Agency-listedUSFSFree
Barrel Springs
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 34.90044, -120.14136
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 Barrel Springs
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 992 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Barrel SpringsNIFC · 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 Barrel Springs · Los Padres National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery10 mi
- FFuel13 mi
- EVEV fast charger13 mi
- @Mail13 mi
- RxPharmacy16 mi
- HHardware16 mi
- PPropane16 mi
- MMechanic17 mi
- LLaundry17 mi
- WWater17 mi
- DDump20 mi
- +Urgent care21 mi
- ShShower24 mi
- OOutfitter24 mi
- AAir-up36 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 10 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 — Barrel Springs
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
992 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
34.90044, -120.14136
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Barrel Springs · Los Padres National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townSisquoc · ~8.9 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelChevron · ~13.2 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump stationFlying Flags RV Resort · ~20.1 mi
- GroceriesLos Alamos Market · ~13.3 mi
- PharmacyWalmart Pharmacy · ~15.8 mi
- Hospital / clinicMarian Medical Center · ~15.7 mi
- HardwareOak Knolls Hardware · ~15.8 mi
EV charging — from Barrel Springs · Los Padres National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger13.2 mi straight-line SW — Daniel & Ana Thompson The Depot Mall (Los Alamos, CA) · 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 reach19 within 25 mi · 58 within 50 · 218 within 100 · 858 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)15.9 mi — Santa Maria, CA - South Bradley Road - Tesla Supercharger, Santa Maria
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO16.7 mi — US Bank Santa Maria, Santa Maria
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)7.5 mi — Foxen Winery Public Stations, Santa Maria, CA (at a brewery / winery) · TURNONGREEN · J1772 · 6 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2025-12-12 · hours: 8am-5pm M-Sun
- 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 218532 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Barrel Springs · Los Padres National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletHorseshoe Spring · ~6.8 mi N · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMiranda Pines · ~11.0 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBates Canyon · ~13.7 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletCumbre · ~13.8 mi SE · USFS
Open Barrel Springs elsewhere
Other camps near Barrel Springs
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Wagon Flat~4.6 mi · fee
- Horseshoe Spring~6.8 mi · fee
- Brookshire~8.5 mi · fee
- Miranda Pines~11.0 mi · fee
The unit that manages Barrel Springs
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Barrel Springs are set by Los Padres National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Barrel Springs
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
Free but developed (not dispersed) - review
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 Barrel Springs
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 — Barrel Springs
Water on public land →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →How to read this page →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 →