Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Picket Lake Site 3
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MN · 48.09194, -92.41009
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 Picket Lake Site 3
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,375 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Picket Lake Site 3NIFC · 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 Picket Lake Site 3 · Superior National Forest · MN
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- OOutfitter8 mi
- FFuel11 mi
- @Mail13 mi
- +Urgent care19 mi
- GGrocery20 mi
- HHardware20 mi
- MMechanic20 mi
- ShShower20 mi
- DDump20 mi
- LLaundry21 mi
- RxPharmacy21 mi
- WWater24 mi
- EVEV fast charger39 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 24-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 11 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 39-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 — Picket Lake Site 3
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
1,375 ft
State
MN
Coordinates
48.09194, -92.41009
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Picket Lake Site 3 · Superior National Forest · MN (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featurePicket Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townBuyck · ~5.6 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelAnderson's · ~11.3 mi
- Propane / LPGFerrellgas · ~19.9 mi
- Dump station~20.0 mi
- GroceriesPelican Bay Foods · ~19.7 mi
- PharmacyFranks Pharmacy · ~20.9 mi
- Hospital / clinicCook Hospital · ~20.7 mi
- HardwareVermilion Lumber · ~20.8 mi
EV charging — from Picket Lake Site 3 · Superior National Forest · MN — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger39.2 mi straight-line S — Ken Waschke Auto Plaza, VIRGINIA, MN · EV Connect · 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 · 3 within 50 · 12 within 100 · 26 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)80.8 mi — Tofte, MN - Tesla Supercharger, Tofte
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO39.6 mi — VIRGINIA PU VETS MEMORIAL, Virginia
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)12.8 mi — CRANE LAKE VC AFPQO000003XW8B, Crane Lake, MN · ChargePoint Network · J1772, NACS (Tesla) · 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 353736 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Picket Lake Site 3 · Superior National Forest · MN — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletLake Jeanette Boat Access · ~5.7 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLake Jeanette Campground · ~5.9 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletEcho Lake Campground · ~6.5 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletEcho Lake Picnic Area · ~6.7 mi NW · USFS
Open Picket Lake Site 3 elsewhere
Other camps near Picket Lake Site 3
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Picket Lake Site 1~0.2 mi
- Picket Lake Site 2~0.3 mi
- Maude Lake Campsite~2.7 mi
- Maude Lake Site 2~3.0 mi
The unit that manages Picket Lake Site 3
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Picket Lake Site 3 are set by Superior National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Picket Lake Site 3
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 Picket Lake Site 3
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 — Picket Lake Site 3
Camping near a reservoir →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Gear & rig loadout →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 →