About this place
A shady, forested site on the floor of a narrow canyon, with a stream running through. There are six campsites.
It's also the trailhead for the Gold Rush Trail, number 562, so you can set off on foot straight from camp.
There's a vault toilet, but no drinking water.
The facts
- Cost
- Free to camp
- Drinking water
- No, bring your own
- Toilet
- Yes
- Type
- Specific campsite
- Managed by
- Lolo National Forest
Getting there
It's south of Thompson Falls, on Dry Creek Road, Forest Road 352.
Coordinates 47.522820, -115.311470
Open in Google Maps Agency page
What is near here
Nothing nationally famous is close. These are the landmarks nearby.
- Haugan Mountain Directions
- Sex Peak Directions
- Jew Peak Directions
- Penrose Peak Directions
Every distance on this page is the driving distance. A short distance can still take a long time. The road may be closed for the season, covered in snow, or washed out. Many of these roads are dirt. Plan your route before you leave home. Out here there is often no phone signal to look it up on the way.
Nearest town and supplies
- Thompson Falls, MT Directions
Thompson Falls is big enough that you’d normally expect fuel and somewhere to buy food. Nobody from here has been to check, so don’t count on it if you’re running low.
Why the drive to town is usually twice what the map says — what we found measuring every campsite in this guide.
When it’s time to move on
On most public land you can camp for 14 days before you have to move on. Check this site’s own limit before you plan a long stay. This is Forest Service land, and each forest sets its own rule for how far you have to go, so check before you travel.
The nearest other free campsite in this guide is Muchwater Dispersed Campground and Recreation Area, Montana — 26 miles in a straight line, but a 52 mile drive. Six more sit closer than 25 miles, if the rule here allows them.
This guide covers five states and does not list every free campsite, so there may be something closer that we do not hold. Check this site’s own rule before you rely on it.
Have you been here?
Fees and access change, and the records do not always keep up. If you have been, tell us what you found.
Thank you, that is recorded. It helps the next person.
Add road notes for this site
The thing we cannot get from any government record is what the drive in is actually like. If you have done it, this is the most useful thing you can leave behind. We read everything before it appears, and we print a first name with it if you give one.
Thank you. A person will read it before it goes on the page.
Where this information comes from
The description on this page is ours. The facts in it, and the fee and facility details below it, come from the Forest Service’s own records, read in August 2026.