Agency-listedUSFSFree
Lava Camp
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 41.40278, -121.33724
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 Camp
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 4,386 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Lava CampNIFC · 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 Camp · Modoc National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel17 mi
- GGrocery17 mi
- DDump18 mi
- +Urgent care22 mi
- @Mail22 mi
- WWater23 mi
- RxPharmacy27 mi
- MMechanic27 mi
- HHardware28 mi
- EVEV fast charger36 mi
- LLaundry40 mi
- PPropane42 mi
- OOutfitter50 mi
- ShShower50 mi
- AAir-up54 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 23-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 17 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 Camp
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
4,386 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
41.40278, -121.33724
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Lava Camp · Modoc National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureWater · nearby
- Nearest townWhite Horse · ~7.1 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelTimber Mountain Store Gas Station · ~17.1 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~17.9 mi
- GroceriesTimber Mountain Store · ~17.1 mi
- PharmacyMayers Pharmacy · ~26.9 mi
- Hospital / clinicMayers Memorial Hospital · ~26.6 mi
- HardwareDo It Best Valley Hardware · ~27.9 mi
EV charging — from Lava Camp · Modoc National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger36.2 mi straight-line SW — Burney, CA - Tesla Supercharger (at a gas station) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 2 within 50 · 77 within 100 · 133 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS50.3 mi — DC CORRIDOR DUNSMUIR DC, Dunsmuir
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO50.3 mi — DC CORRIDOR DUNSMUIR DC, Dunsmuir
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)39.3 mi — TULELAKE TULE HQ 1 · ChargePoint Network · 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 296733 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Lava Camp · Modoc National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletPaynes Springs · ~15.6 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBullseye Lake · ~16.1 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBlanche Lake Campground · ~16.1 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletPit River Th · ~16.9 mi E · USFS
Open Lava Camp elsewhere
Other camps near Lava Camp
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Cottonwood Flat~14.4 mi
- Payne Springs Campground~15.6 mi
- Bullseye Lake Campground~16.1 mi
- Blanche Lake Campground~16.1 mi
The unit that manages Lava Camp
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Lava Camp are set by Modoc National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Lava Camp
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 Camp
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 Camp
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →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 →