lake-shasta.net

Encompassing hundreds of bays, there is much to do at Shasta Lake. featuring a full range of recreational facilities and natural beauties throughout coves, creeks, wooded flats, hillsides, waterfalls and thousand-acres of mountainous terrain surrounding the area.

Lake Shasta has 11 marinas and a large number of resorts providing swimming facilities since there are no developed areas to swim. Pools are a good alternative, unless you prefer to swim from the shore of a campground or boat, like many others do. The Lake’s water is warm during summer but forbidden at boat ramps. Anyway, be careful and avoid areas with heavy boat traffic if you opt for this activity.

There are many campgrounds and trailer parks with hookups and showers for camping and enjoying nature from a close view. Lake Shasta has conventional tent camps, trailer camps and boat access camps. Walk-in campgrounds have their own central parking area, but most equipment must be carried.

Forest Services areas only accommodate small trailers and they do not provide hookups for trailer camps, but these are available at most of the privately owned resorts and campgrounds in Lake Shasta. Either public or private, large trailers ranging from 22 to 30 feet are not advised to park in McCloud Bridge, Jones Valley, Bailey Cove, or Lakeshore East due to narrow paths.

Boat access camp is available in 4 campgrounds conveniently situated in remote areas of Lake Shasta where only boats reach. These camps provide campers with tables, stoves, and toilet facilities, far from the crowd. McCloud, off Gilman Road also offers quiet waters for camping and fishing.

Other campgrounds, such as those situated on Lakehead, Gilman and Jones Valley, are also popular ski areas. The Forest Service manages 22 campgrounds, all of them with piped water and capacity to accommodate up to 120 people. The region also offers rental cabins and motel-type accommodations to satisfy your accommodation requirements.

For camping activities, there are restricted areas, such as those housing endangered species. Although shoreline camping is permitted, it is not allowed camp in Osprey and Bald Eagle nesting sites. Furthermore, campfires are allowed on the shoreline, but a permit is required. Permits are free and obtained from any Forest Service office.

Another popular activity among the things to do at Lake Shasta is hiking. Trails in this area are open all year, offering moderate hiking and scenic views at the Shasta Dam, Jones Valley, Hirz Bay, Bailey Cove, and Packers Bay. Hikers can also access oak woodlands and creeks, as well as shoreline fishing areas. It is recommended that you carry enough water and hike when the weather is cool.

Picnicking is another popular activity in Lake Shasta. Bailey Cove, Dekkas Rock, and Fisherman’s Point, near Shasta Dam, offer picnic tables, grills, stoves and restrooms for your convenience. Watching the lake from different locations can become by itself a new experience on every visit to Lake Shasta.

Next time when visiting the lake, try O’Brien Rest Area, Antlers Bridge, or the Pit River Bridge on Interstate 5. Otherwise, enjoy all the Shastas (Shasta Lake, Shasta Dam, and Mount Shasta) from the Shasta Dam Vista Point. In addition, there are 6 public ramps for boat launching, providing access to those areas around Lake Shasta.

However, take in mind that during summer weekends some of those ramps are congested, particularly ramps situated on Jones Valley Centimudi, and Bailey Cove, although the marinas offer additional launching facilities to satisfy the summer demand. And being at the marinas, do not miss out on waterskiing, the most popular activity everywhere on the lake.

Lake Shasta water is usually calm and warm, suitable for waterskiing on any point, but particularly in the Jones Valley and Sacramento Arm areas. However, floating debris and snags make hazardous waterskiing in the Pit Arm, although this situation does not occur when debris is removed. As a note of precaution, remember that Water skiing is prohibited in expressed small coves and bays.

Fishing is obviously another of the things you can do at Lake Shasta, combining the flow of the rivers Sacramento, Pit, McCloud, and Squaw Creek, which filled the impoundment that creates the lake. When full, Lake Shasta contains 4,493,000 acre-feet of water, featuring 365 miles of shoreline that provides the best overall fishing.

Hot fishing spots are generally the points and bridges where the rivers flow to empty into the lake. Most anglers fish for sturgeon, but there are many species in these waters, including the lake’s 1977 catch record of 190-pound behemoth measuring 8 feet, 2 inches. Sturgeon season goes from January through April, peaking in February through April, but biting remains good until August.

Sturgeon’s popularity comes from the fact that they are considered pre-historic fish. However, anglers can also catch Salmon roe, crawdads, shad, ghost shrimp, grass shrimp, mud shrimp, sardines, or eel, species serving also as Sturgeon’s baits.