Agency-listedUSFSFee
Little Crater
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · OR · 43.71050, -121.24396
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 Little Crater
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 6,353 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Little CraterNIFC · 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 Little Crater · Deschutes National Forest · OR
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- DDump3 mi
- WWater9 mi
- LLaundry11 mi
- ShShower11 mi
- FFuel12 mi
- GGrocery12 mi
- MMechanic12 mi
- EVEV fast charger12 mi
- RxPharmacy13 mi
- +Urgent care13 mi
- @Mail13 mi
- HHardware13 mi
- OOutfitter15 mi
- PPropane22 mi
- AAir-up22 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 12 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 — Little Crater
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
6,353 ft
State
OR
Coordinates
43.71050, -121.24396
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Little Crater · Deschutes National Forest · OR (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townLa Pine · ~12.2 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~8.8 mi
- FuelGordy's Truck Stop · ~11.5 mi
- Propane / LPGPropane · ~22.3 mi
- Dump station~2.8 mi
- GroceriesGordy's Truck Stop · ~11.5 mi
- PharmacyWalgreens · ~13.1 mi
- Hospital / clinicLa Pine Community Health Center · ~13.2 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~13.3 mi
EV charging — from Little Crater · Deschutes National Forest · OR — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger11.5 mi straight-line W — 52530 US-97, La Pine, OR · EV Connect · CHAdeMO, CCS · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach10 within 25 mi · 22 within 50 · 64 within 100 · 283 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)22.7 mi — Bend, OR - Tesla Supercharger, Bend
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)15.1 mi — LODGE EV STATION 1, Sunriver, OR · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 1 Level 2 port 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 351518 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Little Crater · Deschutes National Forest · OR — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletLittle Crater · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLittle Crater · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBig Obsidian Flow · ~0.5 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletNewberry Group · ~0.7 mi SW · USFS
Open Little Crater elsewhere
Other camps near Little Crater
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Newberry Group~0.7 mi · fee
- Paulina Lake~1.5 mi · fee
- East Lake~1.7 mi · fee
- Hot Springs~2.2 mi
The unit that manages Little Crater
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Little Crater are set by Deschutes National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Little Crater
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 2026-08-22: $27 per night, single site, with one vehicle included; each additional vehicle is $10. Interagency Senior and Access passes get 50 percent off the single camping unit fee only. recreation.gov lists the same $27 across all three of its 2026 seasons (Jun 1 to Oct 17). This is the Deschutes NF Little Crater Campground at Paulina Lake, not the Mt. Hood Little Crater Lake Campground. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r06/deschutes/recreation/little-crater-campground and https://www.recreation.gov/camping/campgrounds/251537.
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 Little Crater
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 — Little Crater
What “dispersed” means here →Fire rules & restrictions →Picking a spot →Leave no trace →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 →