Summer Camping Recommendation Needed

My family is willing to drive up to 3-4 hours in any direction from Oakland for a great camping experience.
kids are 11 and 14, and enjoy moderate trails and water (salt or fresh).
I noticed lot's of state park closures.

NEED YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS FOR YOUR FAVORITE CAMPSITE !!!

Thx in advance.

Jonathan

Spring lake park, Santa rosa Is great http://www.sonoma-county.org/parks/pk_slake.htm Veterans memorial park, Monterrey ca. camping, trails and it's in Monterrey! http://www.seemonterey.com/monterey-california/veterans-park-monterey  Greenhorn campground, Rollins lake http://www.nevadacountythingstodo.com/camping/greenhorne/  So many more!!! Have fun All are County parks or concessions so no closures
One more aprox 3hrs from Oakland http://www.fishsniffer.com/dbacher/080712lakevalleyres.html Soooooo nice there. But yeah, DEET is a must in summertime./ Set up on one of the islands and play all day

John,

The Sinkyone Wilderness State Park Campground (known to everyone else as Usal Beach) is absolutely awesome.  You can camp on the beach, along the river, or in the trees....whatever you want.  No reservations needed, just show up.  I don't know if it is on the closure list.

Big, giant elk wander around.  Very cool place.

Jon,
Hard to narrow it down to 1 favorite up here (North Inland) but lots to choose from.
If you want to escape the heat head to higher elevations
Lakes: Almanor, Trinity, Siskiyou, Lewiston, McCloud, Baum, Britton.
Rivers/Steams: Hat Creek, Trinity River, Upper Sac, McCloud, Pitt,Fall.
Lassen Volcanic National Park: lakes, streams, trails, geothermal areas,
                                                 you can even hike to the summit of Lassen Peak.
                                                  educational for the kids as well

Depending on how many days your staying, and if you want to move every couple days,
many of these areas are within a short drive of each other

Every summer I take a road trip that lasts about a week and hits many of the above areas.
PM me if you want me to go into detail or suggest a route/plan
Tad
 


 

AAA has a map "Northern California Camping" or somethign to that effect.  It has every campground listed on it from Private, County, State, Corp Of Engineers, National Forest, National Parks, BLM and so on.  If you are a member its FREE!

Are you planning on taking your yaks too?  Lots of lakes to camp near and play on the water in the high country highway 88 area.  Caples Lake, Silver Lake, Upper and Lower Blue Lakes, Woods Lake, Lake Kirkwood, Bear River Res.  Bear River Res. and Silver Lake allow lake lice (jet skis, etc.), the other lakes you won't have a problem.  The campsites are all first come first served and usually filled up on weekends.  Take plenty of bug repellent too.  If it is 100 degrees in the valley it will be in the low 80's at 8000' elevation.  It gets cold at night, down into the low 40's and high 30's at times even in the summer. 
An added plus is there are many outstanding hiking trails all over the area, many leading to small backcountry lakes that have great fishing. 

John,

Theres an amazing little lake called Lower Sardiene Lake. Actually its two lakes, one above the other; Upper Sardine.

Excellent little campground, and its small which we love. Fun little trails to walk.

Great, super fun fishing! Launch your yaks, or rent a aluminum for the whole family with electric motor (low cost) No ski boats, no jet skis and crazy beautiful. Little waterfall at the far end of the lake. This is a small mountain lake, you can easily paddle the entire thing. Loaded with fish.

Tiny little rustic store on site, and a little indoor/outdoor bar on the lake.

Lots of wildlife!

My favorite on the North Coast is Paul Dimmick Campground in the Navarro River Redwoods State Park (near Albion, probably 2.5hrs from OAK).
My favorite on the South Coast is Kirk Creek in Big Sur (actually, Limekiln is my favorite but it'll be closed by the state BS). Probably 3hrs from OAK.
My favorite in the Sierra is Baker Campground near Kennedy Meadows on Sonora Pass. No kayak fishing though, just river fishing and lakes. But the Gold Lakes Basin area that Porky suggested is really cool too. Lots of lakes to explore and great trout fishing. There are nice campgrounds and some relatively-inexpensive cabins at Sardine Lake Resort too.

Now you got me thinking about summertime camping, John!!! So many places to fish...so little time.

Thx everyone for your suggestions!  So many places to try... have been wanting to try some new campsites.  Thx again brothers!

Peace 2 U

Jon

Jenkinson /Sly Park Lake is really nice - specifically the back end. Hiking and swimming is excellent Fishing is so so for planter trout and Macs, but the SMB fishing is underrated. I have pics from a time when I was planning a group trip there - if you are interested

John,

Theres an amazing little lake called Lower Sardiene Lake. Actually its two lakes, one above the other; Upper Sardine.

Excellent little campground, and its small which we love. Fun little trails to walk.

Great, super fun fishing! Launch your yaks, or rent a aluminum for the whole family with electric motor (low cost) No ski boats, no jet skis and crazy beautiful. Little waterfall at the far end of the lake. This is a small mountain lake, you can easily paddle the entire thing. Loaded with fish.

Tiny little rustic store on site, and a little indoor/outdoor bar on the lake.

Lots of wildlife!

Porky I like that Lake stayed in the Cabins a few times is there a Campground on the Lake or is it the one on that little creek?

The campground is not directly on the lake, its about a 5 minute walk to the lake (or a 30 second drive) Yeah, theres a cool little trail, through the marsh area, over the creek, it passes sand pond then your at Lower Sardine, all super close.

Theres several campgrounds, below the lower sardine campground as well, all on the creek too I believe. Haven't stayed at those.

Big fan of Sardine Lakes here. We liked the Wild Plum Campground - not too far away, nice river with granite boulders. Excellent stuff.

Love the other suggestions here guys. Tried some already, intrigued by the others.

Russian Gulch State Park

Now first come first served. Weekdays no problem. Weekends if you get there early most likely get a good spot. Wonderful trails. Beautiful Waterfall. Great Ab Diving. Fantastic Kayak Launch from cove. Nice Campsites. Beautiful Beach. The further back you go the better they get.

We just stayed at Spring Lake in Inyo Forest, and it was nic eplace.  Close to the lake and very reasonable ($18 a night).

Now for the good news there are spots in Yosemite that are available, including the valley.  We stopped by Porcupine Flats on Hwy 120 and it was 60% full.  And at $10.00 a night it is a deal.

We also stopped by Junction Creek just below Saddlebag lake.  This place looks gorgeous and has many lakes in the area for prime fishing and boating.