Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Elbow
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · ID · 42.34423, -111.17440
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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 Elbow
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 6,446 ft.
Fire & smoke — around ElbowNIFC · 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 Elbow · Caribou-Targhee National Forest · ID
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- MMechanic6 mi
- LLaundry6 mi
- FFuel6 mi
- GGrocery6 mi
- +Urgent care6 mi
- HHardware7 mi
- ShShower7 mi
- @Mail7 mi
- RxPharmacy7 mi
- DDump22 mi
- WWater22 mi
- OOutfitter27 mi
- EVEV fast charger29 mi
- AAir-up51 mi
- PPropane54 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 22-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 6 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 — Elbow
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
6,446 ft
State
ID
Coordinates
42.34423, -111.17440
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Elbow · Caribou-Targhee National Forest · ID (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureRearing Pond (water) · nearby
- Nearest townMontpelier · ~6.5 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelSinclair · ~14.3 mi
- Propane / LPGSuburban Propane · ~30.2 mi
- Dump station~22.1 mi
- GroceriesBroulim's · ~6.5 mi
- PharmacyOur Valley Pharmacy | Afton · ~29.1 mi
- Hospital / clinicBear Lake Memorial Hospital · ~6.7 mi
- HardwareDry Creek Pumping & Portable · ~25.5 mi
EV charging — from Elbow · Caribou-Targhee National Forest · ID — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger29.1 mi straight-line SW — MIKES MARKET BERT, Garden City, UT · 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 reachnone within 25 mi · 6 within 50 · 61 within 100 · 169 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)29.1 mi — Mike's Market - Tesla Supercharger (Car Charging Pros), Garden City
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)14.2 mi — El Camino Donuts - Tesla Destination, Paris, ID · Tesla Destination · J1772, NACS (Tesla) · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-08-27 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to all vehicles.
- 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 204746 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Elbow · Caribou-Targhee National Forest · ID — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- RestroomFederal restroom · ~6.4 mi W · FWS
- Vault / pit toiletClear Creek Gs · ~12.5 mi N · USFS
- RestroomFederal restroom · ~12.6 mi SW · FWS
- Vault / pit toiletAllred Flat Campground · ~14.6 mi NE · USFS
Open Elbow elsewhere
Other camps near Elbow
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Montpelier Canyon Cg~3.0 mi · fee
- Allred Flat Campground~14.6 mi · fee
- Summit View~16.1 mi · fee
- Paris Springs Campground~18.9 mi · fee
The unit that manages Elbow
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Elbow are set by Caribou-Targhee National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Giveout at 6,940 ft, about 5 miles away. It sits about 494 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 — Elbow
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 Elbow
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 — Elbow
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Reading your camp page →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 →