Agency-listedUSFSFree
Fossil Creek
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · AZ · 34.39432, -111.63003
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 Fossil Creek
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 3,600 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Fossil CreekNIFC · 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 Fossil Creek · Tonto National Forest · AZ
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- +Urgent care10 mi
- FFuel10 mi
- GGrocery10 mi
- @Mail10 mi
- HHardware10 mi
- WWater11 mi
- MMechanic13 mi
- ShShower14 mi
- LLaundry18 mi
- RxPharmacy18 mi
- DDump20 mi
- AAir-up20 mi
- EVEV fast charger20 mi
- OOutfitter33 mi
- PPropane56 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 10 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 — Fossil Creek
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
3,600 ft
State
AZ
Coordinates
34.39432, -111.63003
Cost
Free · dispersed public land, no fee in any source
Nearby & resupply — around Fossil Creek · Tonto National Forest · AZ (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureLouthan Tank (water) · nearby
- Nearest townStrawberry · ~7.7 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~17.5 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~19.7 mi · fee
- GroceriesBashas' · ~17.9 mi
- PharmacyWalgreens · ~17.7 mi
- Hospital / clinicCamp Geronimo health lodge · ~14.7 mi
- HardwareHarbor Freight Tools · ~20.7 mi
EV charging — from Fossil Creek · Tonto National Forest · AZ — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger20.5 mi straight-line SE — Payson, AZ - Tesla Supercharger (at a shopping center) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 12 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 reach3 within 25 mi · 18 within 50 · 127 within 100 · 157 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS20.7 mi — CircleK - Payson, Payson
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO47.0 mi — Walmart 5329 (Anthem, AZ), Anthem
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)17.4 mi — MOSCATO STATION2, Camp Verde, AZ · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- 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 117722 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Fossil Creek · Tonto National Forest · AZ — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletFossil Creek Bridge · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletFossil Creek Wild And Scenic River · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletTonto Bench · ~0.5 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHomestead Lower · ~0.8 mi W · USFS
Open Fossil Creek elsewhere
Other camps near Fossil Creek
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Childs Dispersed Camping Area~5.0 mi
- Sharp Creek Group~10.8 mi
- Bull Pen Dispersed Campground~11.0 mi
- Clear Creek National Forest Campground~11.5 mi
The unit that manages Fossil Creek
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Fossil Creek are set by Tonto National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Fossil Creek
Source
OpenStreetMap contributors
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
auto: drive (road/trail right there)
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 Fossil Creek
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 — Fossil Creek
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 →