Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 39.17019, -120.45466
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 Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 7,023 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill AreaNIFC · 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 Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area · Tahoe National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel10 mi
- WWater10 mi
- EVEV fast charger11 mi
- GGrocery11 mi
- @Mail11 mi
- DDump13 mi
- PPropane14 mi
- OOutfitter14 mi
- HHardware17 mi
- RxPharmacy17 mi
- LLaundry17 mi
- MMechanic17 mi
- +Urgent care19 mi
- ShShower24 mi
- AAir-up32 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 10 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 — Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
7,023 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
39.17019, -120.45466
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area · Tahoe National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureDuncan Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townThe Cedars · ~7.9 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelChevron · ~16.1 mi
- Propane / LPGPropane · ~28.9 mi
- Dump station~12.9 mi
- GroceriesAlice's Mountain Market · ~12.0 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~16.7 mi
- Hospital / clinicUrgent Care - Olympic Valley · ~11.9 mi
- HardwareVillage Ace Hardware · ~27.5 mi
EV charging — from Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area · Tahoe National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger10.7 mi straight-line NW — Soda Springs, CA - Tesla Supercharger (at a gas station) · 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 reach13 within 25 mi · 87 within 50 · 319 within 100 · 913 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS10.7 mi — DC CORRIDOR LUCKYS SS DC1, Soda Springs
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO10.7 mi — DC CORRIDOR LUCKYS SS DC1, Soda Springs
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)10.7 mi — DC CORRIDOR LUCKYS SS L2, Soda Springs, 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 322834 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area · Tahoe National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletDuncan Diverson · ~2.6 mi SW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRobinson Flat · ~2.8 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletAhart · ~3.0 mi SE · USFS
- Flush restroomLewis · ~3.3 mi SE · USFS
Open Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area elsewhere
Other camps near Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Soda Springs~1.7 mi
- Duncan Diverson~2.6 mi
- Robinson Flat Campground~2.7 mi
- Ahart~3.0 mi · fee
The unit that manages Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area are set by Tahoe National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area
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 Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area
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 — Tadpole / Sun Flower Hill Area
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Picking a spot →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 →