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Folsom Lake SRA
Rating Details »
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
12 reviews for Folsom Lake SRA
Ah Folsom Lake, I miss your prime.
Your shoreline is kinda receding and I can totally see all the rocks that weren't so apparent when you were fuller. I mean, its not that bad except you keep adding a bunch of lake muck to try to mask the problem. Just quit pretending, please, you're not fooling anyone.
Also, I would guess that your oil and grime problems probably stem from all the motorized vehicles you've been using lately. I mean, you've got to cut down, or at least admit that you have a problem. Well I guess I can't really speak because I did actually ride in a boat, and it was really fun... but the enabler isn't the cause.
Well maybe in this case it is. But it wasn't my boat.
Aaaannnywho, I'm still convinced that there are parts of you that are still youthful and fresh. Perhaps somewhere where there's waterflow. When I was a kid I had such fond memories of you...
Is it just me, or are you aging very poorly?
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Perfect place for boating, swimming, relaxing and BBQ with friends.
People thought this was:
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My family, friends and I have camped at Beals Point for many years and last year was just a disappointment. Yes, the water level has really gone down due to the lack of rain and it felt like I had to walk a mile to get to the water and I was 7 months pregnant at the time.
But I really do like camping here and we might go back again this year (hoping that the water situation is better than last year and with all this rain that we've been getting, why not?!).
It's an easy place to find, just as long as you pay attention cause the entrance can be easily missed. The restrooms are clean and you're not that far from shops just in case you left something at home.
It would of been my first time camping and I would of probably enjoyed it more if we actually stayed for more then 2 hours.
Folsom Lake should be named Folsom Pond instead. There were hardly any water to swim or do anything in. Some said you could jet ski but only 5 mph. Um... no. The water was evaporating or something. Being 4'11, I could probably go to the deepest part of the water and NOT drown.
Bathrooms were not dirty as I thought it would be but there's no lights. There's sowers but you have to put quarters in.
The campsite itself was not really like real camping, not that I can compare but I've seen on t.v how camping should be but it's nothing like it. It's more of a camping the a backyard thing. If I had known, I rather stay home, save $30 and camp out in my own backyard.
And, I guess this could be our fault, but we got evicted after only 2 hours and at 1050 at night. I guess it was our fault to for getting evicted since we were playing loud music and had alcohol with us. But still, we asked our neighbor campers and made sure we weren't too loud and they said it was fine. So I don't know what the problem is! So stupid... Wasted $30 for 2 damn hours! AND we had to drive back.
NO MORE CAMPING FOR ME!
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May I suggest Lake Camanche instead?
ON THE WAY THERE: From SF it's about a 3-4 hour drive. Not bad, but when we went, it was so traffic! And that wasn't during normal rush hour. We got LOST. And no one seemed to want to approach the brown-skinned outsiders lol. Finally we got to a gas station and got some good directions.
THERE: We reached the MAIN entrance only for the ranger to say, "Oh, no your camp is on the North side, about an HOUR away." WTF?! So we drove an hour up MOUNTAINS and CURVES and NARROW one way roads with two-way traffic, in the rain! When we got there, there was a line of 12-14 cars waiting to get in because the rangers spend about 10 minutes on each vehicle that checks in. This is a campground! Not a frikkin hotel!
CAMPING: Bumpy, uneven campgrounds, most of them were even on plateus to where you'd step outside of your tent and 4 steps away is a 6 foot dip! Not safe at all esp. if you have little ones or puppies. And it was BUGS GALORE! The kinds you find in the Philippines! Spiders:fast ones! RED ANTS that hide under the tarps! Mosquitos that, as the ranger put it, "Once they hit your skin, consider yourself bit; they're that fast!" My nephews also tried to skip rocks at the lake and the ranger made them stop b/c some lady had an "expensive boat" in the water. What a biatch.
I respect the idea of roughin it, but if I wanted to get lost for a couple hours just to travel up dangerous roads and be met by all sortsa bugs and get harassed by the people there, I'd just take my ass to the real jungles.
DONT DO IT.
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A friend asked if I would like to go to the lake with the girls on Sunday. Finally, a decent chance to get some color on my backside. I was looking forward to a lake with boats, umbrellas, people, fun. Uh...as a dear friend put it, after looking at my photos from the day- he's seen more inviting images from Iraq.
We had to park, oh approx 2 miles from the water and hoof it, dragging coolers, bags and towels. 2 of my friends were brave enough to actually go into the water and neither of them has tested positive for any communicable diseases...so far, so good.
