Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Alder Creek
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 39.36724, -120.22753
Ask an AI about this campsiteOpens Grok already loaded with this site. It reads the same records this page is built from, and links whatever it tells you.
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 Alder Creek
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 6,220 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Alder CreekNIFC · 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 Alder Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery1 mi
- FFuel3 mi
- OOutfitter3 mi
- EVEV fast charger3 mi
- PPropane3 mi
- RxPharmacy3 mi
- HHardware3 mi
- WWater3 mi
- @Mail4 mi
- MMechanic4 mi
- +Urgent care9 mi
- LLaundry14 mi
- DDump16 mi
- AAir-up22 mi
- ShShower26 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 1 mi out.
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 — Alder Creek
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
6,220 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
39.36724, -120.22753
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Alder Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureAlder Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townHobart Mills · ~3.0 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~3.3 mi
- FuelTrue Zero · ~2.9 mi
- Propane / LPGChevron ExtraMile Store · ~25.5 mi
- Dump station~16.2 mi
- GroceriesSticks market · ~2.9 mi
- PharmacyRite Aid · ~3.0 mi
- Hospital / clinicUrgent Care · ~8.6 mi
- HardwareVillage Ace Hardware · ~16.8 mi
EV charging — from Alder Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger2.9 mi straight-line S — Truckee, CA (at a public site) · RIVIAN_ADVENTURE · CCS, NACS (Tesla) · 6 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach24 within 25 mi · 54 within 50 · 277 within 100 · 615 within 150
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO3.6 mi — DC CORRIDOR TRUCKEE DC1, Truckee
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)3.6 mi — DC CORRIDOR TRUCKEE DUAL L2 · ChargePoint Network · 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 391176 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Alder Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletDonner Camp · ~2.5 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletProsser Hill · ~2.6 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHobart Mills · ~3.1 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLakeside · ~3.2 mi E · USFS
Open Alder Creek elsewhere
Other camps near Alder Creek
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Lakeside Campground~3.2 mi · fee
- Prosser Family Campground~3.6 mi · fee
- Prosser Ranch~3.8 mi · fee
- Granite Flat~4.6 mi · fee
The unit that manages Alder Creek
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Alder Creek are set by Tahoe National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Alder Creek
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 Alder Creek
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 — Alder Creek
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Leave no trace →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 →