Agency-listedUSFSFee
Wheeler Gorge
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CA · 34.51173, -119.27392
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 Wheeler Gorge
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,801 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Wheeler GorgeNIFC · 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 Wheeler Gorge · Los Padres National Forest · CA
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel4 mi
- GGrocery4 mi
- MMechanic4 mi
- HHardware4 mi
- @Mail5 mi
- WWater5 mi
- LLaundry5 mi
- OOutfitter5 mi
- EVEV fast charger5 mi
- RxPharmacy6 mi
- DDump8 mi
- ShShower14 mi
- +Urgent care16 mi
- AAir-up19 mi
- PPropane24 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 4 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 — Wheeler Gorge
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
1,801 ft
State
CA
Coordinates
34.51173, -119.27392
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Wheeler Gorge · Los Padres National Forest · CA (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townMeiners Oaks · ~3.9 mi
- Drinking waterWater · ~4.8 mi
- FuelFuel · ~4.3 mi
- Propane / LPG7-Eleven · ~24.4 mi
- Dump stationLake Casitas Recreation Area · ~7.5 mi
- GroceriesLa Flor De Michoacan · ~4.3 mi
- PharmacyRite Aid · ~6.0 mi
- Hospital / clinicVentura County Public Health · ~16.0 mi
- HardwareMeiners Oaks ACE Hardware · ~4.4 mi
EV charging — from Wheeler Gorge · Los Padres National Forest · CA — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger4.9 mi straight-line S — Boku Superfoods Cafe (Ojai, CA) · Electrify America · CHAdeMO, CCS · 4 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach32 within 25 mi · 112 within 50 · 779 within 100 · 1177 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)4.9 mi — Ojai, CA - W Ojai Ave - Tesla Supercharger, Ojai
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)4.3 mi — Topa Topa Elementary School, Ojai, CA · Blink Network · J1772 · 4 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 187034 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Wheeler Gorge · Los Padres National Forest · CA — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletWheeler Gorge · at this camp · USFS
- Flush restroomWheeler Gorge Visitor Center · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletHoliday Group · ~0.4 mi NW · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletLower Rose Valley Lake Day Use Area · ~5.3 mi NE · USFS
Open Wheeler Gorge elsewhere
Other camps near Wheeler Gorge
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Holiday Group~0.4 mi · fee
- Rose Valley~5.4 mi · fee
- Middle Lion~6.7 mi · fee
- Reyes Peak~9.1 mi · fee
The unit that manages Wheeler Gorge
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Wheeler Gorge are set by Los Padres National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Wheeler Gorge
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
Developed FEE campground (not free) - review | auto:usfs-fee 2026-08-20: US Forest Service developed campground, agency coordinates, agency states a fee. No dollar amount in the agency record -- expect a charge and confirm the current rate before you go. Not field-verified. | Fee 2026-08-25: $35 per night, single site (6-8 people); +$10 per additional vehicle; day-use parking inside the campground $10 per vehicle. The two agency sources disagree on the double site -- the forest page says $60, recreation.gov listing 232138 says $70; budget $70. The forest page prints no coordinates, so identity was confirmed instead against recreation.gov's own coordinate, 0.02 mi from this pin. Source: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/lospadres/recreation/wheeler-gorge-campground.
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 Wheeler Gorge
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 — Wheeler Gorge
What “dispersed” means here →Hot-weather camping →Bugs & critters →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 →