Free camping near Crestline, CA
Within 25 straight-line miles of Crestline, CA there are 65 camps: 31 free, 26 fee, 8 unpriced. The closest is Dogwood Family Campground, 4.5 miles east of town. The closest one our audit calls free is Bench Camp, Pct Trail Camp, 9.8 miles out. One of them is a camp Dave has slept at.
Who manages them: 52 on the Forest Service; 12 on an agency our record does not name; 1 on the BLM.
| Camp | Miles | Cost | Water | Nearest town | Season today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dogwood Family Campground | 4.5 | Unpriced | Grass Valley Creek (stream) | 0.5 mi to Meadowbrook Woods | — |
| North Shore Cg | 7.1 | Fee | — | 1.3 mi to Lake Arrowhead | — |
| Bench Camp, Pct Trail Camp | 9.8 | Free | — | 1.1 mi to Running Springs | — |
| Fishermans Group Cg | 10 | Fee | — | 2.5 mi to Running Springs | — |
| Tent Peg Group Campground | 11 | Fee | Crab Creek (stream) | 1.9 mi to Green Valley Lake | — |
| Juniper Flats | 11 | Unpriced | — | 3.1 mi to Apple Valley Highlands | — |
| Crab Flats Cg | 12 | Fee | — | 3.8 mi to Running Springs | — |
| Applewhite Campground | 12 | Unpriced | North Fork Lytle Creek (river) | 0.4 mi to Lytle Creek | — |
| Holcomb Crossing, Pct Trail Camp | 12 | Fee | — | 4.8 mi to Running Springs | — |
| Green Valley Campground | 13 | Fee | Crab Creek (stream) | 0.9 mi to Green Valley Lake | — |
| Joe Elliott Yellow Post Sites | 14 | Free | — | 1.5 mi to Lytle Creek | — |
| Horse Springs Campground | 14 | Fee | Coxey Creek (stream) | 4.9 mi to Fizzben Heights | — |
| Keller Peak Yellow Post Sites Along 1N96 | 14 | Free | — | 3.5 mi to Running Springs | — |
| Stonehouse | 15 | Free | Middle Fork Lytle Creek (river) | 3.0 mi to Lytle Creek | — |
| Joe Elliot Yellow Post Sites | 15 | Free | Day Creek (stream) | 3.5 mi to Scotland | — |
| Gobblers Knob Yellow Post Sites | 16 | Free | North Fork Lytle Creek (river) | 4.6 mi to Lytle Creek | — |
| Ironwood Group Cg | 16 | Fee | — | 7.9 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Big Pine Flat Equestrian Group Campground | 16 | Unpriced | — | 5.3 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Clark'S Ranch Trail Yellow Post Site | 16 | Free | Coxey Creek (stream) | 5.4 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Third Stream Crossing | 16 | Free | Middle Fork Lytle Creek (stream) | 4.1 mi to Lytle Creek | — |
| Big Pine Flat Family Campground | 16 | Fee | Coxey Creek (stream) | 5.3 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Commanche | 17 | Free | Old Rust Stream (stream) | 4.6 mi to Mount Baldy | — |
| Gobbler's Knob Yellow Post Sites | 17 | Free | North Fork Lytle Creek (stream) | 4.5 mi to Wrightwood | — |
| Big Bear Yellow Post Sites | 17 | Free | — | 5.5 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Stockton Flats Yellow Post Sites | 18 | Free | North Fork Lytle Creek (stream) | 5.1 mi to Wrightwood | — |
| San Bernardino National ForestDave slept here | 18 | Free | — | 5.0 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Coldwater Canyon Yellow Post Sites | 18 | Free | Big Butch Wash (stream) | 4.6 mi to Mount Baldy | — |
| Bluff Mesa Group Campground | 18 | Unpriced | Siberia Creek (stream) | 2.0 mi to Boulder Bay | — |
| Thomas Hunting Grounds Yellow Post Sites | 18 | Free | — | 6.8 mi to Oak Glen | — |
| Hanna Flat Campground | 18 | Fee | Greenlead Creek (stream) | 2.3 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Little Bear Spring, Pct Trail Camp | 18 | Free | Greenlead Creek (stream) | 3.0 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Thomas Mtn Yp Sites Along 6S13 | 18 | Fee | — | 6.5 mi to Oak Glen | — |
| Paiute Canyon Yellow Post Sites | 19 | Free | North Fork Lytle Creek (stream) | 3.6 mi to Wrightwood | — |
| Yellow Post 1 | 19 | Free | — | 0.5 mi to Fawnskin | — |
| Grays Peak Group Cg | 19 | Fee | — | 3.3 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Boulder Group Cg | 20 | Fee | — | 3.2 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Manker Flat | 20 | Fee | — | 5.6 mi to Wrightwood | — |
| Coldbrook Cg | 20 | Free | Metcalf Creek (stream) | 1.0 mi to Boulder Bay | — |
| Deer Cg | 21 | Fee | — | 2.1 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Serrano Cg | 21 | Fee | — | 1.9 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Guffy | 22 | Fee | — | 1.6 mi to Wrightwood | — |
| Lupine Campground | 22 | Unpriced | Prairie Fork (stream) | 2.9 mi to Wrightwood | — |
| Holcomb Valley Cg | 23 | Fee | — | 4.1 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Bald Cove Yellow Post Sites | 23 | Fee | — | 4.3 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Pineknot Campground | 23 | Unpriced | Simmons Trout Lake (water) | 1.6 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
| Dispersed camp #3 — San Bernardino County, CA | 23 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.7 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Jackstraw Campground | 23 | Unpriced | Forsee Creek (stream) | 3.2 mi to Pinezanita | — |
| Dispersed camp #4 — San Bernardino County, CA | 23 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.7 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Dispersed camp #2 — San Bernardino County, CA | 23 | Free | Caribou Creek (stream) | 2.6 mi to Minnelusa | — |
| Buttercup Group Cg | 23 | Fee | — | 1.0 mi to Big Bear Lake | — |
The other 15 inside the circle are on the live map — open it centred on Crestline, CA.
Every distance on this page is a straight line from Crestline, 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.