Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Bear Camp
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 36.97196, -119.20618
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 Bear Camp
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 2,370 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Bear 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 Bear Camp · Sierra National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery11 mi
- MMechanic11 mi
- FFuel11 mi
- HHardware11 mi
- OOutfitter11 mi
- WWater11 mi
- @Mail12 mi
- DDump12 mi
- +Urgent care16 mi
- RxPharmacy18 mi
- ShShower21 mi
- LLaundry28 mi
- EVEV fast charger29 mi
- PPropane30 mi
- AAir-up59 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 11 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 — Bear Camp
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
2,370 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
36.97196, -119.20618
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Bear Camp · Sierra National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureNutmeg Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townBretz Mill · ~4.9 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelHume Lake Gas Station · ~20.6 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~12.0 mi
- GroceriesTreading Post · ~10.8 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~17.7 mi
- Hospital / clinicFamily Healthcare Network · ~16.1 mi
- HardwareYoung's Shaver Lake Hardware · ~11.2 mi
EV charging — from Bear Camp · Sierra National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger28.8 mi straight-line W — Clovis, CA - Tesla Supercharger · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 12 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 82 within 50 · 171 within 100 · 501 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS29.1 mi — Public Parking, Clovis
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO29.1 mi — Public Parking, Clovis
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)17.7 mi — Prather · NOODOE · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed
- 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 187165 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Bear Camp · Sierra National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBretz · ~4.9 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletGigantea · ~6.4 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMckinley Grove · ~6.4 mi NE · USFS
- RestroomKirch Rafting Take Out · ~7.0 mi SE · USFS
Open Bear Camp elsewhere
Other camps near Bear Camp
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Bretz~4.9 mi
- Gigantea~6.4 mi · fee
- Kirch Flat~7.2 mi
- Dinkey~7.3 mi · fee
The unit that manages Bear Camp
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Bear Camp are set by Sierra National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Bear 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
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 Bear 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 — Bear Camp
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 →