Agency-listedUSFSFee
Lightning Point
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 34.37195, -118.18307
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 Lightning Point
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 6,139 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Lightning PointNIFC · 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 Lightning Point · Angeles National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater5 mi
- HHardware7 mi
- ShShower7 mi
- GGrocery7 mi
- @Mail7 mi
- FFuel8 mi
- RxPharmacy8 mi
- MMechanic10 mi
- PPropane10 mi
- EVEV fast charger10 mi
- LLaundry11 mi
- +Urgent care11 mi
- OOutfitter15 mi
- AAir-up16 mi
- DDump34 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 7 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 — Lightning Point
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
6,139 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
34.37195, -118.18307
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Lightning Point · Angeles National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townActon · ~8.6 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~4.6 mi
- FuelArco · ~8.3 mi
- Propane / LPG7-Eleven · ~10.2 mi
- GroceriesActon Market · ~6.7 mi
- PharmacyCrown Valley Pharmacy · ~8.4 mi
- Hospital / clinicUSC Keck Clinic · ~11.2 mi
- HardwareActon Hardware · ~6.6 mi
EV charging — from Lightning Point · Angeles National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger10.5 mi straight-line S — Vons 2598 (La Crescenta, CA) · Electrify America · J1772, CCS · 3 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach202 within 25 mi · 691 within 50 · 1062 within 100 · 1348 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)14.9 mi — Burbank, CA - N Third St - Tesla Supercharger, Burbank
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO13.2 mi — Palmdale Park & Ride, Palmdale
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)8.5 mi — SCE83 - Vincent Substation, Palmdale, CA · OpConnect · J1772 · 4 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 145657 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Lightning Point · Angeles National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletMessenger Flats · ~0.6 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletNorth Fork Saddle · ~3.9 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMonte Cristo · ~4.6 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHidden Springs · ~4.9 mi SE · USFS
Open Lightning Point elsewhere
Other camps near Lightning Point
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Messenger Flats~0.6 mi · fee
- Big Buck Trail Camp~2.6 mi
- Monte Cristo~4.6 mi · fee
- Mt. Pacifico~8.5 mi · fee
The unit that manages Lightning Point
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Lightning Point are set by Angeles National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Lightning Point
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 2026-08-20: $80 per night for the 36-person sites and $100 per night for the 45-person site -- this is a GROUP campground with six group sites, not a single site. The page's structured 'Fee Site and Info' block is empty; the amounts are in the General Information text on the same page. recreation.gov holds the facility (234553) but publishes no rate season for it. Reservations by phone, 1-877-444-6777. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/angeles/recreation/lightning-point-group-campground.
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 Lightning Point
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 — Lightning Point
What “dispersed” means here →Dumping grey & black →Fire rules & restrictions →Gear & rig loadout →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 →