Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Lunch Creek
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 39.61830, -120.50664
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 Lunch Creek
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 6,489 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Lunch CreekNIFC · 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 Lunch Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery4 mi
- @Mail5 mi
- FFuel8 mi
- WWater8 mi
- ShShower8 mi
- MMechanic12 mi
- HHardware13 mi
- EVEV fast charger13 mi
- RxPharmacy15 mi
- DDump21 mi
- OOutfitter23 mi
- PPropane26 mi
- LLaundry30 mi
- +Urgent care32 mi
- AAir-up35 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, 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); the EV fast charger from the US DOE station locator. Open in Google Maps ↗
The site — Lunch Creek
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
6,489 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
39.61830, -120.50664
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Lunch Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureLunch Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townSattley · ~4.3 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~6.2 mi
- FuelSierra City Gasoline · ~7.7 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~21.3 mi
- GroceriesSatley Food Store · ~4.3 mi
- PharmacyRite Aid · ~25.8 mi
- Hospital / clinicHospital · ~13.1 mi
- HardwareMountain Hardware & Sports · ~12.7 mi
EV charging — from Lunch Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger13.2 mi straight-line N — Caboose Park - Portola (at a public site) · EVRANGE · CCS · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach4 within 25 mi · 38 within 50 · 280 within 100 · 581 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)21.5 mi — Soda Springs, CA - Tesla Supercharger, Soda Springs
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO21.5 mi — DC CORRIDOR LUCKYS SS DC2, Soda Springs
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)21.5 mi — DC CORRIDOR LUCKYS SS L2, Soda Springs, CA · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Whitehawk Lodge and Golf - Tesla Destination, Clio, 7.1 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · AFDC lists it “Free”
- 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 357432 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Lunch Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletYuba Pass · ~0.9 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletYuba Pass · ~0.9 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletChapman Creek · ~2.2 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSierra · ~2.9 mi W · USFS
Open Lunch Creek elsewhere
Other camps near Lunch Creek
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Yuba Pass Campground~0.8 mi
- Beartrap~1.5 mi
- Chapman Creek Campground~2.2 mi
- Deadman Lake~2.4 mi
The unit that manages Lunch Creek
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Lunch Creek are set by Tahoe National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Lunch Creek
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).
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 Lunch Creek
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 — Lunch Creek
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 →