Agency-listedUSFSFree
Slate Creek Campground
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 45.69806, -114.28196
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 Slate Creek Campground
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 4,763 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Slate Creek CampgroundNIFC · 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 Slate Creek Campground · Bitterroot National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater8 mi
- FFuel17 mi
- GGrocery17 mi
- @Mail18 mi
- HHardware24 mi
- MMechanic31 mi
- OOutfitter35 mi
- RxPharmacy38 mi
- +Urgent care38 mi
- LLaundry39 mi
- ShShower42 mi
- EVEV fast charger79 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 17 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 79-mi run (and back).
Not within 60 mi: Dump, Propane. Plan those before you head up.
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 — Slate Creek Campground
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
4,763 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
45.69806, -114.28196
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Slate Creek Campground · Bitterroot National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureSlate Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townAlta · ~5.5 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~8.2 mi
- FuelConoco · ~17.3 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesSula Country Store & resort · ~17.3 mi
EV charging — from Slate Creek Campground · Bitterroot National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger79.4 mi straight-line N — L267 EXPP PL PUBLIC2, Missoula, MT · ChargePoint Network · CCS · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · none within 50 · 15 within 100 · 38 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)83.2 mi — Butte, MT - Grizzly Trail - Tesla Supercharger, Butte
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO82.8 mi — Walmart 3259 (Missoula, MT), Missoula
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)38.3 mi — Hamilton City Hall · EVGATEWAY · 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 417959 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Slate Creek Campground · Bitterroot National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletSlate Creek Campground - Back Loop · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSlate Creek Campground · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSlate Creek Bay · ~0.3 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLittle Boulder Bay Boat Launch · ~1.3 mi N · USFS
Open Slate Creek Campground elsewhere
Other camps near Slate Creek Campground
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Slate Ck-01~0.3 mi
- USFS dispersed camp — MT #181~1.1 mi
- Lt Boulder Bay-02~1.7 mi
- 13407 Road~1.8 mi
The unit that manages Slate Creek Campground
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Slate Creek Campground are set by Bitterroot National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Nez Perce Camp at 5,670 ft, about 10 miles away. It sits about 907 ft higher than this camp, so treat it as a guide rather than a reading for this spot. 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 — Slate Creek Campground
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
Free but developed (not dispersed) - review || Water: Bitterroot National Forest's own site page for Slate Creek Campground, https://www.fs.usda.gov/r01/bitterroot/recreation/slate-creek-campground (read 2026-08-13; page "Last updated" April 14, 2026), "Facility and Amenity Information > Water": "Potable water is not available at this site.". Corroborated by the USFS EDW Recreation Sites layer (apps.fs.usda.gov/arcx/rest/services/EDW/EDW_RecInfraRecreationSites_02/MapServer/0, queried 2026-08-13), WATER_AVAILABILITY = "No drinking water is available". Both channels agree; nightshift fire 610.
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 Slate Creek Campground
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 — Slate Creek Campground
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →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 →