Agency-listedUSFSFee
Mad River
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 40.40360, -123.46720
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 Mad River
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 2,522 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Mad RiverNIFC · 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 Mad River · Six Rivers National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel4 mi
- GGrocery5 mi
- @Mail14 mi
- +Urgent care18 mi
- EVEV fast charger22 mi
- ShShower23 mi
- WWater25 mi
- HHardware27 mi
- RxPharmacy27 mi
- LLaundry29 mi
- AAir-up34 mi
- OOutfitter36 mi
- MMechanic38 mi
- DDump49 mi
- PPropane57 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 25-mi drive, 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 — Mad River
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
2,522 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
40.40360, -123.46720
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Mad River · Six Rivers National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townMad River · ~2.4 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelPatriot Fuel · ~4.5 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesJourneys End Market · ~4.6 mi
- PharmacyGarberville Pharmacy · ~27.4 mi
- Hospital / clinicHospital · ~18.1 mi
- HardwareMilt's Saw Shop · ~27.3 mi
EV charging — from Mad River · Six Rivers National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger22.1 mi straight-line SW — Miranda Market (at a public site) · EVRANGE · CHAdeMO, J1772, CCS · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach1 within 25 mi · 23 within 50 · 100 within 100 · 184 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)35.8 mi — Weaverville, CA - Tesla Supercharger, Weaverville
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)22.1 mi — Miranda Market (at a public site) · EVRANGE · CHAdeMO, J1772, CCS · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed
- 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 462383 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Mad River · Six Rivers National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletMad River · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletFir Cove · ~5.3 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBailey Canyon · ~5.6 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletForest Glen Cg-F · ~7.6 mi E · USFS
Open Mad River elsewhere
Other camps near Mad River
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Fir Cove~5.3 mi · fee
- Bailey Canyon~5.6 mi · fee
- Forest Glen Cg-F~7.6 mi · fee
- Hell Gate Cg-F~8.4 mi · fee
The unit that manages Mad River
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Mad River are set by Six Rivers National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Mad River
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: $12 per night, single site, and that includes one vehicle; a second vehicle is $5 per night. Payment is cash (exact change) or a check made out to USDA -- there is no card option on site. recreation.gov 234650 lists the campground but publishes no rate season at all, so the $12 is the forest's figure. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/sixrivers/recreation/mad-river-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 Mad River
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 — Mad River
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Dumping grey & black →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 →