Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Magpie04
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 46.69605, -111.62136
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 Magpie04
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 4,550 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Magpie04NIFC · 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 Magpie04 · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- DDump11 mi
- GGrocery11 mi
- ShShower11 mi
- FFuel15 mi
- MMechanic16 mi
- @Mail16 mi
- HHardware17 mi
- +Urgent care19 mi
- OOutfitter19 mi
- EVEV fast charger19 mi
- RxPharmacy19 mi
- LLaundry20 mi
- WWater21 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 21-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 11 mi out.
Not within 60 mi: Propane. Plan those before you head up.
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 — Magpie04
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
4,550 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
46.69605, -111.62136
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Magpie04 · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townCavetown · ~4.8 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~4.9 mi
- FuelFuel · ~15.1 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~11.0 mi
- GroceriesHeritage Food Store · ~15.5 mi
- PharmacyBergum Drug · ~19.4 mi
- Hospital / clinicFyre Aesthetics · ~19.0 mi
- HardwareTuff Shed · ~17.4 mi
EV charging — from Magpie04 · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger19.1 mi straight-line W — Helena, MT - Tesla Supercharger (at a grocery store) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. NACS partner enabled. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach4 within 25 mi · 4 within 50 · 19 within 100 · 31 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS19.6 mi — Target T1282 (Helena, MT), Helena
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO19.6 mi — L146 DC 2, Helena
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)17.4 mi — Mountain View Park, Helena, MT · EVGATEWAY · J1772 · 4 Level 2 ports 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 163997 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Magpie04 · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletBar Gulch Cabin · ~0.2 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletJoe Bonner - Single Vault Restroom Building · ~4.7 mi SW · BoR
- Vault / pit toiletJoe Bonner - Single Vault Restroom Building · ~4.7 mi SW · BoR
- Vault / pit toiletChinaman Gulch Campground - Precast Vault Toilet Restroom Building · ~4.9 mi SW · BoR
Open Magpie04 elsewhere
Other camps near Magpie04
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
The unit that manages Magpie04
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Magpie04 are set by Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Magpie04
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 Magpie04
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 — Magpie04
What “dispersed” means here →Forest road numbers →Reading a forest MVUM →Reading the aerial →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 →