Agency-listedUSFSFree
Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · OR · 45.00961, -118.61821
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 Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 5,051 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Big Creek Meadows Campground & TrailheadNIFC · 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 Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead · Umatilla National Forest · OR
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery16 mi
- @Mail16 mi
- WWater23 mi
- FFuel27 mi
- ShShower28 mi
- MMechanic31 mi
- +Urgent care33 mi
- RxPharmacy34 mi
- HHardware34 mi
- EVEV fast charger35 mi
- DDump41 mi
- LLaundry44 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 23-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 16 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 35-mi run (and back).
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 Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
5,051 ft
State
OR
Coordinates
45.00961, -118.61821
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead · Umatilla National Forest · OR (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureBig Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townDale · ~16.2 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~27.3 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesDale Store · ~16.2 mi
EV charging — from Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead · Umatilla National Forest · OR — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger34.9 mi straight-line NE — VOLVO CAR USA LA GRANDE DC4 · 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 reachnone within 25 mi · 13 within 50 · 50 within 100 · 153 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)42.4 mi — Baker City, OR - Tesla Supercharger, Baker City
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)34.9 mi — Hampton Inn & Suites La Grande - Tesla Destination · Tesla Destination · J1772, NACS (Tesla) · 4 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-08-27 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to all vehicles.
- 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 256977 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead · Umatilla National Forest · OR — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBig Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletWinom Creek Campground & Tower Loop Trailhead · ~1.0 mi W · USFS
- RestroomForks · ~2.4 mi SE · USFS
- RestroomPacksaddle/Christensen · ~5.7 mi E · USFS
Open Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead elsewhere
Other camps near Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Winom Creek Campground & Tower Loop Trailhead~1.0 mi · fee
- Oriental Campground~5.9 mi · fee
- Umapine Campground~7.7 mi · fee
- Gold Dredge~9.8 mi · fee
The unit that manages Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead are set by Umatilla National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead
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 Big Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead
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 Creek Meadows Campground & Trailhead
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 →