Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Buffalo Creek
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MO · 36.68963, -91.05727
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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 Buffalo Creek
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 554 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Buffalo CreekNIFC · 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 Buffalo Creek · Mark Twain National Forest · MO
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- ShShower8 mi
- @Mail8 mi
- GGrocery13 mi
- FFuel14 mi
- HHardware16 mi
- RxPharmacy30 mi
- +Urgent care32 mi
- MMechanic34 mi
- EVEV fast charger36 mi
- OOutfitter38 mi
- DDump38 mi
- WWater44 mi
- AAir-up44 mi
- LLaundry45 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 44-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 13 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 36-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 — Buffalo Creek
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
554 ft
State
MO
Coordinates
36.68963, -91.05727
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Buffalo Creek · Mark Twain National Forest · MO (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townBardley · ~3.6 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelCasey's General Store · ~13.9 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesTown & Country Supermarket · ~13.2 mi
- Hospital / clinicSoutheast Health Center Of Ripley County · ~13.6 mi
- HardwareSimpsons · ~19.1 mi
EV charging — from Buffalo Creek · Mark Twain National Forest · MO — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger36.1 mi straight-line E — Baldwin Chevrolet Cadillac, POPLAR BLUFF, MO · EV Connect · CCS · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 5 within 50 · 40 within 100 · 272 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)64.3 mi — Jonesboro, AR - Tesla Supercharger, Jonesboro
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO37.0 mi — Vine Street Parking - Poplar Bluff, Poplar Bluff
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)31.3 mi — TODAY'S POWER CCEC POCAHONTAS · 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 aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Lesmeister Guesthouse - Tesla Destination, Pocahontas, 29.9 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · AFDC lists it “Free”
Level 2, restricted access — Fairfield Inn & Suites Poplar Bluff, Poplar Bluff, 34.5 mi · J1772 · 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 306912 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Buffalo Creek · Mark Twain National Forest · MO — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletFourche Lake · ~3.5 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRipley Lake · ~6.0 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBozemill Float Camp · ~8.0 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRiverton - East · ~8.4 mi W · USFS
Open Buffalo Creek elsewhere
Other camps near Buffalo Creek
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Thaxton Camp~4.9 mi
- Greenbriar Float Camp~7.7 mi
- Bozemill Float Camp~8.0 mi
- Whites Creek Float Camp~8.8 mi
The unit that manages Buffalo Creek
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Buffalo Creek are set by Mark Twain National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Buffalo Creek
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
USFS/BLM authoritative: free & dispersed. Access not field-checked (assumed drive-up).
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 Buffalo Creek
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 — Buffalo Creek
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Getting unstuck →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 →