Agency-listedUSFSFree
Upper Rush Creek
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 41.30112, -120.85029
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 Upper Rush Creek
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 5,160 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Upper Rush CreekNIFC · 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 Upper Rush Creek · Modoc National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery9 mi
- @Mail9 mi
- FFuel9 mi
- +Urgent care19 mi
- EVEV fast charger20 mi
- HHardware20 mi
- MMechanic20 mi
- PPropane21 mi
- RxPharmacy36 mi
- DDump43 mi
- WWater44 mi
- LLaundry52 mi
- ShShower53 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 44-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 9 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 — Upper Rush Creek
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
5,160 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
41.30112, -120.85029
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Upper Rush Creek · Modoc National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureRush Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townHarper · ~7.3 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~20.5 mi
- Propane / LPGAmeriGas · ~20.6 mi
- GroceriesGrocery Outlet · ~8.7 mi
- Hospital / clinicModoc Medical Center · ~20.3 mi
EV charging — from Upper Rush Creek · Modoc National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger20.2 mi straight-line NE — Alturas, 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 reach1 within 25 mi · 2 within 50 · 62 within 100 · 149 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS74.3 mi — DC CORRIDOR DUNSMUIR DC, Dunsmuir
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO74.3 mi — DC CORRIDOR DUNSMUIR DC, Dunsmuir
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)57.8 mi — TULELAKE TULE HQ 1 · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 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 — Niles Hotel - Tesla Destination, Alturas, 20.3 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas 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 190479 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Upper Rush Creek · Modoc National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletLower Rush Creek · ~1.5 mi W · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRed Tail Rim South Th · ~4.9 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRed Tail Rim North Th · ~4.9 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletAsh Creek · ~9.7 mi S · USFS
Open Upper Rush Creek elsewhere
Other camps near Upper Rush Creek
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Lower Rush Creek Campground~1.6 mi
- Red Tail Rim Trail South Trailhead/Campground~9.3 mi
- Ash Creek~9.7 mi
- Dan Ryan~11.3 mi
The unit that manages Upper Rush Creek
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Upper Rush Creek are set by Modoc National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Upper Rush Creek
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
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 Upper Rush Creek
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 — Upper Rush Creek
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 →