Chasing (roadside) waterfalls…read more.. This is a pretty decent roadside waterfall off Highway 50 (between Sac and Lake Tahoe) near Pollock Pines. It is pretty during spring as snow melting gives the waterfall a good amount of flow with a drop of 80-ft. Nice stop to stretch out the legs at the same time. The waterfall grabs your attention whether you're driving to or from Lake Tahoe. The falls is to your right as you head to the Lake. I suppose you can pull over on the opposite side of the highway to get a full view of the falls but I wouldn't cross the road as it is dangerous because there are blind turns, sometimes cars and trucks whiz by fast and furious down this road. Easy access where you literally just pull over into a very large pullout right in front of the falls. This waterfalls is about 60 miles from our place. It is worth stopping to look at, at least once, on your way to Lake Tahoe. Review #2106 updated

Worth the quick stop to get out, stretch and check it out on the drive to Tahoe or back! Very cool…read morelittle falls on an easy pull out.

We love it out here, and are repeat camping visitors. They have some nice tent sites along the day…read moreuse area and some quiet and large sites at the top of the hill. They do have some plug in sites, but we just dry camp it with a generator and water jugs. There's a nice boat ramp and the place always feels safe enough to leave our kayaks on the beach between days. Fishing is too notch and the lake itself is beautiful.

My first time camping here and our experience was fabulous!…read more Our site was gorgeous offering lovely lake views. The grounds are kept quite clean. The day use area was right near our site which we used each day to paddle board and enjoy other water activities. The waterfall hike was so pretty- we all took the cold plunge!

Discount Pricing for local 501c organizations. Plus possible allowance of a small number of RV'sread more

My daughter and I stayed for two nights in a teepee, and we felt quite safe--especially comforting…read morefor two women traveling together. Greg, the camp manager, was very considerate and responsive, quickly taking care of anything we needed. The bathrooms were very clean, and the beds came with mats and fitted sheets. We brought our own blankets, but it still felt cold at night--next time, I'll definitely bring sleeping bags. There's a beautiful hike nearby, and our teepee was just a short walk from the river, which made the experience even more special. The lounge area was a fun bonus, filled with games and a ping-pong table--we had a great time playing table tennis together. Overall, it was a peaceful and relaxing stay. The staff were kind, caring, and polite. I absolutely recommend this place.

I gotta be honest and give credit where due. This is a nice, clean, accesible area that allows for…read moremany different activities and for all sorts of personalities. There are paths for walking and biking. Restroom nearby are well maintained, and with water spots in the area too. Just need to be aware of people who ride motor vehicles in prohibited areas. And the occasional nut discharging guns late at night. Some may even get bonfires going during fire season. Other than that, this is a great spot for all to enjoy.

I have been coming to this campground my entire life! My mom worked for SMUD for over 30+ years and…read morethis has always been our campground of choice. We come every year in the summer time! The campground is private and you must either work for SMUD or know someone that works there in order to camp. It is located on Ice House Road along the manmade Union Valley Reservoir. There are 51 campsites that are well maintained. They allow RVs and camper trailers. Dogs as well and each campsite allows for a maximum of 10 people. We love coming during the cornhole tournament weekend and they also host a bingo weekend. There are showers and toilets as well as a large playground for the kids. It's a great family campground - we love making new memories every year!

On a weekend at my brother in laws cabin we needed something for the little kids to do so we came…read moreto the haunted forest. Maybe this would had been better at night but seemed pretty expensive to me but the little kids had fun. The animatronics were good and I appreciated no one jumping out trying to scare you. Well organized just seemed expensive but we had a good time.

ETA: glad it took you so long to come up with that witty response, must've been rough. No worries-…read moreI enjoy the banter with a sincere business owner. Congratulations on the engagement Riddle me this: your own website says you close at 6 today but your gates are closed at 4:55. When I called to ask if the business was open I was told that the hours changed and he had no idea what website I got the information from. Answer: Yours

This year my family & I camped here & we reserved 4 & 5 which was right by the entrance next to the…read morecamp host. We enjoyed how shady this area was, & how large this area was for our group. We were able to place 5 tents in this area, two tents which were large tents for families of 6. Each site has a fire pit, picnic table, is near a rinse of station and bathrooms. There are bathrooms and well maintained but they are the definition of out houses. Bring a flash light at night as there is no lights inside. No showers here. The trail to the water is not to long, id say its half a mile, very do-able if your not bringing much or have little ones. If you dont take the trail, you can always drive 3 minutes down the road to the boat launching area & park there for a day by the reservoir. The parking fee there is $10 in cash. By the water it's very rocky, so do bring good water shoes. There was a bear cub that roamed this campground, the host let is know it has been around since April , and that there hasn't been sight of momma bear since, meaning either momma bear abandoned him or was left behind, he really doesn't want anything to do with human interaction according to them. From our experience he comes around mostly in broad day light and not at night but still kept us on our toes especially because our group had littles ones. This is the only reason I am ranking this campground to be a 4/5 stars.

