Gold Lake Campground (CA)

We stayed at Campsite 31. The sight was a decent size with fire pit and bear box (smaller box). There was a well maintained porta-potty nearby. No potable water. We had two cars and there was plenty of room for both.

Great location. No water at the campsite. Water available two miles down the road.

Great campsite with good fire rings and hosts. The lake is great for kayaking.

First, the camp host was great, this is a review of the Gold Lake campground itself. We reserved site 18 online for 2 nights and drove several hours to get there. Upon arriving, the access to the site crossed over a lot of jagged rocks and then finding the site we were shocked - my low-riding Toyota Prius could no way navigate that "driveway" to the site which was at a very severe pitch with more of the giant jagged rocks. You'd need a monster 4x4 truck to access this site - the the campground is full of these so obviously it has a place in people's hearts and needs. However, the Recreation.gov site needs to really SAY what the condition of the road and site access is. We had to go find the Camp Host, who thankfully directed us to another campground nearby that suited us very well. The trouble is - we paid here and not there....on and on the story goes. I would say be very careful about advance reservations at this campground unless you have already seen it and know what you are getting into, or you have a monster truck and love this type of site. It's also a major boat launch spot for the beautiful lake, so people bring their boats on trailers, too. Good luck.

The campground was quiet. Many tent campers, as were we. It is helpful that Recreation.gov has photos of the various sites to aid in choosing one. The sites are marked with numbers or taped up lists showing which are reserved with the names of the reservees and their dates. Ours was smallish, which worked well for the two of us. Many of the sites had "grassy" areas that were perfect for pitching tents. The bear lockers are large and hold ice chests and many bags of clothing, food, and trash. We did not see a garbage bin and just drove our refuse home. The toilets are basically an outhouse type toilet fixture in a large (greater than 6' x 6') cement floored room. Suitable for changing clothes although there are no fixtures for hanging clothes or packs. It was well stocked with toilet paper. There were two rooms side by side; did not notice any wait lines. We hiked the Bear Lakes Loop Trail starting at the road end parking past the Elwell Lodge. Do not do this late in the day - very exposed to sun in many places. I rate it Difficult for the two of us (60's and 70's of age). The trail was very rocky in places, resulting in some steep almost endless stair-stepping up and down with loose rocks among the firm. The loop took us over 2 hours for the 4+ miles, without a picnic break. Oh, and did I mention the horse manure droppings? Trails seemed well marked at intersections; not easy to get lost or misdirected. Some unmarked trails branch off but they basically descended to each of the lakes nearby.

Hosts were so helpful in guiding us to a better site for our 27’ trailer as the one we booked was too difficult to get to. Don’t book anything beyond number 13 if you have a big trailer as roads are ROUGH!! Super nice hosts, beautiful lake with entrance point all around it. Rough hiking trails to rocks for jumping. Tons of privacy and clean water. No hookups or showers or potable water