Free camping near Colfax, CA
Within 25 straight-line miles of Colfax, CA there are 53 camps: 36 free, 16 fee, 1 unpriced. The closest is Watson Lake Campground, 7.9 miles east of town. The closest one our audit calls free is Watson Lake Campground, 7.9 miles out.
Who manages them: 52 on the Forest Service; 1 on the BLM.
| Camp | Miles | Cost | Water | Nearest town | Season today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watson Lake Campground | 7.9 | Free | Sugar Pine Reservoir (water) | 2.9 mi to Iowa Hill | — |
| Giant Gap Ridge | 8.9 | Free | Sugar Pine Reservoir (water) | 3.5 mi to Monte Vista | — |
| Giant Gap | 9.3 | Fee | — | 5.2 mi to Alta | — |
| Shirttail Creek | 9.6 | Fee | — | 5.1 mi to Alta | — |
| Forbes | 9.6 | Fee | — | 6.0 mi to Alta | — |
| Finning Mill | 9.7 | Free | Pagge Creek (stream) | 1.9 mi to Hughes Mill | — |
| Brimstone Ohv Campground | 10 | Free | Pagge Creek (stream) | 1.4 mi to Hughes Mill | — |
| Giant Gap Road | 11 | Free | North Shirttail Canyon (stream) | 3.5 mi to Casa Loma | — |
| Big Reservoir | 11 | Fee | — | 5.5 mi to Alta | — |
| Casa Loma | 11 | Free | Canyon Creek (stream) | 0.5 mi to Casa Loma | — |
| Elliot Ranch | 12 | Free | North Shirttail Canyon (stream) | 3.5 mi to Casa Loma | — |
| Mitchell Mine | 14 | Free | — | 9.5 mi to Alta | — |
| Dru Barner Campground | 15 | Unpriced | Dark Canyon (stream) | 0.8 mi to Balderson Station | — |
| Humbug Ridge | 16 | Free | — | 5.3 mi to Casa Loma | — |
| Little Oak Flat | 16 | Free | Middle Fork American River (river) | 3.4 mi to Michigan Bluff | — |
| White Cloud | 17 | Fee | — | 4.0 mi to Washington | — |
| Burlington | 17 | Free | North Fork Deer Creek (stream) | 0.5 mi to Junction House | — |
| South Yuba Recreation Area | 17 | Fee | Kenebec Creek (stream) | 2.0 mi to Blue Tent | — |
| Last Chance | 18 | Free | North Fork of Middle Fork American River (river) | 4.3 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Skillman | 18 | Fee | — | 2.8 mi to Washington | — |
| Peavine Road | 18 | Free | Middle Fork American River (river) | 3.5 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Mumford Bar To Beacroft | 19 | Free | North Fork American River (river) | 6.4 mi to Blue Canyon | — |
| Fulda Creek | 19 | Free | Sailor Ravine (stream) | 1.3 mi to Nyack | — |
| Inter Bay | 19 | Free | Middle Fork American River (river) | 3.6 mi to Zuver | — |
| Tunnel Mills | 20 | Fee | — | 8.3 mi to Alta | — |
| Secret Canyon / American Hill | 20 | Free | — | 6.2 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Onion Valley | 20 | Fee | — | 8.3 mi to Alta | — |
| North Fork | 20 | Fee | — | 8.4 mi to Alta | — |
| Spruce Creek Loop | 21 | Free | — | 14 mi to Foresthill | — |
| Secret House | 21 | Free | — | 12 mi to Alta | — |
| Greek Store | 21 | Free | Spruce Creek (stream) | 0.2 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Ford Point | 22 | Free | Tadpole Creek (stream) | 7.6 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Jack Robinson | 22 | Free | Spruce Creek (stream) | 1.3 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Gaston | 22 | Free | South Fork Poorman Creek (stream) | 1.6 mi to Maybert | — |
| Big Valley Bluff | 22 | Free | Tadpole Creek (stream) | 5.8 mi to Cisco Grove | — |
| Kanaka Creek | 23 | Free | Kanaka Creek (stream) | 2.3 mi to Cruzonville | — |
| Doolittle Trail | 23 | Free | Fall Creek (stream) | 1.7 mi to Maybert | — |
| Red Star | 23 | Free | Middle Fork American River (river) | 1.6 mi to Goggins | — |
| Ponderosa Cove Group | 23 | Free | Rubicon River (river) | 4.0 mi to Leonardi | — |
| Fall Creek | 23 | Free | Clear Creek (stream) | 2.7 mi to Maybert | — |
| Clyde Mountain | 23 | Free | — | 6.8 mi to Washington | — |
| Canada Hill | 23 | Free | Tadpole Creek (stream) | 7.3 mi to Greekstore | — |
| Stumpy Meadows Cg | 23 | Fee | — | 10 mi to Pollock Pines | — |
| Black Oak Group | 24 | Fee | — | 10 mi to Pollock Pines | — |
| Mears Meadow | 24 | Free | — | 8.1 mi to Kingvale | — |
| Lake Valley | 24 | Free | North Fork of the North Fork of the American River (river) | 3.0 mi to Cisco Grove | — |
| Long Canyon Camping Area | 24 | Free | North Fork Long Canyon (stream) | 1.5 mi to Goggins | — |
| Hornswoggle | 24 | Fee | — | 3.1 mi to North San Juan | — |
| Schoolhouse | 24 | Fee | — | 3.3 mi to North San Juan | — |
| Rucker Lake | 24 | Fee | — | 7.4 mi to Washington | — |
The other 3 inside the circle are on the live map — open it centred on Colfax, CA.
Every distance on this page is a straight line from Colfax, 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.