Within A Half Mile from Two Boat Launch Areas
Getting There
At an elevation of 850 feet, you don’t have to worry about miles of winding roads getting up into the mountains like you would at Lake Tahoe’s Fallen Leaf lake Campground. The drive from the San Francisco Bay Area was very pleasant.
When we arrived it was a beautiful day with temps in the 80’s. We arrived at 10:00, but check in wasn’t until noon. The attendant said if we came back at 10:30 he would let us in since nobody was staying in our campsite.
We drove down to the end of the road and pulled over on a large dirt area and made some lunch while we waited.
The campground is filled with trees. some sites are well shaded while a few have partial to full sun. It truly is a beautiful campground.
Water Access
Unfortunately there is no lake access from this campground as we found out upon arrival. To launch our paddle boards we had to drive down highway 70 a few miles to the Forebay Aquatic Center. This area has is for swimming and non motorized water craft. The Loafer Creek Area and North Forebay near the Aquatic Center are the only designated swimming areas at the lake.
The aquatic center was not really what we were looking for as it is not part of the actual lake, so after paddling around for awhile we loaded up the boards and headed out to see the dam. There really wasn’t much to do once we drove across the dam so we headed over to Bidwell Canyon boat launch area and put the paddle boards in the lake.
We had a great time paddling around and checking out the hundreds of houseboats. So if you want water access you will want to stay in the Bidwell Canyon area.
Walking The Campground
This was one of the cleanest and well kept campgrounds we have been to. We did not see one piece of garbage on our walk. The bathrooms were very clean and the campsites were very well maintained.
There are 44 campsites on this very terraced campground. Most of the parking pads require none to very little van leveling. There are views of the lake on a few of the sites, but they are mainly obstructed by trees. Don’t expect any amazing lake views from this campground.
Campsite Reviews
- Partial lake views – 4, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 22, 20, 25, 42
- Sloped parking pads to avoid – 16, 18, 26, 39, 44
- Good to fair sun for solar – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 11, 14, 39, 40, 43, 44,
Open Season
- Year round.
Amenities & More
- Fire Rings.
- Picnic tables.
- Most have large/long parking pads.
- Some pull through parking pads.
- Flush toilets.
- Showers.
- Checkout is 12:00.
- 2 vehicles per campsite. Registration covers one vehicle.
- Dogs are welcome.
- Trash and recycling.
- Free dump station.
- Hookup and non hookup sites.
Fees
- $25 with a $7.99 online processing fee.
Reservations
- www.parks.ca.gov
- www.reservecalifornia.com
- 800-444-7275
Campgrounds Nearby
- Big Pine Campground.
- Gold Flat Campground.
- Loafer Creek Campground.
- Coyote Campground.
Local Things To See And Do
- Boating.
- Fishing.
- Boat in floating campsites.
- Houseboat rentals.
- Oroville dam visitors center.
Cell Signal
- Verizon – 2 bars
- ATT – 1 bar
Thoughts
If you like boating and fishing then this is your place. We like to swim and paddle board so this lake is not really an ideal location for us. As for the campground, it is very nice, but lacks water access. This will not be on our repeat list, but if you visit, let us know what you think. Safe travels.