Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MI · 44.64281, -83.77585
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 Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,008 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Hoist Lakes Backcountry CampsitesNIFC · 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 Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites · Huron-Manistee National Forest · MI
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- @Mail5 mi
- ShShower6 mi
- FFuel6 mi
- GGrocery6 mi
- EVEV fast charger6 mi
- MMechanic10 mi
- WWater11 mi
- +Urgent care14 mi
- HHardware15 mi
- RxPharmacy15 mi
- LLaundry17 mi
- OOutfitter18 mi
- DDump20 mi
- PPropane27 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, 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 — Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
1,008 ft
State
MI
Coordinates
44.64281, -83.77585
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites · Huron-Manistee National Forest · MI (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureHoist Lakes (water) · nearby
- Nearest townCurran · ~5.2 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelBP · ~6.1 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~19.9 mi
- GroceriesEZ Mart · ~6.1 mi
- PharmacyFairview Pharmacy · ~14.8 mi
- Hospital / clinicAlcona Health Center · ~18.3 mi
- HardwareHale Hardware · ~18.4 mi
EV charging — from Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites · Huron-Manistee National Forest · MI — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger6.3 mi straight-line SE — Rogers Family Foods Glennie MI (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 reach2 within 25 mi · 15 within 50 · 110 within 100 · 282 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)45.9 mi — Grayling, MI, Grayling
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO24.0 mi — Harbor Ln Harrisville MI, Harrisville
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)16.6 mi — Anchor Market, Spruce, MI (at a public site) · RED_E · J1772 · 4 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed
- 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 351315 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites · Huron-Manistee National Forest · MI — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletHoist Lakes East Hiking Trailhead · ~1.4 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHorseshoe Lake Campground · ~2.9 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toilet4001 Canoe Landing Access · ~3.7 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletGabions Campground · ~3.8 mi SW · USFS
Open Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites elsewhere
Other camps near Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Horseshoe Lake Campground~3.0 mi
- Gabions Campground~3.8 mi · fee
- Reid Lake Backcountry Campsites~5.2 mi
- Bear Island Backcountry Campsites~5.6 mi
The unit that manages Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites are set by Huron-Manistee National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites
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 Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites
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 — Hoist Lakes Backcountry Campsites
Camping near a reservoir →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Dispersed camping tips →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 →