Agency-listedUSFSFee
Backbone Horse Camp
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · NY · 42.48490, -76.80716
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 as a developed campground. Expect marked sites, a fee station or a reservation, and the usual campground rules. The dispersed-camping freedom of the surrounding forest does not apply inside it. 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 Backbone Horse Camp
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,649 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Backbone Horse CampNIFC · 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 Backbone Horse Camp · Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests · NY
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel4 mi
- @Mail4 mi
- EVEV fast charger7 mi
- WWater7 mi
- GGrocery8 mi
- RxPharmacy8 mi
- +Urgent care8 mi
- LLaundry8 mi
- AAir-up8 mi
- ShShower9 mi
- MMechanic12 mi
- HHardware15 mi
- OOutfitter16 mi
- DDump18 mi
- PPropane57 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 4 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 — Backbone Horse Camp
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
1,649 ft
State
NY
Coordinates
42.48490, -76.80716
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Backbone Horse Camp · Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests · NY (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townBurdett · ~5.1 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~7.4 mi
- FuelSunoco · ~3.5 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~18.0 mi
- GroceriesWalmart Supercenter · ~7.7 mi
- PharmacyKinney Drugs · ~8.1 mi
- Hospital / clinicTrumansburg Family Health Center · ~8.1 mi
- HardwareThe Home Depot · ~15.1 mi
EV charging — from Backbone Horse Camp · Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests · NY — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger7.3 mi straight-line S — EVolve NY Watkins Glen · Electrify America · CCS · 4 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach23 within 25 mi · 77 within 50 · 248 within 100 · 471 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)15.6 mi — Ithaca Ford, Ithaca
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO21.9 mi — SSFLX STATION 1, Hammondsport
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)3.1 mi — The Lodge at Grist Iron Brewing Co., Burdett, NY (at a brewery / winery) · Non-Networked · J1772 · 1 Level 2 port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2024-10-11 · 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 371884 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Backbone Horse Camp · Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests · NY — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBackbone Horse Camp · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBlueberry Patch · ~0.4 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBlueberry Patch Day Use · ~0.4 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletPotomac Group Camp · ~1.1 mi NE · USFS
Open Backbone Horse Camp elsewhere
Other camps near Backbone Horse Camp
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Blueberry Patch~0.4 mi · fee
- Potomac Group Campground~1.1 mi · fee
- Backbone Horse Campground~2.2 mi
- Finger Lakes Trail Shelter~3.1 mi
The unit that manages Backbone Horse Camp
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Backbone Horse Camp are set by Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Backbone Horse Camp
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
Developed FEE campground (not free) - review | auto:usfs-fee 2026-08-20: US Forest Service developed campground, agency coordinates, agency states a fee. No dollar amount in the agency record -- expect a charge and confirm the current rate before you go. Not field-verified.
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 Backbone Horse Camp
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 — Backbone Horse Camp
What “dispersed” means here →Cold-weather camping →Fire rules & restrictions →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 →