Agency-listedUSFSFree
Lava Butte
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 36.75723, -118.88890
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 Lava Butte
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 5,938 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Lava ButteNIFC · 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 Lava Butte · Sequoia National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel2 mi
- @Mail2 mi
- ShShower4 mi
- WWater4 mi
- GGrocery7 mi
- LLaundry14 mi
- DDump14 mi
- MMechanic20 mi
- HHardware20 mi
- +Urgent care20 mi
- RxPharmacy23 mi
- OOutfitter32 mi
- EVEV fast charger36 mi
- PPropane38 mi
- AAir-up47 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 2 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 36-mi run (and back).
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 — Lava Butte
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
5,938 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
36.75723, -118.88890
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Lava Butte · Sequoia National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureTenmile Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townHume · ~2.4 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~2.8 mi
- FuelHume Lake Gas Station · ~2.5 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~13.9 mi
- GroceriesGrant Grove Market · ~4.3 mi
- PharmacyHealthmart Pharmacy · ~22.8 mi
- Hospital / clinicFamily Healthcare Network · ~19.8 mi
- HardwareKiper & Kiper Hardware · ~19.8 mi
EV charging — from Lava Butte · Sequoia National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger35.8 mi straight-line SW — ORCHARD WALK CONYER 10, Visalia, CA · ChargePoint Network · CCS, NACS (Tesla) · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 55 within 50 · 181 within 100 · 360 within 150
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO36.9 mi — Nissan of Visalia, Visalia
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)19.4 mi — Gateway Restaurant and Lodge - Tesla Destination, Three Rivers, CA · Tesla Destination · J1772, NACS (Tesla) · 4 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-08-27 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to all vehicles.
- 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 457423 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Lava Butte · Sequoia National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletTenmile Campground · ~0.2 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLandslide Campground · ~0.6 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLogger Flat · ~1.2 mi N · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletAspen Hollow · ~1.8 mi NW · USFS
Open Lava Butte elsewhere
Other camps near Lava Butte
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Tenmile Campground~0.2 mi · fee
- Landslide Campground~0.6 mi · fee
- Logger Flat~1.2 mi · fee
- Aspen Hollow~1.8 mi · fee
The unit that manages Lava Butte
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Lava Butte are set by Sequoia National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Lava Butte
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
Free but developed (not dispersed) - review
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 Lava Butte
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 — Lava Butte
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Off-grid communication →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 →