Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Watkins Trailhead
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MT · 44.79792, -111.29662
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 Watkins Trailhead
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 6,695 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Watkins TrailheadNIFC · 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 Watkins Trailhead · Custer Gallatin National Forest · MT
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel12 mi
- LLaundry13 mi
- HHardware13 mi
- GGrocery14 mi
- ShShower14 mi
- DDump14 mi
- OOutfitter14 mi
- @Mail14 mi
- EVEV fast charger14 mi
- WWater24 mi
- MMechanic24 mi
- +Urgent care33 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 24-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 12 mi out.
Not within 60 mi: Propane. Plan those before you head up.
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 — Watkins Trailhead
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
6,695 ft
State
MT
Coordinates
44.79792, -111.29662
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Watkins Trailhead · Custer Gallatin National Forest · MT (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureWatkins Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townLakeview · ~2.8 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelExxon · ~11.9 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~13.6 mi
- GroceriesFood Roundup Supermarket · ~13.5 mi
EV charging — from Watkins Trailhead · Custer Gallatin National Forest · MT — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger13.8 mi straight-line SE — West Yellowstone, MT - Tesla Supercharger (at an other entertainment) · 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 reach1 within 25 mi · 5 within 50 · 28 within 100 · 53 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS26.2 mi — Island Park City Offices, Island Park
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO26.2 mi — Island Park City Offices, Island Park
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)25.4 mi — SpringHill Suites Island Park Yellowstone · 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 — Holiday Inn West Yellowstone - Tesla Destination, West Yellowstone, 13.4 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 102267 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Watkins Trailhead · Custer Gallatin National Forest · MT — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletSpring Creek Camp Area · ~1.4 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHebgen Dam · ~4.9 mi N · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRed Canyon · ~5.4 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBeaver Creek Campground · ~5.5 mi NW · USFS
Open Watkins Trailhead elsewhere
Other camps near Watkins Trailhead
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Watkins Creek Gate~0.4 mi
- Spring Cr. Ext 1~1.4 mi
- Sp Cr Disp 1~1.5 mi
- Sp Cr Disp 2~1.7 mi
The unit that manages Watkins Trailhead
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Watkins Trailhead are set by Custer Gallatin National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Beaver Creek at 7,820 ft, about 11 miles away. It sits about 1,125 ft higher than this camp, so treat it as a guide rather than a reading for this spot. 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 — Watkins Trailhead
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 Watkins Trailhead
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 — Watkins Trailhead
Winter vs summer roads →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading your camp page →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 →