We stayed on sites 11, 12 and 13 in month of July. The weather got up to at least the 90's but…read morewould hit around the 70's which was perfect for late night smores! Each site had its own grill and fire pit with plenty of room for at least 2 tents. The restrooms are decently maintained and as a tip - use them in the morning (they're nice and cleaned)! Camp ground supplies toilet tissue. The water is near and accessible by going through a dirt path. FYI flat ground by the water is scarce. We ended up setting up just above the water and made our way down anytime we wanted to take a nice dip. Lots of rocks so make sure to bring water shoes to protect your feet! There were two sightings for bears according to others but we did not encounter one while we were there. We also locked up our food in the cars as there are no bear lockers. I saw some reviews mention getting tons of bug bites and getting dirty easily. Yes, that's true and we are also outdoors so it's to be expected! :) Just make sure to bring lots of bug spray and body wipes - there are no showers. We enjoyed this campground and its beauty! I took off a star because of all the car drifting/racing we heard late at night. Other than that, it's a great place for friends and families especially if you're looking to "unplug".

This location is also known as the Big Hill Vista Point. There is a lookout tower here. But that is…read moreoff limits to visitors. It's actually used by the El Dorado National Forest to actually look out for fire activity. There is even a helipad. Below the hill with the tower and facility building is a parking lot and walking path to the Vista Point. Gorgeous views all around. The path is flat, no elevation gain. The point is about a 1-2 minute walk down the path. The vista point is carved out of the hillside with views and f the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Crystal Basin. The point was dedicated in 2002 by SMUD ( the local energy supply company) and the El Dorado National Forest. Not only can you simply enjoy the beautiful scenery, they have informational placards. Ohh how I luv an information board. I learned that in 1958 SMUD started the local hydroelectric projects in the area. First with Ice House Dam and Reservoir. Then in 1971, they completed the "stairway of power" that is the 40 miles of tunnels, reservoirs, and penstocks that deliver hydroelectric power using the water and snowpack from the western slope Sierra Nevada mountains. Wow! What a work of technology and people strength. To think that's how we get our electricity! The vista point is free, it's free to drive around inside the El Dorado National Forest to look a loo. But if you stay long for a hike, picnic, whatever; then you will need to pay the parking fee. To get to the vista point is not easy. The road is rural, curving, uphill, narrow at points, and riddled with pot holes in various stretches. I don't recommend driving up here is a low profile vehicle. Leave your Maserati at home.

The morning air was crisp and clean so what better time to drive up to "Big Hill Vista Point" in…read moreEldorado National Forest to see spectacular views of "Crystal Basin".. I was telling my wife that the last time I visited here was over a year ago. There was so much smoke in the valley from forest fires that you couldn't even see the lake. The road to "Big Hill Vista Point" is right off of Icehouse Road. The Road is two and one- half mile long and takes you up to an elevation of 6,132 feet to the top. Here you will find an observation area overlooking "Crystal Basin." Vista Point is also shared by the "Big Hill Lookout Tower" which is a lookout tower and command post for fire operations. Due to weather constraints, the road to Big Hill Vista Point is not always open. Best to see on a clear day ! Enjoy ! Live/Love/Travel

Our first camping trip and I gotta say, it was pretty sweet to be right on the lake with our…read moreprivate entrance! Zero issues with geese (we had read that in other reviews) ... would be nice if the ground were flat ... but overall, it's a great lil spot! The diner staff ... 10 outta 10 ... great group of people!

Great beaches and nicely tucked away. Great campgrounds. I will go again for sure. Getting ready to…read morego to the lake today, The lake is beautiful.

Pros: Beautiful sites! The beach is pretty and plenty of room for everyone. Campgrounds is roomy…read moreand spread out from each other.. Our family reunions here have been happening for the last 20 years and we enjoy our time here. Cons: Bathroom always stink (the ones closer to the beach the worse it is), no tp (almost 85% of the time) so bring your own. Parking sucks. Day use people take over parking for those who actually camp. Showers: $3for 3 min and additional 20sec for each quarter. Hosts: We had some new ones this year. In the beginning they were phenomenal. Assisted us in many ways and were always nice greeting us. After the weekend, one got roust and rude, throwing a fit about our campers and saying we have left a mess on the beach and need to take ALL our items off the beach. This was not us! Our family respect the beach and always keep it tidy at the end of the day. The day use people over the weekend made a mess and they assumed it was us and came out accusing our group. This is not professional in the least bit and rules should not be made up on the fly. Appreciated Ed (one of the hosts) clarifying some rules and regulations and made sure we all left happy. Rating: for place. for hosts.

Beautiful campground but our campsite was dirty and messy when we checked in. Broken glass, dog…read morepoop, garbage in fireplace and around campsite. Cleaned up before we set up camp because camphost was off. Bathrooms were gross. The camphost from Sunset shadyloop came to give us our parking pass and cleaned up the dog poop. I was grateful, she wasn't our host and didn't have to do that but she did. Bathrooms never got maintained because host was off. We could smell it from our campsite. It was unpleasant staying here. We made the best of it being on the lake. The 3 stars for dirty campsite and unmaintained reatrooms.

The Mormon Emigrant Trail is 30 miles of scenic drive that begins at Sly Park Dam and ends at State…read moreHighway 88 near Silver Lake. It was originally named Iron Mountain Road, but that was changed in the 1980s to commemorate the journey of members of the former Mormon Battalion. Gayle and I have been driving between the Bay Area and Genoa for years. That has usually involved taking US 50 or CA 88. Taking the Mormon Emigrant Trail road allowed us to "split the difference" and take advantage of a really stunning section of road. And once you arrive at CA 88 (heading to Nevada), the scenery just gets better. The only downside is that this is a seasonal road and it appears that Cal-Trans provided minimal services on it. One practical consequence of that is once the first good snow hits, the road is as good as closed. But within those other 3 seasons, it's one great ride.