Free camping near Big Bear Lake, CA
Within 25 straight-line miles of Big Bear Lake, CA there are 86 camps: 42 free, 33 fee, 11 unpriced. The closest is Pineknot Campground, 0.8 miles south-east of town. The closest one our audit calls free is Coldbrook Cg, 2.1 miles out. 2 of them are camps Dave has slept at.
Who manages them: 68 on the Forest Service; 12 on an agency our record does not name; 6 on the BLM.
| Camp | Miles | Cost | Water | Nearest town | Season today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pineknot Campground | 0.8 | Unpriced | Simmons Trout Lake (water) | 1.6 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Buttercup Group Cg | 1.0 | Fee | — | 1.0 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Serrano Cg | 1.9 | Fee | — | 1.9 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Deer Cg | 2.1 | Fee | — | 2.1 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Coldbrook Cg | 2.1 | Free | Metcalf Creek (stream) | 1.0 mi to Boulder Bay | — |
| Boulder Group Cg | 3.2 | Fee | — | 3.2 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Grays Peak Group Cg | 3.3 | Fee | — | 3.3 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Yellow Post 1 | 3.7 | Free | — | 0.5 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Tanglewood Group Cg | 3.9 | Fee | — | 3.9 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Holcomb Valley Cg | 4.1 | Fee | — | 4.1 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Dispersed camp #8 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.2 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.6 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Dispersed camp #7 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.2 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.7 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Dispersed camp #2 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.2 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.6 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Dispersed camp #12 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.3 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.7 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Bald Cove Yellow Post Sites | 4.3 | Fee | — | 4.3 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Dispersed camp #4 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.3 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.7 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Dispersed camp #3 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.3 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.7 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Dispersed camp — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.4 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.8 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Dispersed camp #5 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.6 | Free | — | — | — |
| Dispersed camp #6 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.6 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 3.0 mi to Doble | — |
| Dispersed camp #9 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.8 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 3.1 mi to Cushenbury | — |
| Bluff Mesa Group Campground | 4.9 | Unpriced | Siberia Creek (stream) | 2.0 mi to Boulder Bay | — |
| Dispersed camp #10 — San Bernardino County, CA | 4.9 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 3.0 mi to Cushenbury | — |
| San Gorgonio Campground | 5.0 | Fee | Frog Creek (stream) | 2.8 mi to Seven Oaks | — |
| Lobo Group Campground | 5.0 | Fee | Santa Ana River (stream) | 3.1 mi to Seven Oaks | — |
| San Bernardino National ForestDave slept here | 5.0 | Free | — | 5.0 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Green Spot Equestrian Group Cg | 5.0 | Fee | — | 2.1 mi to Big Bear | — |
| Council Group Campground | 5.0 | Fee | Frog Creek (stream) | 2.1 mi to Seven Oaks | — |
| Barton Flats Campground | 5.0 | Fee | Jenk's Lake (water) | 2.4 mi to Seven Oaks | — |
| Dispersed camp #11 — San Bernardino County, CA | 5.0 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.9 mi to Cushenbury | — |
| Green Canyon Group Cg | 5.2 | Free | — | 1.5 mi to Woodlands | — |
| Big Bear Yellow Post Sites | 5.5 | Free | — | 5.5 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Hanna Flat Campground | 5.6 | Fee | Greenlead Creek (stream) | 2.3 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Doble, Pct Trail Camp | 5.6 | Free | Landen's Pond (water) | 0.1 mi to Doble | — |
| Little Bear Spring, Pct Trail Camp | 6.2 | Free | Greenlead Creek (stream) | 3.0 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| South Fork Campground | 6.3 | Unpriced | South Fork (stream) | 4.8 mi to Moonridge | — |
| Jackstraw Campground | 7.2 | Unpriced | Forsee Creek (stream) | 3.2 mi to Pinezanita | — |
| Ironwood Group Cg | 7.9 | Fee | — | 7.9 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Skyline Group Cg | 8.1 | Fee | — | 6.6 mi to Big Bear | — |
| Wildhorse Equestrian Camp | 8.5 | Fee | — | 6.5 mi to Big Bear | — |
| Heart Bar Cg | 8.5 | Fee | — | 6.6 mi to Big Bear | — |
| Big Pine Flat Equestrian Group Campground | 8.6 | Unpriced | — | 5.3 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Big Pine Flat Family Campground | 8.6 | Fee | Coxey Creek (stream) | 5.3 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Clark'S Ranch Trail Yellow Post Site | 8.6 | Free | Coxey Creek (stream) | 5.4 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Wild Horse Equestrian Campground | 8.9 | Fee | Santa Ana River (stream) | 6.3 mi to Woodlands | — |
| Keller Peak Yellow Post Sites Along 1N96 | 8.9 | Free | — | 3.5 mi to Running Springs | — |
| Arrastre Trail Camp | 9.0 | Free | Juniper Spring (water) | 4.1 mi to Woodlands | — |
| Heart Bar Equestrian Cg | 9.3 | Fee | — | 7.1 mi to Big Bear | — |
| Dry Lake Lodgepole Camp | 9.3 | Free | Dry Lake (water) | 5.9 mi to Forest Falls | — |
| Dry Lake Lodgepole Camp | 9.4 | Free | Dry Lake (water) | 5.8 mi to Forest Falls | — |
The other 36 inside the circle are on the live map — open it centred on Big Bear Lake, CA.
Every distance on this page is a straight line from Big Bear Lake, 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.