Agency-listedUSFSFree
Sylvan Lake
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 47.91695, -115.28118
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 Sylvan Lake
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 3,639 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Sylvan 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 Sylvan Lake · Kootenai National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel13 mi
- @Mail22 mi
- HHardware23 mi
- GGrocery23 mi
- MMechanic29 mi
- RxPharmacy34 mi
- +Urgent care35 mi
- LLaundry35 mi
- OOutfitter43 mi
- EVEV fast charger44 mi
- ShShower46 mi
- DDump47 mi
- WWater49 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 49-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 13 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 44-mi run (and back).
Not within 60 mi: 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 — Sylvan Lake
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
3,639 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
47.91695, -115.28118
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Sylvan Lake · Kootenai National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureEast Fisher Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townBend · ~10.7 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~13.2 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesIndoor Outfitters Home & Ranch Supply · ~22.8 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~22.8 mi
EV charging — from Sylvan Lake · Kootenai National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger43.5 mi straight-line S — St. Regis, MT - Tesla Supercharger (at a rest stop) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 12 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 reachnone within 25 mi · 8 within 50 · 50 within 100 · 84 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS43.6 mi — St. Regis, MT, St. Regis
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO49.0 mi — CLARK HYUNDAI SALES CUSTOMER, Kalispell
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)53.1 mi — 400 Horses Casino, Polson, MT · Blink Network · J1772 · 6 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Red Lion Hotel Kalispell - Tesla Destination, Kalispell, 48.7 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · AFDC lists it “Free”
Level 2, restricted access — 50,000 Silver Dollar Inn, Saltese, 37.1 mi · J1772 · hours: 24 hours daily; for guests 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 302203 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Sylvan Lake · Kootenai National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletSylvan Lake · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletWillow Creek · ~3.4 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletFishtrap Lake Campground · ~5.3 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletPleasant Valley · ~8.7 mi N · USFS
Open Sylvan Lake elsewhere
Other camps near Sylvan Lake
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Sylvan Lake Campground~0.1 mi
- USFS dispersed camp — MT #191~2.8 mi
- USFS dispersed camp — MT #686~2.9 mi
- Willow Creek~3.4 mi
The unit that manages Sylvan Lake
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Sylvan Lake are set by Kootenai National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Sylvan Lake
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 2026-08-24 (nightshift fire 120): USFS Enterprise Data Warehouse Recreation Sites layer (apps.fs.usda.gov/arcx/rest/services/EDW/EDW_RecInfraRecreationSites_02/MapServer/0), extract cached locally as data\_mt_water_edw.json, objectid 2363572, site "SYLVAN LAKE" (recreation area "Sylvan Lake"), WATER_AVAILABILITY = "No water is available". Matched to this camp on coordinates (0.0008 mi from the agency point). Agency record only -- not field-verified, and no natural water here is claimed to be potable.
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 Sylvan 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 — Sylvan Lake
Camping near a reservoir →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Dispersed camping tips →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 →