Agency-listedUSFSFee
Cascade
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CO · 38.71152, -106.24528
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 as a developed campground. Expect marked sites, a fee station or a reservation, and the usual campground rules. The dispersed-camping freedom of the surrounding forest does not apply inside it. 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 Cascade
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 9,031 ft.
Fire & smoke — around CascadeNIFC · 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 Cascade · Pike and San Isabel National Forests · CO
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery5 mi
- FFuel8 mi
- LLaundry11 mi
- +Urgent care11 mi
- OOutfitter11 mi
- @Mail11 mi
- DDump11 mi
- HHardware11 mi
- EVEV fast charger11 mi
- ShShower12 mi
- WWater12 mi
- MMechanic18 mi
- RxPharmacy18 mi
- AAir-up19 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, 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 — Cascade
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
9,031 ft
State
CO
Coordinates
38.71152, -106.24528
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Cascade · Pike and San Isabel National Forests · CO (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townNathrop · ~9.5 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelCenterville gas station - Sugar Shack · ~8.5 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~11.1 mi
- GroceriesSt. Elmo General Store · ~5.4 mi
- PharmacySalida Pharmacy & Fountain · ~18.3 mi
- Hospital / clinicHeart of Rockies Regional Medical Center · ~10.6 mi
- HardwareRocky Mountain Lumber & Hardware · ~11.2 mi
EV charging — from Cascade · Pike and San Isabel National Forests · CO — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger11.2 mi straight-line NE — Electric Era Charging Station, Buena Vista, CO (at a public site) · ELECTRIC_ERA · CCS, NACS (Tesla) · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach7 within 25 mi · 20 within 50 · 258 within 100 · 466 within 150
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO11.2 mi — SDCEA SOUTH MAIN L3, Buena Vista
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)10.8 mi — BVPL EV1 BUENA VISTA 1 · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 1 Level 2 port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: Mon: 8:30am-4:00pm; Tue: 8:30am-4:00pm; Wed: 8:30am-4:00pm; Thu: 8:30am-4:00pm; Fri: 8:30am-4:00pm; Sat: 8:30am-4:00pm; Sun: 8:30am-4:00pm
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Mt. Princeton Hot Springs Resort - Tesla Destination, Nathrop, 4.7 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas 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 428659 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Cascade · Pike and San Isabel National Forests · CO — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- RestroomCascade · at this camp · USFS
- RestroomChalk Lake · ~0.5 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletChalk Lake · ~0.6 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMt. Princeton · ~1.1 mi E · USFS
Open Cascade elsewhere
Other camps near Cascade
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Chalk Lake~0.6 mi · fee
- Mt. Princeton~1.1 mi · fee
- Bootleg~2.7 mi · fee
- Iron City~4.9 mi · fee
The unit that manages Cascade
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Cascade are set by Pike and San Isabel National Forests, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Saint Elmo at 10,420 ft, about 7 miles away. It sits about 1,389 ft higher than this camp, so treat it as a guide rather than a reading for this spot. We do not repeat a depth here, because any number we stored would be stale by the time you read it — the station publishes today's.
How we know this — Cascade
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
Developed FEE campground (not free) - review | auto:usfs-fee 2026-08-20: US Forest Service developed campground, agency coordinates, agency states a fee. No dollar amount in the agency record -- expect a charge and confirm the current rate before you go. Not field-verified. | Fee 2026-08-27: $25 per night per site, two vehicles or one RV included; a third vehicle is $10 and day use without camping is $10. Cash, check or money order into a self-service fee tube, and the site must be occupied the first night of payment. The forest caps it at eight people, two tents and two vehicles (or one RV) per site, and gives Interagency Senior/Access holders 50% off one site. Confirmed by two sources: the Pike-San Isabel NF campground page (updated Mar 30 2026) and recreation.gov facility 231866 'CASCADE (COLORADO)', which charges $25 and sits 0.09 mi from this pin. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/psicc/recreation/cascade-campground and https://www.recreation.gov/camping/campgrounds/231866.
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 Cascade
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 — Cascade
Camping at altitude →When the high country opens →Winter vs summer roads →Reading the aerial →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 →