Agency-listedUSFSFree
North Van Houten Campground
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 45.24804, -113.47643
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 North Van Houten Campground
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 7,031 ft.
Fire & smoke — around North Van Houten CampgroundNIFC · 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 North Van Houten Campground · Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery9 mi
- MMechanic9 mi
- @Mail9 mi
- ShShower20 mi
- FFuel21 mi
- +Urgent care21 mi
- LLaundry21 mi
- OOutfitter21 mi
- WWater25 mi
- DDump34 mi
- EVEV fast charger52 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 25-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 9 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 52-mi run (and back).
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 — North Van Houten Campground
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
7,031 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
45.24804, -113.47643
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around North Van Houten Campground · Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureVan Houten Lake (water) · nearby
- Nearest townJackson · ~8.9 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelMobil · ~20.6 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesSaveway Market · ~20.6 mi
- Hospital / clinicSteele Memorial Medical Center · ~20.9 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~20.5 mi
EV charging — from North Van Houten Campground · Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger52.4 mi straight-line SE — Dell Mercantile (Dell, MT) · Electrify America · CCS · 4 fast ports 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 · 6 within 100 · 51 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)60.7 mi — Lima, MT - Tesla Supercharger, Lima
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO116.3 mi — Walmart 3259 (Missoula, MT), Missoula
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)40.8 mi — UMW #1 STATION 1, Dillon, MT · 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 121712 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around North Van Houten Campground · Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletNorth Van Houten Campground · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSouth Van Houten Campground · ~0.2 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMiner Lake Campground · ~7.4 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletReservoir Lake Campground · ~8.7 mi S · USFS
Open North Van Houten Campground elsewhere
Other camps near North Van Houten Campground
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- South Van Houten Campground~0.2 mi
- 318 Site 1~0.5 mi
- 7325 Site 2~0.7 mi
- 7325 Site 1~0.7 mi
The unit that manages North Van Houten Campground
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at North Van Houten Campground are set by Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Bloody Dick at 7,570 ft, about 6 miles away. It sits about 539 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 — North Van Houten Campground
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
Free but developed (not dispersed) - review || Water: Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest's own site page for North Van Houten Campground, https://www.fs.usda.gov/r01/beaverhead-deerlodge/recreation/north-van-houten-campground (read 2026-08-13; page "Last updated" May 4, 2026), "Facility and Amenity Information > Water": "Potable water is not available at this site.". Corroborated by the USFS EDW Recreation Sites layer (apps.fs.usda.gov/arcx/rest/services/EDW/EDW_RecInfraRecreationSites_02/MapServer/0, queried 2026-08-13), WATER_AVAILABILITY = "No potable water". Both channels agree; nightshift fire 610.
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 North Van Houten Campground
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 — North Van Houten Campground
Winter vs summer roads →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Camping with a dog →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 →