Agency-listedUSFSFee
Winding Stair
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · OK · 34.71431, -94.67556
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 Winding Stair
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 1,921 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Winding StairNIFC · 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 Winding Stair · Ouachita National Forest · OK
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- @Mail6 mi
- GGrocery14 mi
- FFuel17 mi
- RxPharmacy21 mi
- MMechanic21 mi
- HHardware21 mi
- +Urgent care21 mi
- LLaundry35 mi
- DDump37 mi
- ShShower37 mi
- OOutfitter38 mi
- EVEV fast charger39 mi
- WWater42 mi
- AAir-up48 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is a real 42-mi drive, fuel & food sit about 14 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 39-mi run (and back).
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 — Winding Stair
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
1,921 ft
State
OK
Coordinates
34.71431, -94.67556
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Winding Stair · Ouachita National Forest · OK (OpenStreetMap)
- Nearest townHodgen · ~9.0 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelMountain Country Store · ~17.2 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- GroceriesCJ's Corner Store · ~13.8 mi
- PharmacyLawson Pharmacy · ~21.2 mi
- Hospital / clinicRuben White Health Center · ~21.3 mi
- HardwareBargain Shack · ~21.3 mi
EV charging — from Winding Stair · Ouachita National Forest · OK — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger38.9 mi straight-line W — Kiamichi, Wilburton, OK · FCN · CHAdeMO, J1772, CCS · 4 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 7 within 50 · 49 within 100 · 167 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)54.5 mi — Van Buren, AR - Tesla Supercharger, Van Buren
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)24.5 mi — Best Western Prime Inn & Suites - Tesla Destination, Poteau, OK (at a hotel) · Tesla Destination · J1772, NACS (Tesla) · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-04-21 · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to all vehicles.
- 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 156502 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Winding Stair · Ouachita National Forest · OK — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletWinding Stair · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletWinding Stair · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletPipe Springs · ~2.1 mi SE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletR.S. Kerr Arb. & Nat. Cen. · ~3.0 mi E · USFS
Open Winding Stair elsewhere
Other camps near Winding Stair
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Winding Stair~0.2 mi · fee
- Billy Creek~3.6 mi
- Cedar Lake~4.1 mi · fee
- Ouachita WMA (Le Flore Unit) primitive camp #3~5.8 mi
The unit that manages Winding Stair
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Winding Stair are set by Ouachita National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Winding Stair
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.
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 Winding Stair
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 — Winding Stair
Water on public land →What “dispersed” means here →Dumping grey & black →How to read this 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 →