Agency-listedUSFSFree
Pacific Valley
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 38.51421, -119.90113
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 Pacific Valley
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 7,543 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Pacific ValleyNIFC · 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 Pacific Valley · Stanislaus National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater5 mi
- GGrocery6 mi
- FFuel8 mi
- OOutfitter8 mi
- @Mail14 mi
- MMechanic18 mi
- ShShower22 mi
- LLaundry23 mi
- EVEV fast charger23 mi
- +Urgent care24 mi
- PPropane26 mi
- RxPharmacy28 mi
- HHardware28 mi
- DDump30 mi
- AAir-up52 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 — Pacific Valley
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
7,543 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
38.51421, -119.90113
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Pacific Valley · Stanislaus National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featurePacific Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townCape Horn · ~3.9 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~5.4 mi
- FuelFuel · ~8.4 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~29.9 mi
- GroceriesStore · ~6.0 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~28.0 mi
- Hospital / clinicHealth Clinic · ~24.1 mi
- Hardwareace hardware · ~28.1 mi
EV charging — from Pacific Valley · Stanislaus National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger22.7 mi straight-line E — Walker Country Store, Coleville, CA (at a public site) · EVRANGE · CCS · 4 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach3 within 25 mi · 32 within 50 · 353 within 100 · 1040 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)22.8 mi — Gardnerville, NV - Tesla Supercharger, Gardnerville
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO28.1 mi — GF4EVA SOUTH LAKE DC1, South Lake Tahoe
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)14.7 mi — VIP LOT STATION 3, Kirkwood, CA · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Bear Valley Lodge - Tesla Destination, Bear Valley, 8.3 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · 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 320474 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Pacific Valley · Stanislaus National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletPacific Valley · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletPacific Valley · at this camp · USFS
- RestroomMosquito Lakes · ~0.7 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMosquito Lakes · ~0.7 mi W · USFS
Open Pacific Valley elsewhere
Other camps near Pacific Valley
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Mosquito Lakes~0.7 mi · fee
- Hermit Valley~1.7 mi
- Highway 4 Ohv-Hermit Valley~1.7 mi
- Kennedy Flat~2.2 mi
The unit that manages Pacific Valley
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Pacific Valley are set by Stanislaus National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Pacific Valley
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
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 Pacific Valley
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 — Pacific Valley
When the high country opens →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Power off-grid →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 →