Agency-listedUSFSFee
Big Meadows Cg
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 39.07451, -120.42740
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 Big Meadows Cg
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 5,349 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Big Meadows CgNIFC · 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 Meadows Cg · Eldorado National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater8 mi
- GGrocery13 mi
- @Mail14 mi
- DDump15 mi
- PPropane15 mi
- FFuel16 mi
- HHardware16 mi
- EVEV fast charger16 mi
- OOutfitter17 mi
- LLaundry17 mi
- ShShower17 mi
- RxPharmacy21 mi
- MMechanic21 mi
- +Urgent care22 mi
- AAir-up33 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 13 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 — Big Meadows Cg
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
5,349 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
39.07451, -120.42740
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Big Meadows Cg · Eldorado National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townSunnyside-Tahoe · ~14.7 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~7.9 mi
- FuelFuel · ~16.3 mi
- Propane / LPG7-Eleven · ~15.2 mi
- Dump station~15.1 mi
- GroceriesAlice's Mountain Market · ~13.4 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~20.6 mi
- Hospital / clinicUrgent Care · ~21.5 mi
- HardwareSwigard's Ace Hardware · ~16.5 mi
EV charging — from Big Meadows Cg · Eldorado National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger16.5 mi straight-line NE — Tahoe City, CA - Tesla Supercharger (at a municipal building) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 6 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 reach16 within 25 mi · 109 within 50 · 344 within 100 · 1035 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS17.4 mi — DC CORRIDOR LUCKYS SS DC1, Soda Springs
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO17.4 mi — DC CORRIDOR LUCKYS SS DC1, Soda Springs
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)13.5 mi — Palisades Tahoe Ski Resort, Olympic Valley, CA (at a public site) · EVRANGE · J1772 · 12 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed
- Also listed, not counted aboveLevel 2, restricted access — Resort at Squaw Creek, Olympic Valley, 13.2 mi · J1772 · hours: 24 hours daily; for guest use only; see valet for access · AFDC lists it “Variable fee”
- 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 153419 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Big Meadows Cg · Eldorado National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBig Meadows Cg · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHell Hole Cg · ~0.6 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHell Hole Vista · ~0.7 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHell Hole Boat Ramp · ~1.2 mi SE · USFS
Open Big Meadows Cg elsewhere
Other camps near Big Meadows Cg
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Hell Hole Cg~0.6 mi · fee
- Middle Meadows Group~2.6 mi · fee
- French Meadows~2.7 mi · fee
- Poppy~3.3 mi · fee
The unit that manages Big Meadows Cg
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Big Meadows Cg are set by Eldorado National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Big Meadows Cg
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
Developed FEE campground (not free) - review | auto:usfs-fee 2026-08-20: US Forest Service developed campground, agency coordinates, agency states a fee. No dollar amount in the agency record -- expect a charge and confirm the current rate before you go. Not field-verified. | Fee 2026-08-23: $10 per night for a single site, $20 for a double site. The forest lists 53 sites here, of which #39 is the double. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/eldorado/recreation/big-meadows-campground.
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 Meadows Cg
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 Meadows Cg
What “dispersed” means here →Fire rules & restrictions →Picking a spot →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 →