Agency-listedUSFSFree
Blackwell Campground
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · IN · 39.01685, -86.38975
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 Blackwell Campground
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 777 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Blackwell CampgroundNIFC · 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 Blackwell Campground · Hoosier National Forest · IN
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- ShShower3 mi
- WWater3 mi
- LLaundry3 mi
- +Urgent care3 mi
- OOutfitter4 mi
- FFuel5 mi
- DDump5 mi
- GGrocery6 mi
- @Mail6 mi
- MMechanic9 mi
- HHardware11 mi
- EVEV fast charger11 mi
- RxPharmacy11 mi
- AAir-up49 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 5 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 — Blackwell Campground
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
777 ft
State
IN
Coordinates
39.01685, -86.38975
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Blackwell Campground · Hoosier National Forest · IN (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureTower Blackwell Lake (water) · nearby
- Nearest townChapel Hill · ~3.4 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~3.2 mi
- FuelFuel · ~4.9 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~5.1 mi
- GroceriesMarathon · ~9.1 mi
- PharmacyEngleking Rx · ~11.4 mi
- Hospital / clinicSouthern Indiana Community Health Care · ~11.4 mi
- HardwareBriggs & Straton Dealer Small Engine Repair · ~11.0 mi
EV charging — from Blackwell Campground · Hoosier National Forest · IN — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger11.3 mi straight-line NW — Curry Auto Center, Bloomington, IN · EV Connect · CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach9 within 25 mi · 36 within 50 · 176 within 100 · 348 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)11.4 mi — Bloomington, IN - East 3rd Street - Tesla Supercharger, Bloomington
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO12.0 mi — Bedford, Bedford
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)11.2 mi — Curry Collision Center, Bloomington, IN · EV Connect · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: Mon: 7:00am-5:00pm; Tue: 7:00am-5:00pm; Wed: 7:00am-5:00pm; Thu: 7:00am-5:00pm; Fri: 7:00am-5:00pm
- 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 238899 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Blackwell Campground · Hoosier National Forest · IN — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBlackwell Campground · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBrooks Cabin · ~0.4 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHardin Ridge Recreation Area · ~2.1 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletH.R. Eads Loop · ~2.2 mi W · USFS
Open Blackwell Campground elsewhere
Other camps near Blackwell Campground
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Hardin Ridge Recreation Area~2.1 mi · fee
- H.R. Eads Loop~2.2 mi · fee
- H.R. Southern Point Loop~2.7 mi · fee
- H.R. Bluegill Loop~2.8 mi · fee
The unit that manages Blackwell Campground
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Blackwell Campground are set by Hoosier National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Blackwell Campground
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 Blackwell Campground
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 — Blackwell Campground
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Reading your camp 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 →