Ice House Campground, near Eldorado National Forest, is a fantastic spot for those who love mountain camping with a touch of convenience. With its beautiful reservoir and ample opportunities for boating and fishing, it’s a popular choice for families and outdoor lovers alike.

The campground offers a mix of shaded sites, many of which provide direct access to the lake, making it easy to pull up your boat or enjoy some water toys. Visitors have noted that the camp hosts keep the place clean and welcoming, with well-maintained pit toilets and a central shower area at the boat launch. One camper mentioned, “The bathroom was clean and smelled good for a vault toilet,” which is always a plus when you’re out in nature.

If you’re into wildlife, you’re in for a treat. Campers have spotted bald eagles and other critters around the lake, adding to the natural charm of the area. While some sites can feel a bit tight, especially during peak season, many appreciate the peaceful atmosphere and the fact that it’s not overly crowded, even on holidays.

Ice House Campground is a great base for exploring the stunning Eldorado National Forest. Whether you’re fishing, kayaking, or just soaking in the scenery, this spot has a lot to offer for a memorable camping experience.

## Overview

 Ice House Campground is surrounded by a mixed conifer forest on the shores of Ice House Reservoir. Just 12 miles from Riverton, CA, the campground offers hiking, biking, jet skiing and fishing. Ponderosa pine is a pleasing part of the surrounding region. The trees fill the air with a vanilla aroma and it's the tallest known pine tree in the country. To date, the tallest Ponderosa measured was an impressive 268.35 feet tall.
## Recreation

 Enjoy swimming, fishing, and boating on Ice House Reservoir. Rainbow, brown, and trout swim in these waters. A boat ramp is located on-site. Hike or bike on the Ice House Mountain Bike Trail, which stretches for 3.1 miles along ridge tops and shaded northern slopes. The trail boasts views of the reservoir and the Crystal Range. 
## Natural Features

 Some campsites at Ice House are right on the shoreline while others are set back just enough for plenty of shade from towering ponderosa pines, cedars and Manzanita bushes. The reservoir spans 700 acres at 5,500 feet elevation. The area is part of the Eldorado National Forest, which stretches across the famed gold mining territory of the 1800s. Its climate is similar to that of the Mediterranean, with warm, dry summers and cold, wet winters. 
## Nearby Attractions

 Head to Bassi Falls, which can be reached via a 1.2-mile hiking trail. The glorious waterfall cascades over a 109-foot granite cliff.
## Charges & Cancellations

 Change Fee: A service fee may be charged at the time a modification is made depending on the changes. Cancellation Fee: A $10 service fee will be withheld from any refunds for a cancelled reservation. Cut-Off Window: The latest date and/or time that you can make an advanced reservation or a change to an existing reservation. Cut-off windows can vary by location, but are typically 4 days before your arrival date. A customer who cancels a reservation the day before or on the day of arrival will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use fee (see Late Cancellation below). Late Cancellation: If you cancel your reservation too close to the start date, additional service fees may be withheld. Refunds: Refund requests made through www.recreation.gov will be charged a $10 processing fee. This fee is retained by the reservation service contractor along with the non-refundable reservation fee. All requests for the return of the non-refundable reservation fee and the cancellation fee will be declined by the campground concessionaire as they did not receive these fees (these are the fees retained by the reservation contractor, a different entity).

Ice House Campground

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Kyburz

The Best Camping Near Kyburz, California

a wonderful and stunning campground . on the the lake , great fishing and cold swimming.

ice house

This campground is amazing. Beautiful pine trees everywhere. TYhe scent is amazing. Some of the campsites are right on the shore of the reservior.

Numerous trails to hike and bike on.

Amazing stay in the Sierras 

Water is cold but you can paddle board, kayak or just fish. Very quiet and nice campsites.

Secluded

Ice House Reservoir is a great camping spot for those wanting to kayak, canoe, SUP, or fish. There isn’t a lot of great hiking in the area. There are a few out and back trails, but nothing that compares to some of the spectacular hikes a short driving distance in just about every direction from Ice House. The one exception to this rule that I am aware of is the hike to Big Hill Lookout. This hike is about 7.6 miles round trip with a total elevation gain of about 1,250 feet.

I do believe there are a number of OHV trails in the area, but don’t know about the accessibility of those trails from Ice House or your ability to store trailers at Ice House.

Ice House Reservoir is great for fishing, kayaking, canoeing, or stand up paddle boarding. The reservoir gives you plenty of places to explore on the water and plenty of great spots for fishing.

The campground itself is pretty developed and sites are relatively close together, but not too bad. Lots of nice tall trees, but not a lot of low growth making the campground feel pretty open.

A great spot for those wanting to spend their days on or near the water.

Tent camped in spot 72. No shade what so ever, and it was a hot day! However loved the spacing of the campsites. Neighbors were close, though not so close to be crowded. Spot was very close to the restroom, advantage and disadvantage when a strong ordor would breeze on through. Short walk to the lake which was beautiful, spent the day floating and drinking.  Have visited before, and will visit again!

