Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Van Lake 1
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 47.69813, -113.76912
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 Van Lake 1
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at the elevation shown above.
Fire & smoke — around Van Lake 1NIFC · 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 Van Lake 1 · Flathead National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel9 mi
- @Mail9 mi
- GGrocery9 mi
- MMechanic16 mi
- LLaundry16 mi
- +Urgent care17 mi
- RxPharmacy19 mi
- HHardware19 mi
- ShShower23 mi
- WWater31 mi
- EVEV fast charger40 mi
- OOutfitter43 mi
- DDump52 mi
- PPropane58 mi
- AAir-up58 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 31-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 9 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 40-mi run (and back).
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 — Van Lake 1
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
State
MT
Coordinates
47.69813, -113.76912
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Van Lake 1 · Flathead National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureVan Lake (water) · nearby
- Nearest townSalmon Prairie · ~4.8 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelSinclair · ~8.9 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesMission Mountains Mercantile · ~9.0 mi
- Hospital / clinicLogan Health Primary Care · ~16.6 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~19.5 mi
EV charging — from Van Lake 1 · Flathead National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger40.1 mi straight-line NW — CLARK HYUNDAI SALES CUSTOMER, Kalispell, MT · ChargePoint Network · CHAdeMO, CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 4 within 50 · 18 within 100 · 40 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)45.5 mi — Kalispell, MT - Tesla Supercharger, Kalispell
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)12.6 mi — East Shore Smoke House - Tesla Destination, Polson, MT · Tesla Destination · J1772, NACS (Tesla) · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-08-27 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to all vehicles.
- Also listed, not counted aboveLevel 2, restricted access — Fox Lane Cottage, Polson, 20.2 mi · J1772 · hours: 24 hours daily; for guest use only · AFDC lists it “Free with room”
- 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 227236 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Van Lake 1 · Flathead National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletVan Lake Campground · at this camp · USFS
- RestroomOld Condon · ~7.9 mi S · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBlair Flats · ~11.9 mi N · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletEast Foothill Th # 192 · ~13.5 mi SE · USFS
Open Van Lake 1 elsewhere
Other camps near Van Lake 1
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Van Lake 4~0.1 mi
- Rd 9882 Site 2~0.1 mi
- 558-3 Van Lake Rd~0.3 mi
- 558-5 Van Lake Rd~0.7 mi
The unit that manages Van Lake 1
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Van Lake 1 are set by Flathead National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Moss Peak at 6,760 ft, about 9 miles away. We do not repeat a depth here, because any number we stored would be stale by the time you read it — the station publishes today's.
How we know this — Van Lake 1
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 Van Lake 1
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 — Van Lake 1
Camping near a reservoir →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Gear & rig loadout →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 →