Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Colon Hollow Shelter
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · VA · 37.54334, -79.58473
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 Colon Hollow Shelter
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,163 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Colon Hollow ShelterNIFC · 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 Colon Hollow Shelter · George Washington and Jefferson National Forest · VA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel4 mi
- GGrocery5 mi
- @Mail5 mi
- OOutfitter7 mi
- PPropane7 mi
- LLaundry7 mi
- ShShower7 mi
- MMechanic9 mi
- WWater12 mi
- EVEV fast charger14 mi
- +Urgent care14 mi
- AAir-up15 mi
- RxPharmacy16 mi
- HHardware16 mi
- DDump25 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 4 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 — Colon Hollow Shelter
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
1,163 ft
State
VA
Coordinates
37.54334, -79.58473
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Colon Hollow Shelter · George Washington and Jefferson National Forest · VA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureNorth Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townSolitude · ~1.8 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~4.1 mi
- Propane / LPGPropane · ~7.2 mi
- Dump station~25.0 mi
- GroceriesExxon · ~5.9 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~15.6 mi
- Hospital / clinicCentra Bedford Memorial Hospital · ~13.7 mi
- HardwareRockbridge Farmers Coop · ~17.5 mi
EV charging — from Colon Hollow Shelter · George Washington and Jefferson National Forest · VA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger14.4 mi straight-line S — Bedford, VA - Tesla Supercharger (at a gas station) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 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 reach11 within 25 mi · 34 within 50 · 106 within 100 · 393 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS15.2 mi — Brughs Mill Country Store (Fincastle, VA), Fincastle
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO24.4 mi — STHR HYUNDAI 2, Hollins
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)15.7 mi — Berglund Ford Buick GMC, Bedford, VA · Blink Network · J1772 · 1 Level 2 port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Peaks of Otter Lodge - Tesla Destination, Bedford, 6.7 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 405690 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Colon Hollow Shelter · George Washington and Jefferson National Forest · VA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletColon Hollow Shelter · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletNorth Creek · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBryant Ridge A.T. Shelter · ~0.9 mi S · USFS
- RestroomNBATC Bryant Ridge Shelter Privy · ~0.9 mi S · NPS
Open Colon Hollow Shelter elsewhere
Other camps near Colon Hollow Shelter
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- In George Washington National Forest~0.6 mi
- Bryant Ridge A.T. Shelter~0.9 mi
- Cave Mountain Lake Campground~3.5 mi · fee
- Cornelius Creek A.T. Shelter~4.0 mi
The unit that manages Colon Hollow Shelter
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Colon Hollow Shelter are set by George Washington and Jefferson National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Colon Hollow Shelter
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 Colon Hollow Shelter
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 — Colon Hollow Shelter
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →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 →