Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Cottonwood Lakes 03
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 47.19085, -113.43439
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 Cottonwood Lakes 03
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 4,238 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Cottonwood Lakes 03NIFC · 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 Cottonwood Lakes 03 · Lolo National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel2 mi
- HHardware2 mi
- @Mail2 mi
- GGrocery2 mi
- LLaundry2 mi
- ShShower2 mi
- +Urgent care3 mi
- DDump13 mi
- RxPharmacy33 mi
- WWater33 mi
- OOutfitter34 mi
- EVEV fast charger34 mi
- MMechanic34 mi
- AAir-up35 mi
- PPropane39 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 33-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 2 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 34-mi run (and back).
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 — Cottonwood Lakes 03
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
4,238 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
47.19085, -113.43439
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Cottonwood Lakes 03 · Lolo National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureMorrell Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townSeeley Lake · ~2.5 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~22.1 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesMontana gas N shop · ~2.5 mi
EV charging — from Cottonwood Lakes 03 · Lolo National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger34.0 mi straight-line SW — Missoula, MT - Tesla Supercharger (at a hotel) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 6 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 7 within 50 · 26 within 100 · 36 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS34.7 mi — Missoula Chevrolet, Missoula
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO35.5 mi — Walmart 3259 (Missoula, MT), Missoula
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)30.6 mi — Gray Wolf Peak Casino, Missoula, MT · Blink Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Trixi's Saloon - Tesla Destination, Ovando, 18.8 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 102266 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Cottonwood Lakes 03 · Lolo National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBig Larch Campground Complex · ~2.8 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRiver Point Campground Complex · ~3.8 mi W · USFS
- Flush restroomSeeley Lake Campground Complex · ~4.0 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletClearwater River Canoe Trailhead · ~5.4 mi NW · USFS
Open Cottonwood Lakes 03 elsewhere
Other camps near Cottonwood Lakes 03
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Morrell Creek 11~0.6 mi
- Morrell Creek 08~0.9 mi
- USFS dispersed camp — MT #109~0.9 mi
- Cottonwood Lakes-002~1.0 mi
The unit that manages Cottonwood Lakes 03
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Cottonwood Lakes 03 are set by Lolo National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Cottonwood Lakes 03
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 Cottonwood Lakes 03
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 — Cottonwood Lakes 03
Camping near a reservoir →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →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 →