Agency-listedUSFSFee
Elk Lake
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · OR · 43.98008, -121.80960
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 Elk Lake
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 4,938 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Elk LakeNIFC · 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 Elk Lake · Deschutes National Forest · OR
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater0 mi
- GGrocery12 mi
- +Urgent care20 mi
- OOutfitter20 mi
- FFuel20 mi
- @Mail20 mi
- ShShower22 mi
- RxPharmacy24 mi
- HHardware24 mi
- EVEV fast charger24 mi
- PPropane25 mi
- LLaundry25 mi
- MMechanic25 mi
- AAir-up25 mi
- DDump36 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 12 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 — Elk Lake
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
4,938 ft
State
OR
Coordinates
43.98008, -121.80960
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Elk Lake · Deschutes National Forest · OR (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureElk Lake (water) · nearby
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~0.2 mi
- FuelShell · ~20.2 mi
- Propane / LPGChevron Sisters · ~25.2 mi
- GroceriesSunriver Country Store · ~20.0 mi
- PharmacySafeway · ~24.3 mi
- Hospital / clinicCentral Oregon Aesthetics · ~23.1 mi
- HardwareHarbor Freight Tools · ~24.8 mi
EV charging — from Elk Lake · Deschutes National Forest · OR — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger24.4 mi straight-line NW — WCEH McKenzie, Blue River, OR · EVCS · CHAdeMO, J1772, CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach2 within 25 mi · 20 within 50 · 109 within 100 · 331 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)25.0 mi — Bend, OR - Southwest Industrial Way - Tesla Supercharger, Bend
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)6.7 mi — Mt. Bachelor Westside Village, Bend, OR (at a recreation facility) · Non-Networked · J1772 · 6 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-14 · hours: Open during parking lot hours
- 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 73409 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Elk Lake · Deschutes National Forest · OR — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletElk Lake · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletElk Lake · ~0.2 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSunset View · ~0.9 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletPoint · ~0.9 mi S · USFS
Open Elk Lake elsewhere
Other camps near Elk Lake
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Point~0.9 mi · fee
- Little Fawn Group Site~1.3 mi · fee
- Quinn Meadow Horse Camp~1.7 mi · fee
- South Campground~1.7 mi
The unit that manages Elk Lake
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Elk Lake are set by Deschutes National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Elk Lake
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. | Fee 2026-08-31: $25 per night, single campsite. One vehicle is included with a reservation; each additional vehicle is $10. Senior/Access pass holders get 50% off the single-unit camping fee only. The Deschutes NF page and recreation.gov listing 267555 (0.129 mi from our pin) agree at $25 for the 2026 peak season, May 29 - Sep 26. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r06/deschutes/recreation/elk-lake-campground.
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 Elk Lake
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 — Elk Lake
Camping near a reservoir →Water on public land →What “dispersed” means here →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 →