Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Marias/Palookaville
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 48.33201, -113.11901
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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 Marias/Palookaville
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 5,497 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Marias/PalookavilleNIFC · 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 Marias/Palookaville · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery9 mi
- FFuel9 mi
- @Mail9 mi
- PPropane9 mi
- LLaundry9 mi
- +Urgent care13 mi
- WWater17 mi
- ShShower33 mi
- MMechanic40 mi
- OOutfitter42 mi
- DDump42 mi
- HHardware48 mi
- RxPharmacy49 mi
- EVEV fast charger55 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 9 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 55-mi run (and back).
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 — Marias/Palookaville
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
5,497 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
48.33201, -113.11901
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Marias/Palookaville · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureNorth Fork Little Badger Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townBison · ~7.8 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelBear Track Travel Center · ~9.0 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesGlacier Park- Trading Company · ~8.8 mi
- Hospital / clinicHeart Butte Clinic · ~13.4 mi
EV charging — from Marias/Palookaville · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger55.0 mi straight-line W — CLARK HYUNDAI SERVICECUSTOMER, Kalispell, MT · ChargePoint Network · CHAdeMO, CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · none within 50 · 8 within 100 · 27 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)55.9 mi — Kalispell, MT - Tesla Supercharger, Kalispell
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)16.1 mi — Blackfeet Nation - Glacier Peaks Hotel, Browning, MT (at a public site) · RIVIAN_WAYPOINTS · J1772 · 4 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveLevel 2, restricted access — Apgar Visitor Center Charger, West Glacier, 41.9 mi · J1772 · hours: 24 hours daily with park pass; maximum 2 hours per session · 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 227212 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Marias/Palookaville · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletSummit Th · ~9.6 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSummit Cg · ~10.7 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMarias Pass Historic Site · ~10.8 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletZip'S Place Cabin · ~14.4 mi W · USFS
Open Marias/Palookaville elsewhere
Other camps near Marias/Palookaville
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Marias/Palookaville~0.4 mi
- Road 8960-01~6.7 mi
- USFS dispersed camp — MT #737~6.7 mi
- Pike Cr Rd-02~9.8 mi
The unit that manages Marias/Palookaville
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Marias/Palookaville 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 Pike Creek at 5,930 ft, about 10 miles away. It sits about 433 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 — Marias/Palookaville
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 Marias/Palookaville
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 — Marias/Palookaville
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Reading your camp page →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 →