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Fallen Leaf Campground
Rating Details »
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
13 reviews for Fallen Leaf Campground
Awesome campground , nice layout allthough they def shrink what sites are open when the season is about to end.
beautiful everything , good rates , nice little market but just go down 89 to the 7-11 if you need anything !
by far one of my favorite places to camp ANYWHERE
fyi this site has showers and full bathrooms , althou getting a spot near a restroom shower is quite hard unless you are one of the three hosts for only 17 campgrounds or so that were open on my last visit .
Very nice spacious campground. Bathrooms are plentiful and clean. A short walk to Fallen Leaf Lake which is very nice for swimming or just sitting and enjoying the view.
This campground was super loud the nights we were there BUT at approximately 10PM (Quiet hours) everyone adhered to the rules and shut up.
I'll be back for sure.
The camp store is a little small and the selection is tiny, they have more souvenir type things than necessities and food.
Scared by the possibility of amoebas floating in my just-filtered water, the idea of running into a bear and the reality of SNOW still on the ground near Penner Lake, I ditched the backpacking idea for car camping - or at least until the weather warms up.
Fallen Leaf Lake must be Tahoe car camping at its best. The sites are next to one of the most pristine lakes I've laid eyes on. I mean, this lake should be the poster child for the "Keep Tahoe Blue" campaign you see on bumper stickers, what with its clear water, tall pine trees and snow capped mountainous backdrop.
Plus, its tricked out with tons of convenient camping amenities like pay-by-play showers and super clean bathrooms (for a campsite, anyway) lock boxes to keep your food away from bears, picnic tables, grills and fire pits. More experienced campers would take one look at this place and say "Pssssshhhhh, child's play."
Still, we managed to entertain ourselves, despite being lowly car campers. Whiskey by the fire goes a long way, at least for this aspiring lush.
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I stayed at the Fallen Leaf Campground for two nights. Overall I think the campground is decent, but that's the problem, it was just decent. It is secluded from the main road but the campgrounds are relatively close to each other.
They have a strict 10pm quiet-hour policy. If you violate it, you'll get a stern warning from the rangers. Also, the bathrooms are a bit dirtier than the other campgrounds I've been to. For the men's bathroom, there is only 1 stall and 1 urinal. It's not uncommon to have to wait up to 30 minutes to use the stall.
All in all, it's a decent campground and I think you can bring your dogs, which is a plus.
We packed up our gear, and entirely too much food and alcohol (is there such a thing?), and headed to South Lake Tahoe. Fallen Leaf is just outside of the "Shops at the Y" which makes for a great pit stop to get live bait at Raleys, and your caffeine-on one last time at Starbucks before leaving civilization.
The camp sites are about a 15 minute easy hike to Fallen Leaf Lake. From the reservation website (reserve america) its hard to tell which site you want, and over Memorial Day weekend every site was full. I would suggest campsite 110. We lucked out with this gem. Nestled between trees, with daytime shade and some patches of sun, this is the perfect site for up to 2 big tents. Three showers are located throughout the campsite, and although I barley made it to them, and $1 for 3 minutes is daunting, they worked out just fine. Others before me said you can pick your site when you get there, but I assure you they were not first come first serve this weekend!
I suggest booking your campsite early. Also the fishing here was totally unsuccessful for our group, although the lake is beautiful.
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I was almost a little apprehensive in writing this review because I don't want to share this gem with too many people.
I stayed at this campground a few months ago for my birthday, and couldn't believe how beautiful everything was in this area. The campground is super clean, and the showers were very VERY clean. You don't get very much shower time for your quarters (make sure you have quarters), but the water was warm and the pressure from the shower head was great!
The campground is within walking distance to the Tahoe Basin museum, which is surrounded by the wetlands portion of South Lake Tahoe. The view is absolutely amazing from the basin, and Emerald Bay isn't far from this location either!
I would also recommend taking a hike into Desolation Wilderness, which can be accessed from the western portion of Fallen Leaf Lake. The lake is pretty cold, regardless of the time of year - but it's a beautiful place. I will definitely be planning a trip for 2009!!!
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We camped here because it was close to Glen Alpine Trailhead where we would be hiking so we got there late Friday 9/19/08 and left Sun 9/21/08.
We paid $25 + $9 Reservation fee (call 877-444-6777) or http://www.reserveusa.com. Camping is available May-Oct, weather permitting.
Even with reservations you have to pick your own campsite, they don't just give you one. We had to look for sites that had White Tags. We stayed at campsite #46 which is next to the Bathrooms. I always like to pick campsites next to bathrooms because when I get up have to pee bad, & after hiking all day don't want to hike to the bathrooms.
The bathrooms were single unisex bathrooms (I noticed 2 were available close to #46, one out-of-service) with a shower (though they didn't seem to be working) & 1 flushed toilet, tp, sink, & even mirror. No Soap - so bring your own.
Drinking water was only the sink in the bathroom, so I was glad I brought 1 gallon from home with me.
