Agency-listedUSFSFee
Ponderosa
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CO · 37.98045, -105.07389
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 as a developed campground. Expect marked sites, a fee station or a reservation, and the usual campground rules. The dispersed-camping freedom of the surrounding forest does not apply inside it. 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 Ponderosa
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 8,781 ft.
Fire & smoke — around PonderosaNIFC · 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 Ponderosa · Pike and San Isabel National Forests · CO
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater0 mi
- FFuel8 mi
- @Mail9 mi
- GGrocery13 mi
- RxPharmacy13 mi
- MMechanic13 mi
- LLaundry14 mi
- EVEV fast charger15 mi
- HHardware23 mi
- +Urgent care24 mi
- ShShower26 mi
- DDump28 mi
- PPropane29 mi
- AAir-up29 mi
- OOutfitter32 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 8 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 — Ponderosa
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
8,781 ft
State
CO
Coordinates
37.98045, -105.07389
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Ponderosa · Pike and San Isabel National Forests · CO (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townBeulah Valley · ~8.1 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~0.3 mi
- FuelFuel · ~8.1 mi
- Propane / LPG7-Eleven · ~28.7 mi
- Dump station~28.4 mi
- GroceriesValley Market · ~13.1 mi
- PharmacyValley Health Mart Pharmacy · ~13.1 mi
- Hospital / clinicHospital · ~23.6 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~23.3 mi
EV charging — from Ponderosa · Pike and San Isabel National Forests · CO — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger15.3 mi straight-line E — Colorado City, CO Rechargery Relay @ Circle K - South I-25 · IONNA · CCS, NACS (Tesla) · 6 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach3 within 25 mi · 21 within 50 · 94 within 100 · 397 within 150
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO15.3 mi — CircleK - Colorado City, CO, Colorado City
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)22.9 mi — TSC CT4K, Silver Cliff, CO · 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 469412 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Ponderosa · Pike and San Isabel National Forests · CO — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletPonderosa · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSpruce · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSt. Charles · ~0.3 mi E · USFS
- RestroomLa Vista · ~0.8 mi E · USFS
Open Ponderosa elsewhere
Other camps near Ponderosa
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Spruce~0.1 mi · fee
- St. Charles~0.3 mi · fee
- La Vista~0.8 mi · fee
- Southside~1.1 mi · fee
The unit that manages Ponderosa
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Ponderosa are set by Pike and San Isabel National Forests, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Ponderosa
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
Developed FEE campground (not free) - review | auto:usfs-fee 2026-08-20: US Forest Service developed campground, agency coordinates, agency states a fee. No dollar amount in the agency record -- expect a charge and confirm the current rate before you go. Not field-verified. | Fee 2026-08-24: $150 per night for the whole site, by reservation only -- this is a GROUP campground, not a single-site one, so $150 buys the site rather than a pitch. Confirmed by two sources: the Pike-San Isabel NF page for Ponderosa Group Campground (updated May 27 2025) and recreation.gov, which charges $150 for the group non-electric site May 15 to Sep 26 2026. San Carlos Ranger District, Lake Isabel -- the agency lists it on recreation.gov as 'PONDEROSA GROUP - LAKE ISABEL'. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/psicc/recreation/ponderosa-group-campground and https://www.recreation.gov/camping/campgrounds/233804.
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 Ponderosa
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 — Ponderosa
When the high country opens →Winter vs summer roads →Camping near a reservoir →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 →