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Bothe-Napa Valley State Park
Rating Details »
3801 St. Helena Hwy North
Calistoga, CA 94515
(707) 942-4575
Calistoga, CA 94515
(707) 942-4575
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
14 reviews for Bothe-Napa Valley State Park
Pretty decent park as far as they go. Not a lot of camping sites, not a lot of trails, but the location/proximity to Calistoga wineries was great. We parked at the campsites and took the bikes around to different wineries and into town for food. Lots of fun, and for a reasonable price. Facilities are decent, pool is freezing, but that was nice on the VERY hot days we were staying there. We plan to go back with some friends and stay there on another wine-tasting excursion too. Overall, a nice park if you want a cheap, semi-camping experience, but if you are looking to fall off the map, this probably isn't the place.
If you have time, check out the Bale Grist Mill down the road. It is an 1840's water-driving grain mill, and kinda interesting to check out. It is about a mile or so hike from the camp.
Tip: This place, like all of Napa, is crawling with poison oak. Leave your dog at home of they will give it to your after running through the brush.
It may be in complete juxtaposition, but people in the Napa Valley love both gastronomic indulgences and vigorous exercise. It's probably not the best idea to combine the two... hangover + 5 mile hike uphill... but on a day when you're in search of a natural high, Bothe State Park is a decent option.
The most obvious attractions are as follows: picnic areas, a freezing pool, and hiking trails. I've only come to Bothe for hiking because A) we have a pool, and B) the picnic benches are terrible. Those overly shady, unwelcoming picnic benches induce paranoia; prepare to stare down at your legs every few minutes and make sure you aren't being attacked by insects.
It's true that the hiking paths aren't extraordinarily scenic, but they suffice if you're in the mood for a modest hike. Interesting sites include a graveyard with some of the area's first residents and an old mill. I've never had issues with horse poop and dogs aren't allowed on most trails, so you won't find their poop either.
My sister brought her dog to Bothe once and it left with 10+ ticks, so leave your furry friend behind unless you like digging out blood-sucking, lime disease infested ticks. If you do bring your dog and it leaves with ticks, there's a great veterinarian in Calistoga, called Calistoga Pet Clinic.
If you're in search of good hiking and aren't committed to Bothe, the Oat Hill trail in Calistoga is probably my favorite. Plus, parking and access are free! The entrance is right off the Silverado Trail.
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There's nothing really unique about this state park. I did a day trip here with a couple of friends recently as we embarked on a long, rugged hike. The park is picturesque but everything starts to look similar after a few hours. There are big trees, redwoods and other tree varieties and lots of dry, yellow grasses. I was hoping to see wildflowers on this trip, but we saw very few. The hiking trails are good though, well marked and challenging.
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After a winery or two and a good deli sandwich, why not while away the afternoon with a hike? Bothe State Park is a good place for just such a thing. I'm partial to the shady Redwood Trail, probably because we're usually there on a summer day. The trail meanders alongside a creek and I just love being among the Redwoods. You have several options once you reach the end of that trail for continuing on. You will share some trails with horses. Be sure you know what poison oak looks like because there's plenty of it around.
We've also used their public pool, which isn't heated, but can be great if, like us, you don't have AC and it's one of those 100+ days. $3 for adults and $1 for kids. Open Memorial Day thru Labor Day.
Their picnic grounds, which are close to the highway, are pretty noisy with cars whizzing by on the other side of a few trees...not my top spot.
If you are the horsy type...you might like to check out the stables located right there at the park entrance.
$6 per car daytime entrance fee. The people who staff that front kiosk may not exactly shock you with their energy and knowledge. Still...I appreciate that California has so many state parks...it's tough for me to give it anything less than 4 stars.
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Swimming in the pool here should be a qualifier to join a polar bear club. It's that cold! I think they secretly put ice cubes in it when you aren't looking. Other than the temp of the water, the place is pretty nice. Yes there is poison oak everywhere. You find it pretty much everywhere in the Napa Valley and this place is no exception, except here, since you are out in the "woods", you'll notice it more.
There is a grist mill here that they have running frequently and it's cool to see that. Hiking is decent as long as you watch for the poison oak, or if you're lucky enough to be immune to the stuff.
My advice is to grab a lunch in either Calistoga or St. Helena and stop by here for a picnic on your way through.
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First off, sharing the trail with horses is a bad idea. Especially for people hiking on foot. There are parts of the trails here that do not allow horses, but several parts that are peppered with horse droppings, often swarming with flies. Sometimes it's fresh, but a lot of times it is decomposing underneath your feet. (Seriously, you'd think that riders would be required to sweep that off the trail).
Pros: clean bathrooms, very friendly park ranger at the gate. The redwoods area of the trail was nice, but I have a fondness for redwoods anyway because they offer great conditions for hiking (shade, less insect life, and soft needles to walk on). There is a stream that runs along part of the trail which is nice.