Campsite has picnic table, food locker, fire grills. There are Bears in Tahoe, my friend saw one at 3AM when he went to use the bathroom. He had his headlamp on & the red light scared the bear away. Scary! Our neighbor said his friends left their bear-bin open & a bear ate their cake & the birthday girl had no cake for her birthday.
There's a small camp store to buy firewood - $7 for a bundle of wood & starter, books, t-shirts, etc.
Recommended if you want to car-camp in South Lk Tahoe.
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I just got back from a refreshing camping trip at Fallen Leaf Lake. I highly recommend this campground for people who are into car camping. It definitely wouldn't be a favorite for die-hard no utility campers, but for those of us who enjoy having a bathroom, this place is tops!
You need reservations, which you can get from http://recreation.gov or by calling them at 1-877-444-6777. Sites cost $25/day. Even with reservations, Fallen Leaf Lake is first come first serve. They allow 6 people to a site & dogs are welcome (with leashes of course). The sites all are very clean with a picnic table, fire pit, bbq & bear box. There are water faucets near most of the campsites & bathrooms too. They have a camp store where you can get ice, propane, firewood & snacks, but I recommend bringing your own wood, it's cheaper that way!
The lake is just gorgeous and just a short walk from all the sites. Some closer than others, but you really can't go wrong choosing any of them. The water is always very clear & usually pretty damn chilly, but fun none the less. The beach is a little pebblely but nothing that a towel or a folding chair can't care of. We brought a couple of kayaks to use to explore the lake! Unfortunately, June weather in Tahoe is a bit unpredictable with thunderstorms & sporadic rainfall and we got some of that weather. It makes for a really windy day at the lake with lots of waves but none of our campers were deterred. We had a blast & hope to go back soon!
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I almost hate to review Fallen Leaf Campground, because I'd like to keep it on the DL. But, as a responsible Yelper I feel obligated to share my honest opinion. Fallen Leaf Campground is wonderful! It's centrally located and a great place to stay. Make sure you make reservations ahead of time and show up early to find a good campsite.
I had been camping plenty of times before finding my way to Fallen Leaf, but never had I realized just how crummy all those other campsites were. Fallen Leaf is quiet, beautiful, well maintained, and you actually feel like you're out in the wild (but not too wild, bears are scary). Camp Richardson, just down the road, is an example of what I would have considered an acceptable campsite before Fallen Leaf. It's basically a big dirt area with picnic benches and bathrooms. Bleck.
There are bears at Fallen Leaf, but pack away your stuff at night and you should be ok. One year, a bear broke into our cooler (actually tore it apart) and ate all of our butter. Glutton! It was a bummer that we had to restock and buy a new ice chest, but the bear left us a souvenir--a tuft of his hair that got caught on our ice chest. We probably could have scared the bear away like neighboring campers, but I'm a big chicken and wasn't about to jump out of the tent in my PJs to wrestle a bear.
Now Fallen Leaf has showers!! You can't beat that with a stick.
And as just a bit of useless info, Fallen Leaf Lake has also been in the movie City of Angels.
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Totally am dying to stay here next time we come up to Tahoe....we came up to Fallen Leaf Campground to go hiking and managed to hike half way around the dam and lake, saw pretty much every campsite in our half-lost state of hiking. I must say it's clean, well managed and has awesome restroom facilities. Not to mention the people seemed to be really nice and unobtrusive to the whole camping experience. Lots of crawdads near the dam too!
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Humongous campsites with perfect spots for pitching a tent (i.e. campsites 143 & 145), flushing toliets (amen!), friendly rangers, annoying (I mean, cute) chirping birds of all kinds to wake you up at the crack of dawn, no bears were seen (tho' bear lockers are provided), squirrels, large ants, 3 mins for a buck showers (choose wisely so as not to get the trickle shower!), a few mosquitos, fire pits for roasting marshmellows, big yellow bumblebees, walking distance to Lake Tahoe beaches/Fallen Leaf Lake = camping in civilization.
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I have died and gone to Fallen Leaf Lake. Although my feet are firmly planted, I feel as if I've levitated to higher grounds. This has got to be the most beautiful hiking trail in the fall when leaves around the aspen groves have turned burnt yellow-orange and small rocks fill the beach area. Towered in the background is a mirror reflection of a mountain. The fall season finds this area quite tranquil and peaceful.
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I haven't actually camped here, but Matt and I drove through, and inspected carefully... We tried to reserve but it was all booked up weeks before Labor Day weekend. We parked in the day parking lot and spent the morning at Fallen Leaf Lake before heading back to SF. This is definitely one of the hidden gems of this area. There are bathrooms throughout and coin operated showers, and adequate space between sites. Fallen Leaf Lake is absolutely gorgeous (and was actually in God Father Part II) and close enough to Lake Tahoe to skip over and enjoy that too. I was interested in checking it out because of the 2 positive reviews on yelp, and I was definitely impressed... Next time I'm in the Tahoe area, Matt and I will absolutely go here.
