(Lake Alpine) West Shore

Beautiful area for sure. Wat too many downsides. Wasps were out of control we bought traps although I feel the campgrounds should provide that. Too many rvs with generators at 8am, so frustrating. Toilets were out houses with only one door open out of the 4 around me…crazy so it got extra stinky. There were workers working all around making noise even on Saturday and Sunday which was strange and they were odd and unfriendly. Definitely won’t be camping there again. Seems like they’re on a budget type of feeling. Now I see why it was available unlike most campgrounds.

Nice but over priced for the facilities.

We usually love Lake Alpine West Shore Spot 3 but this last trip was a disaster. We never saw the camp host until Sunday morning when we were leaving. Saturday morning as we sat outside we heard loud buzzing. Next thing we know yellow jackets are swarming our campsite. There were hundreds of them. We left to take a walk around the Lake and we saw maybe 2. We came back and attempted to make lunch and it got worse. We were hiding in our trailer. We couldn’t sit outside. We ended up leaving for Arnold to have dinner because there was no way we could cook outside. We put out bowls of soap water and it killed hundreds of them. Sunday we woke up and they were all back. We packed up quickly and left. We finally saw the camp host and my husband said something to her and her response was that all of the Sierra is infested which is bologny. We went into other empty campsites and no bellow jackets. We asked campers round us if they have an infestation and they said no, only a few. The host didn’t want to hear that we most likely have a nest in the trees at our site. If there is an infestation in all of the Sierras, then I would expect a warning listed on the site. There is no warning! We’ve camped here for 5 years and never had this issue until now. The host needs to be more available as well. My husband actually called the number listed for the campground and left a message because we were worried something happened to her. We knocked on her trailer and a dog barked. We literally never saw her on Friday or Saturday. If you’re a host of said campground, that’s where a host should be. Or leave a note saying what time you will be back.

beautiful campground, great weekend trip! (off-season, early October) Pros: the lake is a short walk away, accessible vault toilets, plentiful water spigots, beautiful overall Cons/be-prepared: Sites are pretty close to each other, especially since lots of folks bring mini-campers/RVs. If you have noise neighbors, you will know. Wasps! they were pretty relentless, especially when cooking food. Even those who brought wasp traps had issues with just the overwhelming number of them. Even when relaxing for a mid-day nap in the tent, you could hear the nearby buzz of them nearby. No one got stung, but definitely some prepared.

Lots of bees. Lots and lots of bees. Why can’t they spray or something. My wife and I, and our camping “neighbors,” were stung several times. Not pleasant. Otherwise it was an okay campground.

This my second year of camping here and it’s always great. Highly recommend the inspiration point hike. Lots of areas close by to explore and the lodge and general store are great. Deb has always been a great camp host and it’s always nice to talk with her. Can’t wait for next season!