Agency-listedUSFSFee
Kit Carson Campground
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 38.77682, -119.89737
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 Kit Carson Campground
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 6,898 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Kit Carson 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 Kit Carson Campground · Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery0 mi
- MMechanic4 mi
- FFuel5 mi
- @Mail8 mi
- EVEV fast charger8 mi
- LLaundry11 mi
- RxPharmacy11 mi
- OOutfitter11 mi
- HHardware11 mi
- PPropane11 mi
- WWater12 mi
- ShShower12 mi
- DDump12 mi
- +Urgent care14 mi
- AAir-up50 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 0 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 — Kit Carson Campground
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
6,898 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
38.77682, -119.89737
Cost
Fee · reservable on Recreation.gov
Nearby & resupply — around Kit Carson Campground · Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureWillow Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townSorensens · ~0.3 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~4.6 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~12.2 mi
- GroceriesWoodfords Station · ~4.0 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~10.9 mi
- Hospital / clinicBarton Memorial Hospital · ~10.7 mi
- Hardwareace hardware · ~11.1 mi
EV charging — from Kit Carson Campground · Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger8.3 mi straight-line NW — South Lake Tahoe, CA - Tesla Supercharger (at a grocery store) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. NACS partner enabled. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach11 within 25 mi · 43 within 50 · 318 within 100 · 785 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS11.0 mi — GF4EVA SOUTH LAKE DC1, South Lake Tahoe
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO11.0 mi — GF4EVA SOUTH LAKE DC1, South Lake Tahoe
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)4.3 mi — ALPINE CO. BHS 1, Markleeville, CA · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Sorensen's Resort - Tesla Destination, Hope Valley, 0.3 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas 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 321149 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Kit Carson Campground · Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletKit Carson Campground · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletCrystal Springs Campground · ~2.9 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHope Valley Campground · ~3.7 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBig Meadow Trailhead · ~5.6 mi W · USFS
Open Kit Carson Campground elsewhere
Other camps near Kit Carson Campground
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Alpine County~1.6 mi
- Scotts Lake Dispersed Camping~2.5 mi
- Crystal Springs Campground~2.9 mi
- Hope Valley Campground~3.7 mi
The unit that manages Kit Carson Campground
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Kit Carson Campground are set by Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Kit Carson Campground
Reserve
https://www.recreation.gov/camping/campgrounds/234739
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.
Agency page
fs.usda.gov — the land manager's own page for this site. Fees, seasons and closures are stated there first; if it disagrees with this page, it wins.
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 Kit Carson 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 — Kit Carson 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 →