Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
496 Road
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 46.12805, -114.25876
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Ask about this camp →U.S. Forest Service lists this site. On most of their ground you can camp away from developed sites pretty much anywhere — so treat this as a known-good spot, not the only one allowed. The unit sets stay limits and how far off road and water you must be. What changes is conditions — roads, gates, closures, fire rules. Check those with the unit before you commit to the drive.
USGS topo — contours & terrain
Aerial — USGS / NAIP
Weather outlook — at 496 Road
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 5,826 ft.
Fire & smoke — around 496 RoadNIFC · AirNow
Checking active fires & air quality…
Active wildfires from NIFC (within ~50 mi); air quality from AirNow. Always confirm current fire restrictions with the managing office before you go.
Everything you need — measured from 496 Road · Bitterroot National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- MMechanic4 mi
- FFuel7 mi
- OOutfitter7 mi
- HHardware7 mi
- GGrocery8 mi
- @Mail8 mi
- +Urgent care9 mi
- RxPharmacy10 mi
- LLaundry10 mi
- WWater22 mi
- EVEV fast charger50 mi
- AAir-up53 mi
- ShShower57 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 22-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 7 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 50-mi run (and back).
Not within 60 mi: Dump, Propane. Plan those before you head up.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors); the EV fast charger from the US DOE station locator. Open in Google Maps ↗
The site — 496 Road
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
5,826 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
46.12805, -114.25876
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around 496 Road · Bitterroot National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureHayes Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townCharlos Heights · ~3.9 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~6.6 mi
- Propane / LPGPropane Services Innovated · ~17.2 mi
- GroceriesPeoples Market · ~7.9 mi
- PharmacyBitterroot Drug · ~9.5 mi
- Hospital / clinicBitterroot Health - Daly Hospital · ~9.3 mi
- HardwareMassa Home Center · ~10.8 mi
EV charging — from 496 Road · Bitterroot National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger49.9 mi straight-line N — L267 EXPP PL PUBLIC2, Missoula, MT · ChargePoint Network · CCS · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 2 within 50 · 18 within 100 · 46 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)55.4 mi — Missoula, MT - Tesla Supercharger, Missoula
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO53.3 mi — Walmart 3259 (Missoula, MT), Missoula
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)9.4 mi — Hamilton City Hall · EVGATEWAY · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Pricing at the fast chargernot listed
- Power (kW)not listed by AFDC — “DC fast” spans roughly 24 to 350 kW, so ask the network.
- Read this honestlyStraight-line miles, like every distance on this site. Roads run longer than this, and you have to get back. We know where a charger is listed. We don’t know if it works today, how fast it is, or the road miles. Check the network before you commit.
Snapshot 2026-09-16 · AFDC record 417959 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around 496 Road · Bitterroot National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletCoyote Coulee · ~1.5 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLake Como Campground · ~4.2 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLake Como Beach · ~4.3 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletThree Frogs Campground · ~4.3 mi S · USFS
Open 496 Road elsewhere
Other camps near 496 Road
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Lost Horse 011~1.1 mi
- 496 Road~1.2 mi
- 62953 Road~1.3 mi
- Lost Horse 004~1.6 mi
The unit that manages 496 Road
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at 496 Road are set by Bitterroot National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Twelvemile Creek at 5,530 ft, about 9 miles away. It sits about 296 ft lower than this camp, so treat it as a guide rather than a reading for this spot. We do not repeat a depth here, because any number we stored would be stale by the time you read it — the station publishes today's.
How we know this — 496 Road
Source
U.S. Forest Service recreation data
Confidence
Likely — The record is good enough to put a pin on, but thin in places. Treat the details as a starting point, not gospel.
How it was placed
USFS/BLM authoritative: free & dispersed. Access not field-checked (assumed drive-up).
EV chargers
US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center station locator, snapshot 2026-09-16. Straight-line miles to the nearest public, open, unrestricted station; restricted and planned units are shown but never counted.
Field check
On the agency's books. The land manager inventoried this site, so its existence is not in question — current conditions are. Nobody from here has camped it recently.
What we don’t know about 496 Road
A land record can put you within a few meters of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.
- Road surface & last-mile access
- How many rigs actually fit
- Cell coverage by carrier
- Seasonal & winter access
- Current fire restrictions
- Whether any water here is drinkable
- Shade & wind exposure
- Noise and who else shows up
- Whether a listed EV charger works today, or the road miles to it
Before you go — 496 Road
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Forest road numbers →Off-grid communication →All field notes →
Been here? Tell us what changed. This page is built from public records, so the fastest way it gets better is somebody who has actually pulled in. Road washed out, site gone, gate locked, or it is exactly as described — all of it useful. Send a report →