Agency-listedUSFSFee
Idlewild
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CO · 39.90361, -105.77811
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 Idlewild
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 8,892 ft.
Fire & smoke — around IdlewildNIFC · 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 Idlewild · Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests · CO
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater0 mi
- OOutfitter1 mi
- GGrocery1 mi
- FFuel2 mi
- @Mail2 mi
- EVEV fast charger3 mi
- HHardware4 mi
- MMechanic9 mi
- ShShower10 mi
- LLaundry17 mi
- DDump18 mi
- +Urgent care18 mi
- RxPharmacy19 mi
- AAir-up24 mi
- PPropane24 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 1 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 — Idlewild
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
8,892 ft
State
CO
Coordinates
39.90361, -105.77811
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Idlewild · Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests · CO (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townWinter Park · ~1.7 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~0.0 mi
- FuelConoco · ~1.5 mi
- Propane / LPG7-Eleven · ~24.5 mi
- Dump station~17.5 mi
- GroceriesGrocery · ~1.1 mi
- PharmacyPharmacy · ~18.6 mi
- Hospital / clinicCentura Health Primary Care Idaho Springs · ~18.0 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~3.7 mi
EV charging — from Idlewild · Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests · CO — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger3.2 mi straight-line NW — TOWN OF FRASER LIONS PONDS · ChargePoint Network · CHAdeMO, CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach27 within 25 mi · 204 within 50 · 378 within 100 · 437 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)11.3 mi — 420 E Park Ave, Empire
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)1.0 mi — Town of Winter Park - Parking Garage (at a parking garage) · Non-Networked · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2024-11-06 · 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 169944 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Idlewild · Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests · CO — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletIdlewild · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletJim Creek · ~1.5 mi SE · USFS
- Portable toiletMidland · ~3.1 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSt. Louis Creek · ~4.6 mi W · USFS
Open Idlewild elsewhere
Other camps near Idlewild
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Midland~3.1 mi · fee
- St. Louis Creek~4.6 mi · fee
- Robbers Roost~5.0 mi · fee
- Byers Creek~6.6 mi · fee
The unit that manages Idlewild
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Idlewild are set by Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Fool Creek at 11,130 ft, about 5 miles away. It sits about 2,238 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 — Idlewild
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 2026-08-22: $29 per single site per night. Two Arapaho & Roosevelt NF sources agree: the campground page (updated Jul 10 2026, status Site Open) and the forest-wide campground status table (updated Aug 20 2026: 26 sites, 30-foot spur, first-come first-served and reservable, $29, May 22 to Sep 20). Sulphur Ranger District, near Winter Park. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/arp/recreation/idlewild-campground and https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/arp/conditions.
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 Idlewild
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 — Idlewild
When the high country opens →Winter vs summer roads →What “dispersed” means here →Getting unstuck →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 →