Cons: water fountains didn't work (but I'll chalk this one up to the drought), possibility of "smash and grabs" in the parking lot next to the trail. The view at Coyote Peak was too overgrown to provide much of a view.
Tips: It's at least a two hour hike. Bring water and some food. Bug spray and sunscreen wouldn't hurt. Watch out for the poison oak that appears along the trail after you reach the peak.
The sites are small, real small. We barely had a spot for a tent in ours at all. Site 40 was pretty much just a path to the bathroom, and our tent sitting on the path just confused folk. One guy looked like he was gonna go into my tent and pee.
If you stare real hard sometimes you can see the ground beneath the full cover of poison oak. I have never seen so much of it anywhere.
there is a nice refreshing pool for the kids to swim in, and by refreshing I mean arctic stream cold (but it is nice on a hot napa summer day to be refreshed)
The bathrooms are clean and decent ( I should know considering I camped right on them) and there are showers.
There were some trails right off the camping area and horseback riding available on site.
But in the end there only reason I see to camp here is that its located right smack in between St Helena and Calistoga. Think of it as a cheap hotel and basecamp to go wine tasting, eat out at fine restaurants, shop, etc. and its not so bad at all. but if your looking to "camp," you can do WAY better.
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Location is great, but the campsite is just ok.
AVOID CAMPSITE #21 - it is on a slant and an underground bee hive also calls it home
Bathrooms are pretty decent and the showers are ok as well. The hiking there is pretty good; long, hilly, and along a pretty creek at times. I could have done without the horse poopie though. The firewood that you can get there is also really good; it has a starter bag and this special wood that burns for a long time - perfect for those smores!
Make reservations online, it's about $30/night and extra cars pay $6/nite to park. If you have more than 2 cars, they make you park the 3rd car in the day use area.
The best part about this site - the fact that you can go wine tasting on the way home!
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As a hiker this is a small little park, though it is very nice for Calistoga. We came here on Presidents' Day (2/20/06) to hike Coyote Peak/Redwood Trail Loop. 4.4 miles roundtrip. The visitor's center was closed when we went so we didn't get a map, but AAA map of the area has a pretty ok map of the trails so we didn't get lost.
There are lots of redwood trees here, Douglas-fir, tanoak, and madrone. Ritchey Creek is really nice and flowing in Feb. 2006. The view at Coyote Peak is covered by trees, but just before the peak is a nice view of the area.
From the Calif. State Parks website there is a swimming pool open on weekends starting Memorial Day weekend thru Mid-june, then daily thru Labor Day from 12-6pm. I didn't see the pool. Additional fee to use the pool.
There's horseback riding during the spring, summer, or fall. Reservations for that is thru Triple Creek Horse Outfit 707-933-1600.
There is a campground: Ritchy Creek Campground and large picnic grounds.
I'd recommend going to this park. http://search.parks.ca...
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Have been coming here now for two years in a row. The park is a really good one, and well located. We did get into a little trouble with the rangers for excessive noise...of course, what else could you expect when we have 14 people drinking wine during the day and more at night...
The facilities are really good, and that makes me smile. The picnic spot is really great and they also have a tiny pool for attraction..
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I went on a spur-of-the-moment 2 hour hike by myself here after paying a $6 entrance fee to drive in. I had no idea where I was going or what I was looking for, but it turned out great. I followed Ritchey Canyon trail until it climbed up a fair height, then swung back down on Spring Trail (instead of continuing on to Upper Ritchey), then connecting to Redwood Trail which runs parallel to Ritchey Canyon. Great hike as long as you avoid the horse poo. I did!
Stayed and camped here this weekend after running an Envirosports run on Saturday - who knew Napa had a park amongst all the grapes?!? What a find!!! Not only did our campsite have showers (the best 25 cents spent for 3 minutes of hot water), but camping definitely worked out instead of spending $200 / night staying at a hotel in the area. There's something about making dinner in foil over a firepit fueled by twigs and leaves and drinking a great $35 bottle of wine by the light of a Coleman lantern that made the experience all that much better for me. That and of course it didn't rain!!
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The only thing that marred my stay here was that I was with a group and a woman's dog ran through the poison oak and gave me the worst case ever. Besides that, it is a pretty little place, but better yet it is great to stay here and do your wine touring close by. That's what our group did and other than the bout of poison oak we had a fabulous time.
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This is a wonderful little park hidden away in the Napa Valley. Although it is close to the highway, you can not hear anything but the sounds of the small stream and birds on your hike. We took a nice leisurely horseback ride through the park and were treated to beautiful trails. We were amazed how few people were on the trails. For our 2.5 hours there, we only saw one other hiker. There are a few short trails that are not too challenging and you are treated to a nice shady scenic hike. There are picnic tables and campgrounds for you to reserve. It's so close to the main road, it is a nice option to staying in Napa Valley.
