Agency-listedUSFSFree
Burned Dam
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MI · 46.31380, -89.05315
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 Burned Dam
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,561 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Burned DamNIFC · 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 Burned Dam · Ottawa National Forest · MI
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- OOutfitter2 mi
- FFuel6 mi
- GGrocery6 mi
- +Urgent care6 mi
- @Mail7 mi
- RxPharmacy13 mi
- DDump14 mi
- HHardware25 mi
- WWater27 mi
- ShShower27 mi
- LLaundry29 mi
- MMechanic29 mi
- AAir-up31 mi
- EVEV fast charger37 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 27-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 6 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 37-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 — Burned Dam
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
1,561 ft
State
MI
Coordinates
46.31380, -89.05315
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Burned Dam · Ottawa National Forest · MI (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureMiddle Branch Ontonagon River (river) · nearby
- Nearest townTamarack · ~1.3 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelCenex · ~6.2 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~14.0 mi
- GroceriesThe White Door General Store · ~11.8 mi
- PharmacyLand O' Lakes Health Care Pharmacy · ~13.4 mi
- Hospital / clinicLac Vieux Desert Clinic · ~6.3 mi
EV charging — from Burned Dam · Ottawa National Forest · MI — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger36.6 mi straight-line SE — Crystal Fresh Market and Ace Hardware, Crystal Falls, MI (at a public site) · RED_E · CCS, NACS (Tesla) · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 4 within 50 · 35 within 100 · 83 within 150
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO37.6 mi — Crystal Falls MI Public Parking, Crystal Falls
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)18.8 mi — Big Valley Ford, Ewen, MI (at a car dealership) · Non-Networked · J1772 · 1 Level 2 port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2025-07-03 · hours: Dealership business hours
- Also listed, not counted aboveLevel 2, restricted access — Stateline Chevrolet Buick GMC, Iron River, 24.4 mi · J1772 · hours: Dealership business hours; GMC vehicles only · AFDC lists it “Free”
- 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 302980 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Burned Dam · Ottawa National Forest · MI — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBurned Dam · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMarion Lake Group Camp · ~3.5 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMarion Lake Camp · ~3.5 mi SW · USFS
- RestroomMarion Lake Boat 2 · ~3.6 mi SW · USFS
Open Burned Dam elsewhere
Other camps near Burned Dam
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Marion Lake Group Camp~3.5 mi · fee
- Marion Lake Camp~3.5 mi · fee
- Imp Lake Camp~6.7 mi · fee
- Robbins Pond Campground~9.6 mi
The unit that manages Burned Dam
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Burned Dam are set by Ottawa National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Burned Dam
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 Burned Dam
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 — Burned Dam
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Gear & rig loadout →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 →