Beautiful Lake

Ice House is a great family friendly campground. The camp hosts are really nice and helpful. They keep the campgrounds and restrooms clean and ready for the next guests. The water is freezing cold all year long but everyone still gets in it to either ski or fish. On holidays the lake is never crowded, but the campgrounds are full. When our kids were young we were up there every holiday weekend. Great place to camp for all.

Awesome and Uncrowded

Lots of space to spread out under the trees, easy lake access from all campgrounds, great for boating if that’s what you’re into, could be a drawback if you’re a long distance swimmer as there are lots of boats.

Excellent lake access, beautiful, spacious campgrounds 

We had a nice family campsite (53) very large, flat campsite. Across our site was the reservoir. This year the water was a bit high still however we heard typically they have nice beachy areas. Fishing was excellent! Overall a great campground in the El Dorado National Forest. 

We went up and stayed one night to fish. Didn’t catch anything but the reservoir and the camp grounds are beautiful. I plan to return

Beautiful location

A very popular place for those who love to spend their time on the water.   I was not impressed with the campsites.   They were small and barely able to handle a single large tent let alone two tents.  Sites were close with no landscaping on forest grounds to give privacy. 

If you are seeking a quiet place this isn't it.

We arrived on a Monday and the campground was almost empty. Every site around us looked reserved but no one was there. The place is small and sites are tight. So if you happen to be here on those days that it’s full, I would think you will not have some sort of privacy at all. But because our timing was perfect, it felt like we had the  whole place for ourselves. 
The lake was great! Very clean shores except for some dog poop. 

Beautiful campground! 

We've used other campgrounds since, but we always wind up coming back to Ice House.  It's far enough away without being a all day drive, and it's right on the water.  

The boat ramp is right in the middle and you can get anything from walk in tent sites to family sites big enough for an RV and a large group.  There's a resort a few miles down the road so you can get ice and supplies.

Most of of camp sites have pretty good shade, and with a little strategic placement you can make sure your tent isn't baking in the evening.  

They've been installing bear boxes, so if you're a motorcycle camper you don't have to worry about where you're going to store your food overnight.  Water spigots are rarely more than a short walk from any camp site.

Really, all that's missing is RV hookups, so people tend to run their generators.  The 10:00 noise cut off is usually well enforced, so the nights are very peaceful.   I've even seen a few black bears roaming through my camp sites over the years.

All in all, Ice House is a great, well maintained and peaceful campground that keeps me coming back.

My go to campground for over 30 years

Love this lake/reservoir! It’s large enough to explore with a SUP and small enough to keep the motor boat and jet skis to a manageable amount.  Nice wild life viewing. I saw Bald Eagles and Comorans with their babies. Butterflies, chipmunks and a few squirrels. And that was just on and around the lake. I didn’t hike this trip.

Camp Host was great. Bathroom clean and smelled good for a vault toilet. Site was large and shaded for part of the day.

Upper Loop is the best at Icehouse CG

At 5000 feet elevation, it’s real mountain camping but with amenities. Easily accessible from highway. Plan ahead , it fills fast in summer.

Mountainous with amenities 

Boulder loop is very hot. Meadow loop has more trees and shade.  Several sites in each loop have lake views and direction access to the lake. Can pull up your boat and leave water toys. Pit toilets and central shower at boat launch area.  

 Beautiful mountain reservoir 

I made reservations here a week prior to our trip because I was looking for a warmer place to camp. I previously had reservations at Pinecrest, but it was going to be in the 50s during the day and 30s at night. Which isn’t ideal since I have a 7 month old and a 3 year old. But it ended up getting pretty chilly here as well - high 50s, low 40s. I do not recommended campsite 3, where we camped. It is a double site and is spacious enough for two families. But the campground had 3 bears that were visiting every night. One huge black bear, and a mama black bear with her cub. It was disappointing to learn this by getting a visit by the black bear who comes down from behind our campsite (which is why I do not recommend campsite 3). Luckily, our kids were asleep when the black bear came around 9pm. The camp host never came by to check us in, even though we were right next to their site. They did not inform us of the three bears that would be coming by. Obviously we are in bear country, so precautions were taken.  But it would have been nice to know, since we have little ones exploring the area behind us (where one of the bears was coming down). When my husband informed the camp host of the bear that came by she wasn’t surprised at all and said “oh there’s three that come every night. One big black bear who is about 4.5ft tall on all fours - he’s a big guy! And a mama bear with her cub.” This was very strange to me that she didn’t come by and tell us this, nor did she tell the other campers around us. We went and informed the two sites by us so that they were aware of this. Aside from that, the campground is beautiful. You can chop your own wood, since there was a couple of dead trees around. The walk to the reservoir is short and sweet. The water isn’t freezing either, our dog enjoyed her daily swim. I recommend this campground for its beauty but be prepared for a bear visit. 

Photos of Ice House Campground

Real photos from real campers