Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Giant Gap Road
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 39.15159, -120.76130
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 Giant Gap Road
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 3,939 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Giant Gap RoadNIFC · 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 Giant Gap Road · Tahoe National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater2 mi
- FFuel4 mi
- GGrocery4 mi
- @Mail5 mi
- EVEV fast charger11 mi
- HHardware11 mi
- RxPharmacy11 mi
- MMechanic14 mi
- DDump14 mi
- ShShower15 mi
- +Urgent care16 mi
- OOutfitter16 mi
- LLaundry16 mi
- AAir-up17 mi
- PPropane25 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, 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 — Giant Gap Road
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
3,939 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
39.15159, -120.76130
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Giant Gap Road · Tahoe National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureNorth Shirttail Canyon (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townCasa Loma · ~3.5 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~2.2 mi
- FuelValero · ~10.7 mi
- Propane / LPGPropane · ~28.6 mi
- Dump station~14.3 mi
- GroceriesAlta Store · ~4.7 mi
- PharmacyColfax pharmacy · ~10.9 mi
- Hospital / clinicSierra Nevada Memorial Hospital · ~16.2 mi
- HardwareSierra Timberline · ~16.2 mi
EV charging — from Giant Gap Road · Tahoe National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger10.7 mi straight-line W — EV Charging By Citrine, Colfax, CA (at a public site) · RED_E · CCS · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach25 within 25 mi · 124 within 50 · 378 within 100 · 1058 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)10.9 mi — ARCO - Tesla Supercharger, Colfax
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO11.4 mi — DC CORRIDOR COLFAX D&D DC2, Colfax
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)11.4 mi — DC CORRIDOR COLFAX D&D L2 · 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 450025 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Giant Gap Road · Tahoe National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBig Reservoir · ~0.6 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletShirttail Creek · ~1.5 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletEuchre Bar South · ~1.6 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletManzanita · ~1.6 mi SW · USFS
Open Giant Gap Road elsewhere
Other camps near Giant Gap Road
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Big Reservoir~0.6 mi · fee
- Elliot Ranch~1.3 mi
- Shirttail Creek~1.5 mi · fee
- Giant Gap~1.7 mi · fee
The unit that manages Giant Gap Road
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Giant Gap Road are set by Tahoe National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Giant Gap Road
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 Giant Gap Road
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 — Giant Gap Road
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 →