Agency-listedUSFSFee
Helende Campground
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · ID · 44.09332, -115.47487
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 Helende Campground
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 4,189 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Helende CampgroundNIFC · 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 Helende Campground · Boise National Forest · ID
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel2 mi
- WWater10 mi
- GGrocery23 mi
- @Mail24 mi
- LLaundry28 mi
- ShShower28 mi
- HHardware40 mi
- MMechanic40 mi
- RxPharmacy40 mi
- OOutfitter41 mi
- +Urgent care49 mi
- AAir-up50 mi
- EVEV fast charger51 mi
- DDump51 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 2 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 51-mi run (and back).
Not within 60 mi: Propane. Plan those before you head up.
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 — Helende Campground
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
4,189 ft
State
ID
Coordinates
44.09332, -115.47487
Cost
Fee · reservable on Recreation.gov
Nearby & resupply — around Helende Campground · Boise National Forest · ID (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureSouth Fork Payette River (river) · nearby
- Nearest townLowman · ~7.3 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- Fuelnone within 30 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesGarden Valley Market · ~24.6 mi
- Mapping is thin out hereAn empty row means nothing is mapped within that radius — not that nothing exists. Small stores, seasonal resorts and single fuel pumps out here often never make it onto the map. Treat these as unconfirmed and ask locally.
EV charging — from Helende Campground · Boise National Forest · ID — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger50.7 mi straight-line SW — Boise, ID - North Orchard Street - Tesla Supercharger (at a restaurant) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 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 · none within 50 · 38 within 100 · 56 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS51.9 mi — AAA OR ID AAA-BOI3, Boise
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO51.9 mi — AAA OR ID AAA-BOI3, Boise
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)25.6 mi — Stanley RV and Camp (at a campground) · Non-Networked · J1772 · 1 Level 2 port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2025-10-13 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveLevel 2, restricted access — Fairly Reliable Bob's, Boise, 49.3 mi · J1772 · hours: Dealership business hours; customer and service center use 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 313094 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Helende Campground · Boise National Forest · ID — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletHelende Campground · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletKirkham Day Use Site · ~3.6 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLowman Nature Ponds · ~3.7 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletPark Creek Campground · ~5.6 mi W · USFS
Open Helende Campground elsewhere
Other camps near Helende Campground
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Park Creek Campground~5.6 mi · fee
- Mountain View Campground~6.4 mi · fee
- Bonneville Campground~9.0 mi · fee
- Deadwood Campground~9.2 mi · fee
The unit that manages Helende Campground
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Helende Campground are set by Boise National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Jackson Peak at 7,060 ft, about 3 miles away. It sits about 2,871 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 — Helende Campground
Reserve
https://www.recreation.gov/camping/campgrounds/232310
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 Helende Campground
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 — Helende Campground
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →How to read this 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 →