Agency-listedUSFSFree
USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · Monterey County, CA · 36.21223, -121.68099
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 USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 3,259 ft.
Fire & smoke — around USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CANIFC · 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 USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA · Los Padres National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater4 mi
- EVEV fast charger5 mi
- ShShower5 mi
- FFuel5 mi
- @Mail5 mi
- LLaundry6 mi
- GGrocery6 mi
- DDump8 mi
- MMechanic23 mi
- OOutfitter24 mi
- RxPharmacy24 mi
- HHardware25 mi
- AAir-up25 mi
- +Urgent care25 mi
- PPropane29 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 5 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 — USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
3,259 ft
County
Monterey County, CA
Coordinates
36.21223, -121.68099
Cost
Free · dispersed public land, no fee in any source
Nearby & resupply — around USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA · Los Padres National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureLogwood Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townPosts · ~4.8 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~3.7 mi
- FuelShell · ~5.2 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~7.9 mi
- GroceriesStore · ~6.4 mi
- PharmacyCVS Pharmacy · ~24.5 mi
- Hospital / clinicMontage Health · ~26.4 mi
- HardwareSoledad True Value Hardware · ~24.6 mi
EV charging — from USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA · Los Padres National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger4.6 mi straight-line W — Big Sur, CA - Ventana - Tesla Supercharger (at a hotel) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 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 reach6 within 25 mi · 62 within 50 · 395 within 100 · 944 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS24.5 mi — Kroger – Foods Co 387 (Soledad, CA), Soledad
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO24.5 mi — Soledad Mission Shopping Center, Soledad
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)19.1 mi — Carmel Valley Lodge · Blink 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 — Esalen Institute - Tesla Destination, Big Sur, 6.6 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 149296 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA · Los Padres National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- RestroomFtord Badger Hills -Trailhd Toilet 20 · ~25.9 mi N · BLM
- RestroomFtord Badger Hills -Trailhd Toilet 10 · ~25.9 mi N · BLM
- Vault / pit toiletFtord Npld Site -Vault Toilet · ~28.0 mi N · BLM
- Vault / pit toiletFtord Creekside Terrace -Vault Toilet · ~28.7 mi N · BLM
Open USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA elsewhere
Other camps near USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Dispersed camp #3 — Monterey County, CA~6.7 mi
- Dispersed camp #2 — Monterey County, CA~7.6 mi
- Wildcat Campground~7.6 mi
- Tassajara Creek Campground~8.5 mi
The unit that manages USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA are set by Los Padres National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA
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 USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA
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 — USFS dispersed camp — Monterey County, CA
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →Reading the aerial →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 →