Found · unverifiedUSFS · dispersedFree
Little Needle Lake
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 39.18183, -120.29995
We haven't personally camped here. Everything below is pulled from public land data, USGS maps and OpenStreetMap — a real place on U.S. Forest Service land, but not field-checked by us. Confirm road conditions, current access, stay limits and fire restrictions before you go.
USGS topo — contours & terrain
Aerial — USGS / NAIP
Weather outlook
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 8,077 ft.
Fire & smokeNIFC · 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 camp
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater2 mi
- GGrocery4 mi
- @Mail4 mi
- PPropane6 mi
- DDump8 mi
- FFuel8 mi
- HHardware8 mi
- OOutfitter8 mi
- LLaundry9 mi
- RxPharmacy11 mi
- MMechanic11 mi
- +Urgent care12 mi
- ShShower24 mi
- AAir-up33 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 4 mi out.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors). Open in Google Maps ↗
The site
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
8,077 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
39.18183, -120.29995
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureLittle Needle Lake (water) · nearby
- Nearest townAlpine Meadows · ~3.9 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~1.9 mi
- FuelFuel · ~8.3 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump stationDump station · ~8.2 mi
- GroceriesAlice's Mountain Market · ~3.7 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~10.7 mi
- Hospital / clinicUrgent Care · ~11.6 mi
- HardwareVillage Ace Hardware · ~19.3 mi
Nearby restrooms — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletTalbot Equestrian · ~4.0 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletTalbot · ~4.0 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSilver Creek Cg · ~5.9 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletAhart · ~6.3 mi SW · USFS
Open this spot elsewhere
Other camps nearby
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Head Waters Middle Fork~0.6 mi
- Picayune~1.0 mi
- Little American Valley~2.1 mi
- Mildred Lakes~2.1 mi
The unit that manages this camp
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions are set by the unit, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this
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
USFS/BLM authoritative: free & dispersed. Access not field-checked (assumed drive-up).
Field check
Not verified on the ground. Nobody from here has camped it. It stays at Likely until someone does.
What we don’t know
A land record can put you within a few metres 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
Before you go
Your first dispersed night →Fire rules & restrictions →Getting unstuck →Power off-grid →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 →