Agency-listedUSFSFee
Lake Ellen
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · WA · 48.50215, -118.24738
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 Lake Ellen
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 2,259 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Lake EllenNIFC · 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 Lake Ellen · Colville National Forest · WA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel10 mi
- GGrocery10 mi
- +Urgent care11 mi
- EVEV fast charger11 mi
- MMechanic11 mi
- @Mail11 mi
- HHardware12 mi
- OOutfitter12 mi
- ShShower14 mi
- LLaundry16 mi
- DDump24 mi
- RxPharmacy25 mi
- WWater51 mi
- PPropane56 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 51-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 10 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 — Lake Ellen
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
2,259 ft
State
WA
Coordinates
48.50215, -118.24738
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Lake Ellen · Colville National Forest · WA (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townInchelium · ~9.6 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelColville Fuels · ~10.4 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~24.1 mi
- GroceriesColville Fuels · ~10.4 mi
- PharmacyRepublic Drug Store · ~24.6 mi
- Hospital / clinicNorthEast Washington Medical Group Kettle Falls · ~11.3 mi
- HardwareMc Intosh Hardware · ~11.5 mi
EV charging — from Lake Ellen · Colville National Forest · WA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger11.3 mi straight-line NE — Avista - Kettle Falls DCFC · FLO · CCS · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach4 within 25 mi · 7 within 50 · 63 within 100 · 97 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)69.9 mi — Jackson Store 249, Spokane
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO15.4 mi — Colville Retail Center, Colville
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)11.2 mi — Kettle Falls SD - Middle School Public · FLO · 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 466507 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Lake Ellen · Colville National Forest · WA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletLake Ellen · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLake Ellen West · ~0.9 mi SW · USFS
- RestroomBLDG FR Vault Toilet · ~2.3 mi E · NPS
- RestroomBLDG FR Vault Toilet #2717 · ~2.4 mi E · NPS
Open Lake Ellen elsewhere
Other camps near Lake Ellen
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Lake Ellen West~0.9 mi · fee
- Canyon Creek~5.2 mi · fee
- Trout Lake~8.4 mi
- Sherman Overlook~12.2 mi · fee
The unit that manages Lake Ellen
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Lake Ellen are set by Colville National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Lake Ellen
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.
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 Lake Ellen
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 — Lake Ellen
Camping near a reservoir →Water on public land →What “dispersed” means here →Picking a spot →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 →