Best Equestrian Camping near Herald, CA

 WELCOME TO ASCENSION RANCH Ascension Ranch is an off-grid paradise tucked away in an oak savanna along Folsom Lake with a unique and ever growing list of features and activities. Family owned, we're a small operation with big dreams. Offering a serene environment, an abundance of farm animals, and good old fashion ranch activities, we invite you to spend some time with us out on the ranch! Come play for the day or reserve a private campsite, and see what all the fuss is about. Some of things you'll come across at Ascension Ranch include baby farm animals, sheep, goats, cattle, horses, more horses, ranch dogs, puppies, chickens, equestrian activities, secluded campsites, amazing views, access to endless trails around and of course, good company.

As full timers- we thought we hit the jackpot for the area in order to be near the towns we wanted to explore and also have service for good wifi. We had enough AT&T service for one person to work fine on the wifi. There are also plenty of coffeeshops about 5 mins away for stronger wifi.

You feel like you're remote and you have direct access to trails and bike path from your site, but very close to downtown Folsom which is a cute little town. Site BP60 was FHU and spacious kind of tucked in a corner. Trash and recycle right at your site and picnic table and space from neighbors. Almost perfectly level site.

No laundry at campground- but Laundry Paradise in Roseville was a great find for us- very clean facilities and new washers. Worth the drive compared to Laundryland in Folsom. I'm only giving it a 4 because it would be a 5 if there was better service or if they offered wifi. It was decent, but could've been better. We will definitely be back.

We had just bought our trailer and went there with check it our with our daughter and son-in-law as a day trip to mountains. It reminded me of Lake Pillsbury north of Clear Lake Ca where we as a family had been camping since 1981. But with just over 2hr drive not 6hr with trailer. There is a pool, and kids pool. Great showers, basketball courts, volleyball, you can bring your horse. Trails to ride a mountain bike ride or hike. There is a nice dump station. There is also a honey bucket truck that comes around to all camp sites Mon, Wed, and Fridays to dump your gray and black tanks. Breakfast Lunch and dinner are available at clubhouse in the ghost town great price. About 20 minutes down Hy50 is the Red hawk casino. We were not going to buy in to the CRA Colorado River Adventures membership. But it came with a Coast to Coast membership. So with our CRA and Coast to Coast memberships we can stay up to 14 days in one campground for free. Figuring say $50 a night that would be $700 saved for a 14 day stay.

General: 69-site campground in two sections – one with electric hookups and one without. 

Site Quality: We stayed in the non-hookup section. Site 36 was in a small spur with just four sites and direct access to the American River Bikeway. Although better suited for tents, the site worked fine for our camper van. The fire pit and picnic table were located quite a distance from the short paved camper pad, creating a sense of privacy.

Bath/Shower house: The building closest to us had three toilet/sink combos, one toilet only (there was an outside sink) and two showers. No soap, paper towels, or air dryers in any of the toilet rooms. Showers took quarters – two to turn it on and although I did not time it, two quarters gave a decent amount of time for the shower. Good hot water and a bench but no hooks. 

Activities: Folsom Lake with all water-related activities. In addition to biking, the paved American River Bikeway was good for walking, running, and horseback riding. The grass was very dry, and I was surprised to see there was not a fire ban, as we’ve seen in almost every other campground not located on the coast. Four stars for the abundant recreation activities.

This is by far one of my absolute favorite campgrounds in the Northern California area I have been coming here since I was a child. I love to camp here the prices are a bit high for camping, but handicapped discounts can be obtained. My mother has used the disabled pass for years giving quite the discount its very much appreciated to those who dont get to wake up in good health every day and thankfully get a little bit of a break on the price. I use to shower and camp here alot honestly even when I was homeless. The showers take quarters and have hot water most of the time. The showers are very big its actually quite peaceful and nice.The shower rooms have very high ceilings with thicker glass windows way up high as well. Almost like a spa experience if you ask me. Although i did get hit with a cold shower one time here during the winter. Quite unpleasant haha. Another fun fact is the big sinks outside the showers usually have little frogs in them. There is also quite a large squirrel population, which the campgrounds ask you not to feed, because the population will get even bigger upsetting the balance of everything there. Plus our foods arent good for their teeth or overall health anyways. The lake itself is beautiful! If not camping overnight i love to get a day pass and just hang out on the beach! Its a great family friendly area. I suggest staying on the main beach with the provided lifejacket area if with children as the other rock areas near the beach suddenly can drop off underwater very deep. Before i was a mother i would camp and swim out here for weeks during the summer. There wasnt alot of people and im very happy to say not a party area thankfully this makes the campgrounds so much more enjoyable. I litterly was given a waring ticket one time here because a helicopter spotted me with a mikes hard lemonade when i was 25 which was then followed by rangers driving up to me on the beach. Annoying but totally understandable now as I am older i understand. And like i said way nicer without all the partys or party people and garbage etc you can actually relax and enjoy nature here now. Plus its much more safer. And obviously no one should be drinking and swimming or operating a boat as a few summers ago some men died drinking and driving a watercraft after being knocked unconscious when the boat crashed and drowning Very tragic and unfortunate and sad. The lake is very beautiful my grandmother said during her divorce to her husband that passed away from cancer she would come to the lake during the day and just watch the lake from the beach. Its also fun to explore during the dry months when the lake recedes you can find rocks and driftwood etc. Shells. One more tip. I did one summer go collecting wood for a fire and not knowing that poison ivy was common in this campgrounds ended up unknowingly collecting alot of it setting it in the fire pit and the combination of the poison ivy branches and smoke covered my entire body in a very itchy painful rash for a couple weeks i would not wish that on anyone i had to be put on medication at the er. But overall i would say this campgrounds is by far one of the nicest ive ever been too. And the lake access area makes it so much nicer. Also the safeway and jack in the box are relatively close to the campgrounds just a quick trip dpwn the road.