Agency-listedUSFSFee
Bessey Recreation Complex
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · NE · 41.89945, -100.29723
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 Bessey Recreation Complex
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 2,733 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Bessey Recreation ComplexNIFC · 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 Bessey Recreation Complex · Nebraska National Forest · NE
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- @Mail1 mi
- GGrocery12 mi
- FFuel14 mi
- EVEV fast charger15 mi
- HHardware33 mi
- MMechanic33 mi
- RxPharmacy59 mi
- OOutfitter59 mi
- LLaundry59 mi
- +Urgent care59 mi
- ShShower60 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: fuel & food sit about 12 mi out.
Not within 60 mi: Water, 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 — Bessey Recreation Complex
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
2,733 ft
State
NE
Coordinates
41.89945, -100.29723
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Bessey Recreation Complex · Nebraska National Forest · NE (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureMiddle Loup River (river) · nearby
- Nearest townHalsey · ~1.5 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelSinclair · ~13.8 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesHarsh Mercantile · ~11.6 mi
EV charging — from Bessey Recreation Complex · Nebraska National Forest · NE — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger14.9 mi straight-line W — CUSTERPPD THEDFORD 2 EAST · ChargePoint Network · CHAdeMO, CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach2 within 25 mi · 2 within 50 · 14 within 100 · 40 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)59.0 mi — North Platte, NE - Tesla Supercharger, North Platte
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)48.8 mi — CUSTERPPD CUSTERPOWER, Broken Bow, NE · 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 329021 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Bessey Recreation Complex · Nebraska National Forest · NE — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Flush restroomBessey Recreation Complex · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletDismal · ~0.8 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletScott Lookout Tower · ~2.3 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletNatick · ~6.2 mi W · USFS
Open Bessey Recreation Complex elsewhere
Other camps near Bessey Recreation Complex
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Natick~6.2 mi · fee
- White Tail Campground~7.3 mi · fee
The unit that manages Bessey Recreation Complex
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Bessey Recreation Complex are set by Nebraska National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Bessey Recreation Complex
Source
U.S. Forest Service recreation data
Confidence
Agency-confirmed — The managing agency's own record names this as a campsite and puts it at these coordinates. About as good as it gets short of standing here.
How it was placed
Developed FEE campground (not free) - review | nightshift-verified 2026-08-18: PROMOTED later -> approved. The old note said only "Developed FEE campground (not free) - review" with no source. Sourced today from the Forest Service itself: the Nebraska National Forests and Grasslands camping index https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/nebraska/recreation/camping-cabins and the site page https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/nebraska/recreation/bessey-recreation-complex-and-campground. Listed "Site Open" on the Nebraska National Forests and Grasslands camping index and on its own page. Camping is available all year. Overnight Use: Single Site (Non-Electric) $15/night, Single Site (Electric) $20/night, Group Site (Electric) $125/night; Day Use $5/vehicle/day. The ONLY NNF campground that accepts reservations (recreation.gov or 877-444-6777) -- roughly half the Complex sites, mid-May to mid-October. Adjacent to the Middle Loup River in the Sandhills; Halsey ~1 mi east has a general store, Thedford 17 mi west has fuel and groceries. FS-published coordinate 41.89944444,-100.2972222 matches our stored point to ~1 m. WATER: The Forest Service states "Potable water is available at this site", but adds that in winter the only potable water is at the Recreation building, not at the campground loops. Treat the Middle Loup River as NOT potable.
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 Bessey Recreation Complex
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 — Bessey Recreation Complex
Water on public land →What “dispersed” means here →Dumping grey & black →Camping with a dog →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 →