Agency-listedUSFSFee
Chilhowee Recreation Area
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · TN · 35.15221, -84.60860
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 Chilhowee Recreation Area
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,963 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Chilhowee Recreation AreaNIFC · 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 Chilhowee Recreation Area · Cherokee National Forest · TN
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- ShShower0 mi
- LLaundry2 mi
- GGrocery3 mi
- +Urgent care3 mi
- @Mail3 mi
- FFuel3 mi
- OOutfitter3 mi
- AAir-up4 mi
- MMechanic5 mi
- HHardware6 mi
- WWater13 mi
- RxPharmacy14 mi
- DDump15 mi
- EVEV fast charger15 mi
- PPropane52 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 3 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 — Chilhowee Recreation Area
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
1,963 ft
State
TN
Coordinates
35.15221, -84.60860
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Chilhowee Recreation Area · Cherokee National Forest · TN (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townBenton · ~2.9 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelCircle K · ~2.9 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~15.2 mi
- GroceriesFred's · ~2.8 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~13.7 mi
- Hospital / clinicBenton Family Health Care Center · ~2.8 mi
- HardwareCurt's Ace Hardware · ~6.4 mi
EV charging — from Chilhowee Recreation Area · Cherokee National Forest · TN — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger15.3 mi straight-line W — Cleveland, TN - Tesla Supercharger (at a shopping center) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 16 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. NACS partner enabled. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach6 within 25 mi · 40 within 50 · 290 within 100 · 625 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS17.9 mi — Cleveland Ford, Cleveland
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO21.9 mi — ATHENS UB STATION 3 (R), Athens
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)6.7 mi — Hiwassee/Ocoee Scenic River State Park, Delano, TN (at a public site) · RIVIAN_WAYPOINTS · 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 397008 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Chilhowee Recreation Area · Cherokee National Forest · TN — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Flush restroomChilhowee Recreation Area · at this camp · USFS
- Flush restroomMac Point Recreation Area · ~3.0 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletParksville Boat Launch Complex · ~3.0 mi S · USFS
- Flush restroomParksville Campground · ~3.1 mi SE · USFS
Open Chilhowee Recreation Area elsewhere
Other camps near Chilhowee Recreation Area
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Parksville Campground~3.1 mi · fee
- Quinn Springs Campground~6.3 mi
- Lost Corral Horse Camp~6.9 mi · fee
- Lost Creek Campground~8.0 mi
The unit that manages Chilhowee Recreation Area
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Chilhowee Recreation Area are set by Cherokee National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Chilhowee Recreation Area
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.
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 Chilhowee Recreation Area
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 — Chilhowee Recreation Area
Water on public land →What “dispersed” means here →Fire rules & restrictions →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 →