Agency-listedUSFSFee
Silver Lake Cg
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 38.67225, -120.11981
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 Silver Lake Cg
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 7,248 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Silver Lake CgNIFC · 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 Silver Lake Cg · Eldorado National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery0 mi
- FFuel3 mi
- WWater9 mi
- @Mail11 mi
- EVEV fast charger14 mi
- OOutfitter15 mi
- ShShower17 mi
- DDump17 mi
- MMechanic17 mi
- HHardware18 mi
- LLaundry18 mi
- RxPharmacy18 mi
- PPropane18 mi
- +Urgent care27 mi
- AAir-up38 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 0 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 — Silver Lake Cg
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
7,248 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
38.67225, -120.11981
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Silver Lake Cg · Eldorado National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townKirkwood · ~3.7 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~8.9 mi
- FuelKirkwood Station · ~3.3 mi
- Propane / LPG7-Eleven · ~17.9 mi
- Dump station~17.2 mi
- GroceriesKit Carson Store · ~0.2 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~17.7 mi
- Hospital / clinicCVH Primary Care Minden Village · ~27.2 mi
- HardwareDIY Home Center · ~17.6 mi
EV charging — from Silver Lake Cg · Eldorado National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger13.8 mi straight-line NE — South Lake Tahoe, CA - Tesla Supercharger (at a grocery store) · 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 reach9 within 25 mi · 47 within 50 · 372 within 100 · 1086 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS17.8 mi — GF4EVA SOUTH LAKE DC1, South Lake Tahoe
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO17.8 mi — GF4EVA SOUTH LAKE DC1, South Lake Tahoe
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)3.0 mi — VIP LOT STATION1, Kirkwood, CA · 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 321149 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Silver Lake Cg · Eldorado National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletSilver Lake Cg · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletMartin Meadow Cg · ~1.7 mi N · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletKirkwood Lake Cg · ~3.0 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletCaples Dam Trailhead · ~3.6 mi NE · USFS
Open Silver Lake Cg elsewhere
Other camps near Silver Lake Cg
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Martin Meadow Cg~1.7 mi
- Kirkwood Lake Cg~3.0 mi · fee
- Caples Lake Cg~4.2 mi · fee
- Silver Fork Cg~5.1 mi · fee
The unit that manages Silver Lake Cg
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Silver Lake Cg are set by Eldorado National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Silver Lake Cg
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 2026-08-22: $36 per night single site, $72 double, $10 day use. NAME NOTE: the forest publishes this as SILVER LAKE CAMPGROUND EAST and its printed coordinates match this pin to 0.001 mi; the agency's own public site name for our record is 'Silver Lake East Campground'. DO NOT USE THE STORED REC.GOV LINK: our agency record's rec1stop_url points at facility 232263 'SILVER LAKE EAST- ELDORADO', whose own published coordinates put it 12.5 miles from this pin -- that is a mis-citation, not a rate source, so no rec.gov figure is quoted here. 62 sites. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/eldorado/recreation/silver-lake-campground-east.
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 Silver Lake Cg
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 — Silver Lake Cg
Camping near a reservoir →What “dispersed” means here →Fire rules & restrictions →Leave no trace →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 →