Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Clayton Creek Gate
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 48.23733, -113.85509
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 Clayton Creek Gate
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 3,786 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Clayton Creek GateNIFC · 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 Clayton Creek Gate · Flathead National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- @Mail12 mi
- FFuel14 mi
- GGrocery14 mi
- LLaundry14 mi
- HHardware15 mi
- WWater15 mi
- OOutfitter16 mi
- ShShower16 mi
- RxPharmacy18 mi
- MMechanic18 mi
- +Urgent care19 mi
- EVEV fast charger20 mi
- DDump22 mi
- PPropane32 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 14 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 — Clayton Creek Gate
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
3,786 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
48.23733, -113.85509
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Clayton Creek Gate · Flathead National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townEssex · ~11.7 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelSinclair · ~13.9 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~22.3 mi
- GroceriesCanyon Foods · ~13.9 mi
- PharmacySmith's · ~17.7 mi
- Hospital / clinicEvergreen Clinic · ~19.4 mi
- HardwareHardware · ~15.2 mi
EV charging — from Clayton Creek Gate · Flathead National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger20.5 mi straight-line W — CLARK HYUNDAI SERVICECUSTOMER, Kalispell, MT · ChargePoint Network · CHAdeMO, CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach8 within 25 mi · 8 within 50 · 18 within 100 · 34 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)21.7 mi — Kalispell, MT - Tesla Supercharger, Kalispell
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)16.1 mi — Wonderstone at Glacier - Tesla Destination, Columbia Falls, MT · Tesla Destination · J1772, NACS (Tesla) · 3 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-08-27 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to all vehicles.
- Also listed, not counted aboveLevel 2, restricted access — Mountain Lake Lodge, Bigfork, 18.5 mi · J1772 · hours: 8am-9pm daily; for guest use 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 227212 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Clayton Creek Gate · Flathead National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletLakeview Campground · ~2.7 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMurray Bay Campground · ~2.9 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLid Creek Campground · ~4.2 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletCanyon Creek Boat · ~4.3 mi E · USFS
Open Clayton Creek Gate elsewhere
Other camps near Clayton Creek Gate
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Flossy Bay Dispersed Camp South Site~1.3 mi
- Flossy Bay Dispersed Camp West Site~1.4 mi
- Elk Island Campground~2.6 mi
- Lakeview Campground~2.6 mi
The unit that manages Clayton Creek Gate
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Clayton Creek Gate are set by Flathead National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Noisy Basin at 6,070 ft, about 7 miles away. It sits about 2,284 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 — Clayton Creek Gate
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 Clayton Creek Gate
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 — Clayton Creek Gate
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 →