Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MI · 45.99406, -84.51643
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 Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 591 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Search Bay Dispersed Camping AreaNIFC · 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 Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area · Hiawatha National Forest · MI
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery4 mi
- @Mail4 mi
- FFuel7 mi
- RxPharmacy7 mi
- HHardware8 mi
- WWater10 mi
- +Urgent care13 mi
- OOutfitter13 mi
- MMechanic13 mi
- LLaundry13 mi
- ShShower14 mi
- EVEV fast charger18 mi
- DDump24 mi
- PPropane52 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 4 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 — Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
591 ft
State
MI
Coordinates
45.99406, -84.51643
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area · Hiawatha National Forest · MI (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featurePaquin Lake (water) · nearby
- Nearest townPontchartrain Shores · ~4.4 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelSunoco · ~7.2 mi
- Propane / LPGBP · ~14.2 mi
- Dump station~23.7 mi
- GroceriesCedarville EZ Mart · ~7.2 mi
- PharmacyArfstrom Pharmacy Store 4 · ~7.4 mi
- Hospital / clinicMackinac Island Medical Center · ~11.2 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~7.5 mi
EV charging — from Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area · Hiawatha National Forest · MI — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger18.0 mi straight-line SW — Mackinaw City, MI (at a public site) · RIVIAN_ADVENTURE · CCS · 6 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach6 within 25 mi · 14 within 50 · 39 within 100 · 88 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)18.4 mi — Mackinaw City, MI - Tesla Supercharger, Mackinaw City
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO18.8 mi — HION NETWORK MACKINAW DC4, Mackinaw City
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)13.8 mi — Straits State Park, St Ignace, MI (at a public site) · RED_E · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Star Line Mackinac Island Ferry - St. Ignace Dock, St. Ignace, 13.3 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily · AFDC lists it “Free”
Level 2, restricted access — Baymont by Wyndham St. Ignace Lakefront, St. Ignace, 12.4 mi · J1772 · hours: 24 hours daily; for customer use 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 391316 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area · Hiawatha National Forest · MI — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletMouth Of The Carp-Fish. Site · ~8.8 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletGovernment Island · ~10.0 mi E · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletCarp River - Cg · ~10.1 mi W · USFS
- Highway rest areaNHS Rest Stop or Truck Facility 28 · ~13.4 mi SW
Open Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area elsewhere
Other camps near Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Hiawatha National Forest~0.4 mi
- Government Island~10.0 mi
- Carp River - Cg~10.1 mi · fee
- Round Island Camping Area~11.9 mi
The unit that manages Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area are set by Hiawatha National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area
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 Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area
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 — Search Bay Dispersed Camping Area
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →First-night troubleshooting →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 →