Agency-listedUSFSFee
Upper San Juan Campground
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 33.60710, -117.43228
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 as a developed campground. Expect marked sites, a fee station or a reservation, and the usual campground rules. The dispersed-camping freedom of the surrounding forest does not apply inside it. 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 San Juan Campground
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,748 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Upper San Juan 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 Upper San Juan Campground · Cleveland National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater0 mi
- GGrocery0 mi
- MMechanic5 mi
- +Urgent care6 mi
- FFuel6 mi
- RxPharmacy7 mi
- @Mail7 mi
- HHardware8 mi
- EVEV fast charger8 mi
- ShShower10 mi
- DDump10 mi
- AAir-up11 mi
- LLaundry12 mi
- PPropane13 mi
- OOutfitter16 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 0 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 San Juan Campground
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
1,748 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
33.60710, -117.43228
Cost
Fee · Forest Service inventory: fee charged
Nearby & resupply — around Upper San Juan Campground · Cleveland National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureSan Juan Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townSan Juan Hot Springs · ~4.6 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~0.5 mi
- FuelArco · ~6.5 mi
- Propane / LPGPick Up Propane · ~15.2 mi
- Dump station~10.1 mi
- GroceriesLake Elsinore Market · ~4.7 mi
- PharmacySav-on Pharmacy · ~6.6 mi
- Hospital / clinicWe Level Up California · ~8.4 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~11.0 mi
EV charging — from Upper San Juan Campground · Cleveland National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger7.9 mi straight-line NE — Lake Elsinore, CA - Tesla Supercharger (at a shopping center) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 21 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach167 within 25 mi · 619 within 50 · 1178 within 100 · 1279 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS7.9 mi — Outlets at Lake Elsinore, Lake Elsinore
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO7.9 mi — Outlets at Lake Elsinore, Lake Elsinore
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)7.1 mi — Quest Diagnostics - North Lot, San Juan Capistrano, CA · Blink 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 102036 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Upper San Juan Campground · Cleveland National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletUpper San Juan Campground · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSan Juan Loop Trailhead · ~0.5 mi NE · USFS
- RestroomEl Cariso Information Site · ~3.2 mi N · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletEl Cariso North Picnic Area · ~3.2 mi N · USFS
Open Upper San Juan Campground elsewhere
Other camps near Upper San Juan Campground
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Upper San Juan Campground~0.2 mi · fee
- El Cariso Campground~3.3 mi · fee
- Falcon Group Camp~3.4 mi · fee
- Falcon Group Campsite~3.6 mi
The unit that manages Upper San Juan Campground
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Upper San Juan Campground are set by Cleveland National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Upper San Juan Campground
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 Upper San Juan 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 — Upper San Juan Campground
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Power off-grid →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 →