Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Mooney Creek
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 39.38290, -120.65115
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 Mooney Creek
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 5,752 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Mooney 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 Mooney Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater4 mi
- DDump5 mi
- GGrocery6 mi
- FFuel6 mi
- EVEV fast charger8 mi
- @Mail12 mi
- ShShower13 mi
- HHardware16 mi
- +Urgent care19 mi
- OOutfitter20 mi
- MMechanic23 mi
- RxPharmacy23 mi
- LLaundry24 mi
- PPropane24 mi
- AAir-up25 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 6 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 — Mooney Creek
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
5,752 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
39.38290, -120.65115
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Mooney Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureFall Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townMaybert · ~5.4 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~4.3 mi
- FuelSierra City Gasoline · ~12.7 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~5.2 mi
- GroceriesSierra City Store · ~12.7 mi
- PharmacyWalgreens · ~22.9 mi
- Hospital / clinicSierra Nevada Memorial Hospital · ~23.7 mi
- HardwareSierra Hardware · ~15.5 mi
EV charging — from Mooney Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger7.6 mi straight-line SE — DC CORRIDOR LUCKYS SS DC2, Soda Springs, CA · 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 reach9 within 25 mi · 74 within 50 · 306 within 100 · 790 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)7.6 mi — Soda Springs, CA - Tesla Supercharger, Soda Springs
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)7.6 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
- 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 181599 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Mooney Creek · Tahoe National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletCarr Lake · ~1.4 mi N · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRucker Lake · ~1.7 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLindsey Lake · ~2.1 mi N · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletFuller Lake · ~2.1 mi S · USFS
Open Mooney Creek elsewhere
Other camps near Mooney Creek
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Carr Lake~1.4 mi · fee
- Rucker Lake~1.7 mi · fee
- Lindsey Lake~2.1 mi · fee
- Grouse Ridge~2.2 mi
The unit that manages Mooney Creek
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Mooney Creek are set by Tahoe National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Mooney 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 Mooney 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 — Mooney Creek
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Off-grid communication →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 →