Found · unverifiedKDWPFree
Chase State Fishing Lake
Drive-up · Kansas Dept. of Wildlife & Parks · KS · 38.36810, -96.58494
We haven't personally camped here. Everything below is pulled from public land data, USGS maps and OpenStreetMap — a real place on Kansas Dept. of Wildlife & Parks land, but not field-checked by us. Confirm road conditions, current access, stay limits and fire restrictions before you go.
Kansas State Fishing Lake — 109 acres, managed by the Kansas Dept. of Wildlife & Parks. Free primitive camping is allowed (no camping fee), first-come, first-served, with a 7-day stay limit; a fishing license is required only if you fish. Camping is in designated areas only — confirm the current rules and where camping is allowed with KDWP before you go.
USGS topo — contours & terrain
Aerial — USGS / NAIP
Weather outlook
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,248 ft.
Fire & smokeNIFC · 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 camp
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel2 mi
- GGrocery3 mi
- HHardware3 mi
- @Mail3 mi
- RxPharmacy20 mi
- MMechanic21 mi
- LLaundry21 mi
- +Urgent care21 mi
- WWater24 mi
- ShShower36 mi
- DDump36 mi
- AAir-up48 mi
- OOutfitter52 mi
- PPropane60 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 24-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 2 mi out.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors). Open in Google Maps ↗
The site
Access
Drive-up
Land
Kansas Dept. of Wildlife & Parks
Elevation
1,248 ft
State
KS
Coordinates
38.36810, -96.58494
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureCottonwood River (river) · nearby
- Nearest townCottonwood Falls · ~2.3 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~2.4 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump stationnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesStrong City Grocery · ~3.1 mi
- PharmacyWalgreens · ~20.2 mi
- Hospital / clinicMorris County Hospital · ~21.1 mi
- HardwareClark Farm and Home Store · ~3.1 mi
Nearby restrooms — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- RestroomBottomland Nature Trail Vault Toilet · ~3.0 mi NE · NPS
- RestroomTAPR Visitor Center Headquarters · ~4.7 mi N · NPS
- RestroomHS-122 Metal Shed Restrooms · ~4.8 mi N · NPS
- Highway rest areaEmporia Service Area · ~22.8 mi E
Open this spot elsewhere
Other camps nearby
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Bates Grove Park (Cottonwood Falls)~2.5 mi
- Lyon State Fishing Lake~30.9 mi
How we know this
Source
Kansas Dept. of Wildlife & Parks (state fishing lakes)
Confidence
Researched — The record is detailed and internally consistent, and the coordinates land where the managing agency says this site is.
How it was placed
Location & acreage: KDWP Fishing Atlas GIS (Res_SFL_CFAP_NoFee, CLASS=SFL, NAD83). Free-camping status: KDWP regulations + Boondocker's Bible KS SFL roster. Pilot ingest 2026-07-19 10:36:50.
Field check
Not verified on the ground. Nobody from here has camped it. It stays at Researched until someone does.
What we don’t know
A land record can put you within a few metres 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
Before you go
Your first dispersed night →Fire rules & restrictions →Getting unstuck →Power off-grid →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 →