Agency-listedUSFSFree
Blacks Pond
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 45.34704, -106.28645
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 Blacks Pond
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 3,679 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Blacks PondNIFC · 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 Blacks Pond · Custer Gallatin National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- @Mail11 mi
- GGrocery17 mi
- HHardware17 mi
- +Urgent care17 mi
- FFuel17 mi
- EVEV fast charger49 mi
- LLaundry49 mi
- RxPharmacy50 mi
- MMechanic51 mi
- OOutfitter51 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: fuel & food sit about 17 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 49-mi run (and back).
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 — Blacks Pond
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
3,679 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
45.34704, -106.28645
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Blacks Pond · Custer Gallatin National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureStocker Branch (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townBirney · ~10.0 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- Fuelnone within 30 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Groceriesnone within 30 mi
- Mapping is thin out hereAn empty row means nothing is mapped within that radius — not that nothing exists. Small stores, seasonal resorts and single fuel pumps out here often never make it onto the map. Treat these as unconfirmed and ask locally.
EV charging — from Blacks Pond · Custer Gallatin National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger48.6 mi straight-line SW — SHERIDAN MOTORS CPE250 · 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 · 2 within 50 · 8 within 100 · 20 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)49.7 mi — Sheridan, WY - Tesla Supercharger, Sheridan
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)48.6 mi — SHERIDAN MOTORS CT4000 · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveLevel 2, restricted access — Broadus Motels, Broadus, 43.1 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily; for guest use only; see front desk for access
- 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 255681 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Blacks Pond · Custer Gallatin National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBlacks Pond · at this camp · USFS
- RestroomCow Creek · ~3.3 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRed Shale · ~16.8 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletWhite Tail Cabin · ~25.2 mi NE · USFS
Open Blacks Pond elsewhere
Other camps near Blacks Pond
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Forest Rd 41317A~1.8 mi
- Forest Rd 41317C~1.9 mi
- Forest Rd 4095D~2.6 mi
- Forest Rd 40952~2.6 mi
The unit that manages Blacks Pond
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Blacks Pond are set by Custer Gallatin National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Blacks Pond
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 || Water: Custer Gallatin National Forest's own site page for Blacks Pond Campground, https://www.fs.usda.gov/r01/custergallatin/recreation/blacks-pond-campground (read 2026-08-13; page "Last updated" April 30, 2026), "Facility and Amenity Information > Water": "Potable water is not available at this site.". Corroborated by the USFS EDW Recreation Sites layer (apps.fs.usda.gov/arcx/rest/services/EDW/EDW_RecInfraRecreationSites_02/MapServer/0, queried 2026-08-13), WATER_AVAILABILITY = "No drinking water is available". Both channels agree; nightshift fire 610.
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 Blacks Pond
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 — Blacks Pond
Camping near a reservoir →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →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 →