Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Shotgun Shells
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 45.84895, -113.00741
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 Shotgun Shells
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at the elevation shown above.
Fire & smoke — around Shotgun ShellsNIFC · 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 Shotgun Shells · Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- OOutfitter5 mi
- LLaundry5 mi
- FFuel5 mi
- @Mail5 mi
- MMechanic19 mi
- GGrocery20 mi
- RxPharmacy20 mi
- HHardware20 mi
- EVEV fast charger22 mi
- WWater24 mi
- +Urgent care25 mi
- ShShower25 mi
- DDump26 mi
- AAir-up26 mi
- PPropane57 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 24-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 5 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 — Shotgun Shells
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
State
MT
Coordinates
45.84895, -113.00741
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Shotgun Shells · Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureBig Hole River (river) · nearby
- Nearest townWise River · ~4.8 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~4.8 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesThriftway Super Stop · ~19.5 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~19.5 mi
- Hospital / clinicCommunity Hospital of Anaconda · ~19.7 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~19.6 mi
EV charging — from Shotgun Shells · Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger21.9 mi straight-line NE — Butte, MT - Grizzly Trail - Tesla Supercharger (at a rest stop) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. NACS partner enabled. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach2 within 25 mi · 4 within 50 · 26 within 100 · 41 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS22.1 mi — Flying J Town Pump (Butte, MT), Butte
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO70.6 mi — L146 DC1, Helena
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)19.8 mi — ApocWorld, Anaconda, MT · AMPUP · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2023-12-13 · hours: Contact site for information
- 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 327427 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Shotgun Shells · Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletDickie Bridge Recreation Site - Vault Toilet #1 · ~3.0 mi W · BLM
- Vault / pit toiletEast Bank Recreation Site - Vault Toilet South (Camping) · ~3.7 mi W · BLM
- Vault / pit toiletEast Bank Recreation Site - Vault Toilet North (Boat Ramp) · ~3.7 mi W · BLM
- Vault / pit toiletDorhoffer Outhouse · ~3.8 mi NW · BLM
Open Shotgun Shells elsewhere
Other camps near Shotgun Shells
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Aspen~0.9 mi
- Ridge Top~1.1 mi
- Turd Tree~1.9 mi
- Knapp Weed~3.3 mi
The unit that manages Shotgun Shells
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Shotgun Shells are set by Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Calvert Creek at 6,410 ft, about 15 miles away. We do not repeat a depth here, because any number we stored would be stale by the time you read it — the station publishes today's.
How we know this — Shotgun Shells
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 Shotgun Shells
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 — Shotgun Shells
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Camping with a dog →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 →