I have a few recommendations: bring a 4wd, go towards the beginning of the season so the water level is still decent, bring your own shade (there is nothing down by the water) and bring your own soap. The bathrooms are GROSS. At least they have bathrooms.
2 stars for the nice guy from the rental shop that gave us free ice cream bars.
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This past year has truly become a major disappointment camping at Beals Point Campground. Also, I had a real difficult time trying to launch my kayak at Beals Point and Peninsula Boat Launch in Granite Bay. Why?
To my utter dismay, Folsom Lake's water level was seriously too low to launch my kayak! Please keep in mind that I have been boating and camping at Folsom Lake for many years, since 1993.
I was simply disheartened and astonished physically seeing how low the water level at Folsom Lake was this year. Just look at my pics and weep! I wanted to cry!
As a result of Folsom Lake's water level being too low, I had to drive to Lake Natoma to launch my kayak. Lake Natoma is over nine miles away from Folsom Lake/Beals Point Campground.
At least at Lake Natoma, the water level is not low and it was easy launching my kayak right from the shoreline. Viewing the wildlife from my kayak was truly enjoyable, despite having to drive to get to Lake Natoma to launch my kayak.
There is ample parking, a boat launching dock, picnic areas, hiking, and biking areas at Lake Natoma for all to enjoy. There are plenty of shady trees and a few, very clean bathrooms all may use, too.
Below Lake Natoma Dam is a . . . shhhhh! "Secret Fishing Spot" to catch some trout, but there are no bathrooms at this very poorly maintained, dusty, pothole drive-down access. Please do not drive your nice passenger car on this access road-you will get stuck!
Please drive in a 4 WD SUV to get to the bottom of the access. You can fish here all day. But no camping allowed because there is a plausible danger this fishing access area could be severely flooded should the dam break or the water from the dam is released.
BTW . . . I wanted to launch my kayak at old Negro Bar, but the boat launch was under construction. At Negro Bar group campsite campground, you couldn't launch a boat because the entire campsite is too far from the shoreline.
You must schlepp your boat on wheels, walk down a very long pathway at the old parking lot which is now closed off preventing cars driving on the road in order to launch your boat onto the American River. It is just so terrible how the State Park messed up the boat and shore access to the American River!
All I wanted to do was paddle my kayak for a couple days, go camping at Beals Point, and just chill out from traveling half way around the planet. Frustrating me beyond belief-my camping trip turned out to be stressful driving here and there just so I can go kayaking and camping?
O=:-o Oy-Evay! The State Park planning commission who designed these stupid, obstructed pathways, roads, and waterway boat access at Negro Bar is surely meshugginna! Why I oughta yell at Ah-nold, complain about Folsom Lake SRA, and Ah-nold better repair that entire infrastructure for Folsom Lake ASAP!
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Such a fun place to go boating, wading or swimming!
Folsom Lake has 2 main campgrounds: Beales Point and Peninsula.
Peninsula is very isolated, has tons of sites, and is perfect if you have your own boat -- there is a boat launch right at the campgrounds.
Beales Point has a nice sandy beach, lots of nearby biking trails, and a small selection of campsites.
If you're going with a group, I would suggest you make a reservation for Beales Point. It is extremely easy to get to, and it has a little bit of everything for everyone.
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My friends and I were too cheap to use quarters to pay for the timed showers while camping.
So we went out like savages and each took our turn squatting below the camp faucet using a tupperware storage container as a mini-bucket for rinsing off.
We each looked like poor youth you'd see in a third world country, and we each saved a dollar.
NO SHAME.
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The family and I went up to Folsom lake one time to just relax and hang out. Beware: wear water shoes since the "sand" is tough and grainy. We had a good time wading in the water, tanning, and building sand castles. I'd rather make an hour and a half drive to the beach, but it's a nice place to visit if you wanna just hop on by to be near the water.
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I recently visited Folsom lake camp ground on the other side of the lake in the middle of nowhere (Peninsula). It was a horrible trip. The rangers are insane about the rules there. One was pretty nice, but the other....extremely rude and on a power trip. By the time it hit 10 o'clock they were all over the camp ground telling people to be silent or they would be sorry. They really try to intimidate you and it totally ruined my experience. I understand it is a family campground, but a ten o'clock bedtime is ridiculous. I will never ever go back or recommend the campground to anyone that wants to camp with a couple of friends.
