Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Madison Gulch Rd-009
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 46.83595, -112.69901
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 Madison Gulch Rd-009
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 5,769 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Madison Gulch Rd-009NIFC · 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 Madison Gulch Rd-009 · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- @Mail8 mi
- FFuel8 mi
- GGrocery8 mi
- HHardware8 mi
- PPropane24 mi
- EVEV fast charger29 mi
- +Urgent care32 mi
- MMechanic33 mi
- DDump34 mi
- WWater34 mi
- LLaundry35 mi
- OOutfitter35 mi
- RxPharmacy36 mi
- ShShower36 mi
- AAir-up59 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 34-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 8 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 — Madison Gulch Rd-009
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
5,769 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
46.83595, -112.69901
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Madison Gulch Rd-009 · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureWater · nearby
- Nearest townFinn · ~4.8 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelExxon · ~8.3 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesStore · ~8.3 mi
- Hospital / clinicDeer Lodge Medical Center · ~29.2 mi
- HardwareGrizzly Home Center · ~8.3 mi
EV charging — from Madison Gulch Rd-009 · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger29.3 mi straight-line S — Sinclair - Tesla Supercharger, Deer Lodge, MT (at a gas station) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-14 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 5 within 50 · 17 within 100 · 39 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS35.4 mi — Target T1282 (Helena, MT), Helena
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO36.1 mi — L146 DC1, Helena
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)30.2 mi — JD Self Service Storage, Deer Lodge, MT (at an office building) · AMPUP · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2023-12-13 · hours: Contact site for information
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Trixi's Saloon - Tesla Destination, Ovando, 23.7 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · AFDC lists it “Free”
- Pricing at the fast charger$0.56 per kWh (as listed by AFDC)
- 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 466520 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Madison Gulch Rd-009 · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletStemple Pass Trailhead · ~10.4 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletAspen Grove Picnic Area · ~12.6 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletAspen Grove Campground · ~12.6 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLost Horse Cabin · ~13.4 mi SE · USFS
Open Madison Gulch Rd-009 elsewhere
Other camps near Madison Gulch Rd-009
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Madison Gulch Rd-010~0.4 mi
- Madison Gulch Rd-011~0.6 mi
- Dalton-Rd 329-008~0.6 mi
- Dalton-Rd 329-107~0.9 mi
The unit that manages Madison Gulch Rd-009
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Madison Gulch Rd-009 are set by Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Nevada Ridge at 7,030 ft, about 9 miles away. It sits about 1,261 ft higher than this camp, so treat it as a guide rather than a reading for this spot. We do not repeat a depth here, because any number we stored would be stale by the time you read it — the station publishes today's.
How we know this — Madison Gulch Rd-009
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 Madison Gulch Rd-009
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 — Madison Gulch Rd-009
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Forest road numbers →Picking a spot →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 →