Agency-listedUSFSFree
Big Cimarron
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CO · 38.25761, -107.54518
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 Big Cimarron
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 8,653 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Big CimarronNIFC · 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 Big Cimarron · Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests · CO
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery10 mi
- ShShower11 mi
- FFuel13 mi
- @Mail13 mi
- WWater14 mi
- +Urgent care14 mi
- HHardware14 mi
- LLaundry15 mi
- DDump15 mi
- EVEV fast charger17 mi
- OOutfitter18 mi
- MMechanic22 mi
- RxPharmacy24 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 10 mi out.
Not within 60 mi: 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 — Big Cimarron
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
8,653 ft
State
CO
Coordinates
38.25761, -107.54518
Cost
Free · dispersed public land, no fee in any source
Nearby & resupply — around Big Cimarron · Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests · CO (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureBeaver Lake (water) · nearby
- Nearest townDallas · ~12.0 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~12.8 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~15.1 mi
- GroceriesNewberry's Store · ~12.9 mi
- PharmacyHartman Brothers · ~23.6 mi
- Hospital / clinicLake City Area Medical Center · ~20.0 mi
- HardwareOuray Hardware and Mercantile · ~17.5 mi
EV charging — from Big Cimarron · Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests · CO — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger17.2 mi straight-line SW — HION NETWORK OURAY PL1 · 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 reach11 within 25 mi · 22 within 50 · 84 within 100 · 169 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)23.7 mi — Montrose, CO - N 1st St - Tesla Supercharger, Montrose
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)10.7 mi — Ridgway State Park (at a public site) · RIVIAN_WAYPOINTS · 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 260040 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Big Cimarron · Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests · CO — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBig Cimarron · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBeaver Lake · ~0.5 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBeaver Lake · ~0.5 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSilver Jack · ~1.5 mi S · USFS
Open Big Cimarron elsewhere
Other camps near Big Cimarron
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Beaver Lake Camground~0.5 mi
- Silver Jack~1.5 mi · fee
- Silver Jack Campground~1.5 mi · fee
- Cimarron Forks~4.1 mi
The unit that manages Big Cimarron
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Big Cimarron are set by Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Big Cimarron
Source
OpenStreetMap contributors
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.
Agency page
fs.usda.gov — the land manager's own page for this site. Fees, seasons and closures are stated there first; if it disagrees with this page, it wins.
How it was placed
auto: drive (road/trail right there)
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 Big Cimarron
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 — Big Cimarron
When the high country opens →Winter vs summer roads →Finding water out here →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 →