Free camping near Alta, CA
Yes. 64 of the 116 camps within 25 straight-line miles of Alta, CA are listed as free; 43 charge a fee and 9 have no price on record. The closest free one is Casa Loma, 1.5 miles southeast, on U.S. Forest Service land.
The 50 nearest camps to Alta, CA
| Camp | Miles | Cost | Water | Nearest town | Season today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Casa Loma | 1.5 | Free | Canyon Creek (stream) | 0.5 mi to Casa Loma | — |
| Giant Gap Road | 4.9 | Free | North Shirttail Canyon (stream) | 3.5 mi to Casa Loma | — |
| Giant Gap Ridge | 5.0 | Free | Sugar Pine Reservoir (water) | 3.5 mi to Monte Vista | — |
| Elliot Ranch | 5.1 | Free | North Shirttail Canyon (stream) | 3.5 mi to Casa Loma | — |
| Shirttail Creek | 5.1 | Fee | — | 5.1 mi to Alta | — |
| Giant Gap | 5.2 | Fee | — | 5.2 mi to Alta | — |
| Big Reservoir | 5.5 | Fee | — | 5.5 mi to Alta | — |
| Watson Lake Campground | 5.8 | Free | Sugar Pine Reservoir (water) | 2.9 mi to Iowa Hill | — |
| Forbes | 6.0 | Fee | — | 6.0 mi to Alta | — |
| Burlington | 6.5 | Free | North Fork Deer Creek (stream) | 0.5 mi to Junction House | — |
| Humbug Ridge | 6.8 | Free | — | 5.3 mi to Casa Loma | — |
| Finning Mill | 6.9 | Free | Pagge Creek (stream) | 1.9 mi to Hughes Mill | — |
| Skillman | 7.1 | Fee | — | 2.8 mi to Washington | — |
| Fulda Creek | 7.3 | Free | Sailor Ravine (stream) | 1.3 mi to Nyack | — |
| Brimstone Ohv Campground | 7.6 | Free | Pagge Creek (stream) | 1.4 mi to Hughes Mill | — |
| White Cloud | 7.6 | Fee | — | 4.0 mi to Washington | — |
| Tunnel Mills | 8.3 | Fee | — | 8.3 mi to Alta | — |
| Onion Valley | 8.3 | Fee | — | 8.3 mi to Alta | — |
| North Fork | 8.4 | Fee | — | 8.4 mi to Alta | — |
| Mumford Bar To Beacroft | 9.4 | Free | North Fork American River (river) | 6.4 mi to Blue Canyon | — |
| Mitchell Mine | 9.5 | Free | — | 9.5 mi to Alta | — |
| Gaston | 11 | Free | South Fork Poorman Creek (stream) | 1.6 mi to Maybert | — |
| Doolittle Trail | 11 | Free | Fall Creek (stream) | 1.7 mi to Maybert | — |
| Clyde Mountain | 11 | Free | — | 6.8 mi to Washington | — |
| Fall Creek | 11 | Free | Clear Creek (stream) | 2.7 mi to Maybert | — |
| Secret Canyon / American Hill | 12 | Free | — | 6.2 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Secret House | 12 | Free | — | 12 mi to Alta | — |
| Last Chance | 12 | Free | North Fork of Middle Fork American River (river) | 4.3 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Big Valley Bluff | 12 | Free | Tadpole Creek (stream) | 5.8 mi to Cisco Grove | — |
| Lake Valley | 12 | Free | North Fork of the North Fork of the American River (river) | 3.0 mi to Cisco Grove | — |
| Ford Point | 13 | Free | Tadpole Creek (stream) | 7.6 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Mears Meadow | 13 | Free | — | 8.1 mi to Kingvale | — |
| South Yuba Recreation Area | 13 | Fee | Kenebec Creek (stream) | 2.0 mi to Blue Tent | — |
| Rucker Lake | 13 | Fee | — | 7.4 mi to Washington | — |
| Mooney Creek | 14 | Free | Fall Creek (stream) | 5.4 mi to Maybert | — |
| Pierce Creek | 14 | Free | Eagle Lakes (water) | 3.5 mi to Cisco Grove | — |
| Little Oak Flat | 14 | Free | Middle Fork American River (river) | 3.4 mi to Michigan Bluff | — |
| Indian Springs Campground | 14 | Fee | South Yuba River (river) | 2.2 mi to Cisco Grove | — |
| Peavine Road | 15 | Free | Middle Fork American River (river) | 3.5 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Canada Hill | 15 | Free | Tadpole Creek (stream) | 7.3 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Carr Lake | 15 | Fee | — | 5.8 mi to Graniteville | — |
| Grouse Ridge | 16 | Free | — | 7.8 mi to Graniteville | — |
| Sanford Lake | 16 | Free | Sanford Lake (water) | 3.4 mi to Baltimore Town | — |
| Lindsey Lake | 16 | Fee | — | 5.4 mi to Graniteville | — |
| Greek Store | 16 | Free | Spruce Creek (stream) | 0.2 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Kanaka Creek | 16 | Free | Kanaka Creek (stream) | 2.3 mi to Cruzonville | — |
| Big Bend | 16 | Fee | — | 4.4 mi to Kingvale | — |
| Robinson Flat Campground | 16 | Free | Little Duncan Creek (stream) | 6.5 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Loch Leven Lakes Dispersed Camping | 16 | Free | — | — | — |
| Bullpen Lake | 17 | Free | Bullpen Lake (water) | 5.7 mi to Baltimore Town | — |
The other 66 inside the circle are on the live map — open it centred on Alta, CA.
Who manages the camps near Alta, CA
Who manages them: 115 on the Forest Service; 1 on the BLM.
- Tahoe National Forest — 105 camps: 60 free, 37 fee, 8 unpriced
- Eldorado National Forest — 9 camps: 3 free, 5 fee, 1 unpriced
- Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit — 1 camp: 1 free
- Mother Lode Field Office — 1 camp: 1 fee
Season read for these camps, today
Our record has no season word for any of these 116 camps today. Call the managing office before you go.
Forecast near Alta, CA
This is the Weather Service forecast for the town, fetched when the page opens. It is not a forecast for any camp in the table; ground higher up or in a canyon can run colder or windier. It needs JavaScript; without it, see weather.gov.
Camping near other towns close by
The nearest towns that have their own page, with the straight-line miles between the towns.
Every distance on this page is a straight line from Alta, CA, not a driving distance — a camp four miles out across a canyon can be an hour of road. Cost is the audited three-state verdict on each camp's own record: free, fee, or unpriced where we could not confirm a price. A blank column is a gap in the record, not a statement that the thing is absent. Camps come from state and federal agency records, not from a visit, except the ones marked. Seasons, permits and fire rules change: confirm with the managing office before you go. Found a fee where we show free? Tell us on the contact page.