitable for any type of vehicle. However, the spur that goes into camping can be very rutted. I once saw a guy rip most of the plastic furniture off of his WRX Impreza getting in and out of the campground. 

I actually popped a tire on the road just 2 weeks ago. Was driving about 20mph and the tire pressure indicator came on. Pulled over pretty quick and saw it deflated. While, not a bad road to drive on,  i feel that its the nature of driving on a gravel road built on limestone rock. 

I was there a few weeks ago and saw plenty of passenger cars at the wild Iris parking lot. Just drive at a reasonable speed. The road is fine and clearance is not a problem. Short of a full on sports car, I would take just about any vehicle up the road.

As far as Wyoming goes, it’s very casual. The campground road is a little tricky but there nothing sharp on it.

Got a flat tire yesterday heading up to Wild Iris in a Ford Escape. I think we were going a little too fast - probably 20-25 MPH - and it was our last day there after a week and a half of driving up and back without any issues. Take it slow and you’ll probably be fine!

I’ve literally never thought anything of it tbh. Go slow I guess?

Road is totally chill clearance wise.  Chill in a Prius.

That said... I have gotten 2 flats in the past couple years so maybe there's something to this myth.

Just make sure you have a spare and extra blinker fluid and you'll be fine.