Agency-listedUSFSFree
Bowler
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 37.50859, -119.32724
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 Bowler
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 7,026 ft.
Fire & smoke — around BowlerNIFC · 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 Bowler · Sierra National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater16 mi
- ShShower16 mi
- EVEV fast charger17 mi
- GGrocery17 mi
- @Mail17 mi
- DDump18 mi
- FFuel18 mi
- LLaundry20 mi
- OOutfitter20 mi
- +Urgent care20 mi
- MMechanic22 mi
- RxPharmacy22 mi
- HHardware22 mi
- AAir-up26 mi
- PPropane48 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 17 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 — Bowler
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
7,026 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
37.50859, -119.32724
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Bowler · Sierra National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureNorris Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townCentral Camp · ~14.0 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelChevron · ~18.2 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~18.0 mi
- GroceriesRed's Meadow General Store · ~15.6 mi
- PharmacyVons Pharmacy · ~21.8 mi
- Hospital / clinicMammoth Hospital · ~22.0 mi
- HardwareYoung's Shaver Lake Hardware · ~27.8 mi
EV charging — from Bowler · Sierra National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger17.1 mi straight-line W — Fish Camp, CA - Tesla Supercharger (at a hotel) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 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 reach9 within 25 mi · 15 within 50 · 171 within 100 · 803 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS21.8 mi — Mammoth Lakes, CA, Mammoth Lakes
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO21.9 mi — DC CORRIDOR OAKHURST DC2, Oakhurst
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)17.4 mi — WPMI WPM STN 1, Wawona, CA · ChargePoint Network · 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 102020 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Bowler · Sierra National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBowler · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletClover Meadow · ~3.0 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletGranite Creek · ~4.0 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletUpper Chiquito · ~4.5 mi W · USFS
Open Bowler elsewhere
Other camps near Bowler
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Clover Meadow~3.0 mi
- Granite Creek~4.0 mi
- Beasore/Chiquito~4.4 mi
- Upper Chiquito~4.5 mi
The unit that manages Bowler
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Bowler are set by Sierra National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Bowler
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 Bowler
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 — Bowler
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →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 →