Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Scotts Lake Dispersed Camping
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 38.76606, -119.94169
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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
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at the elevation shown above.
Fire & smokeNIFC · 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 camp
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery3 mi
- MMechanic6 mi
- FFuel7 mi
- @Mail7 mi
- WWater10 mi
- LLaundry10 mi
- RxPharmacy11 mi
- OOutfitter11 mi
- HHardware11 mi
- PPropane11 mi
- ShShower12 mi
- DDump12 mi
- +Urgent care16 mi
- AAir-up48 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 3 mi out.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors). Open in Google Maps ↗
The site
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
State
CA
Coordinates
38.76606, -119.94169
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureMaxwell Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townSorensens · ~2.2 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~9.5 mi
- FuelFuel · ~6.8 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump stationDump station · ~12.4 mi
- GroceriesWoodfords Station · ~6.5 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~10.6 mi
- Hospital / clinicBarton Memorial Hospital · ~10.5 mi
- Hardwareace hardware · ~10.7 mi
Nearby restrooms — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletKit Carson Campground · ~2.6 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHope Valley Campground · ~2.6 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBig Meadow Trailhead · ~3.5 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLuther Pass Overflow Campground · ~4.0 mi NW · USFS
Open this spot elsewhere
Other camps nearby
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Kit Carson Campground~2.5 mi
- Hope Valley Campground~2.6 mi
- Alpine County~3.9 mi
- Luther Pass Overflow Campground~4.0 mi
The unit that manages this camp
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions are set by the unit, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this
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).
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
A land record can put you within a few metres 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
Before you go
Camping near a reservoir →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →How to read this 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 →