Agency-listedUSFSFree
Summit Lake
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · OR · 45.03221, -121.79048
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 Summit Lake
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 4,188 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Summit LakeNIFC · 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 Summit Lake · Mt. Hood National Forest · OR
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater11 mi
- GGrocery13 mi
- FFuel16 mi
- EVEV fast charger19 mi
- OOutfitter19 mi
- @Mail19 mi
- MMechanic23 mi
- ShShower28 mi
- HHardware29 mi
- LLaundry31 mi
- +Urgent care32 mi
- RxPharmacy32 mi
- DDump33 mi
- PPropane34 mi
- AAir-up43 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 13 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 — Summit Lake
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
4,188 ft
State
OR
Coordinates
45.03221, -121.79048
Cost
Free · dispersed public land, no fee in any source
Nearby & resupply — around Summit Lake · Mt. Hood National Forest · OR (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureSummit Lake (water) · nearby
- Nearest townRipplebrook · ~12.8 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelChevron · ~15.7 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesFood Mart · ~15.7 mi
- Hospital / clinicAdventist Health Medical Group - Hoodland · ~23.3 mi
- HardwareWamic Hardware Store · ~28.8 mi
EV charging — from Summit Lake · Mt. Hood National Forest · OR — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger18.7 mi straight-line N — WCEH Government Camp · EVCS · CHAdeMO, J1772, CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach2 within 25 mi · 57 within 50 · 258 within 100 · 406 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)27.0 mi — Detroit Lake, OR - Tesla Supercharger, Detroit
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)18.7 mi — WCEH Government Camp · EVCS · CHAdeMO, J1772, CCS · 1 Level 2 port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: not listed
- 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 73444 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Summit Lake · Mt. Hood National Forest · OR — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletSummit Lake · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletClackamas Lake · ~4.8 mi NE · USFS
- Flush restroomClackamas Lake Ranger House · ~5.0 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletStone Creek Group Horse Camp · ~5.1 mi N · USFS
Open Summit Lake elsewhere
Other camps near Summit Lake
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Clackamas Lake~4.8 mi · fee
- Stone Creek Group Horse Camp~5.1 mi
- Stone Creek~5.2 mi · fee
- Joe Graham Horse Camp~5.2 mi · fee
The unit that manages Summit Lake
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Summit Lake are set by Mt. Hood National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Summit Lake
Source
OpenStreetMap contributors
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
auto: drive (road/trail right there)
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 Summit Lake
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 — Summit Lake
Camping near a reservoir →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →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 →