Best RV Parks & Resorts near Mather, CA

We have stayed at this campground many times and recently revisited in September’24. This COE is on a small lake that is used for irrigation during the summer resulting in a much lower water level than in the spring. Fishing is good. The Corps have added more electric sites over the years and there were 5-6 that fit our 43’ Blue Bird. We marked this as “big rig” friendly. Springtime has the grasses green with abundant wild flowers in late Feb through early March. Summer can be hot as the elevation is low in the California Central Valley and the grasses are brown. Sites are asphalt. Many sites may take some time to level. Back in and pull through are available. A nice dump stations is available within the COE park. Fall has a Tarantula migration and you will definitely see them. Coyote, Bobcat, and deer are frequently seen. Codorniz is 21 miles from Chowchilla. One way in and one way out cuts down on traffic.

You come into Yosemite Lakes by a little Thousand Trails convenience store and gas station. It's kind of handy since there's really nothing nearby other than Groveland. Make sure to come in at this entrance though. When coming from the west GPS likes to take you through Hardin Flat Road... don't go that way with an RV. Check-in was quick and easy. Don't forget it's first come first serve like most Thousand Trails campgrounds. Staff were all very friendly. There's complimentary wifi at the main office if you need it. There's NO phone signal of any kind for miles. There is Jabba Communications wifi throughout that campground that you can pay for but it's pricey and very shoddy and unpredictable here. Unless you're staying for a long time it's not worth it.

Every spot pretty much has full hookups but only a few with 50 amp. The rest have 30 amp. Again, as I've said with other Thousand Trails, that just seems like laziness to me. These campgrounds have been around long enough to see the need for upgrades.

We parked at the far east end past the cabins in a pull-through group spot. They are the biggest spots and didn't seem like people really use that area much. It was pretty quiet for the two weeks we were there. It's off season as well though. Power went out to the entire campground two days in a row. Not the campground's fault as high winds knocked out power to the entire area. They were nice and let us use our generator even though they are not allowed any other time.

There's a little river that runs along the campground that looks like it would be beautiful in the spring and summer when there's more water. It still had quite a bit flowing through over by the main office. Yosemite National Forest is just a short distance away. Some great hikes and sights to see!

I'd say with a few more updates this one could easily be a 5-star!

This camp ground is smaller relative to some of the other camping options in the area, but still well maintained. It is close to the road but still quiet. Each site has a table, fire ring, and a food storage locker. There are two vault toilets. Bring your own water. You cannot reserve sites ahead of time.

If you want to experience the Yosemite area with your dog, camping in the Inyo National Forest is a great option, because dogs are allowed to join you anywhere you go in the area, as long as they are leashed or well trained to verbal commands. Since the Yosemite NPS does not allow dogs on trails, these national forest campgrounds are a better pet-friendly alternative.

If you like fishing, there are great fishing spots at the nearby stream and lake.

Because this campground is actually a part of the national forest, you can stay here for up to two weeks, in addition to the two week maximum enforced for camping within the NPS limits. So in total you could can stay in "Yosemite" for a month by combining camping at this site (or other nearby national forest sites) with camping inside the park, which is why we stayed here for a long rock climbing trip.

I had the luxury of being a camp host at this location back in 2010 for a summer. While the USFS does over see the campgrounds on a regular basis, It was operated and maintained by Dodge Ridge Ski Resort. I'm pretty sure that if you want power you'll need to be self sufficient i.e( solar, wind or generator). Unless they upgraded the grounds, not sure if there are hook ups of any kind. I had a nice sturdy picnic table and a decent sized fire ring( remember dont leave until you drown your fire with at least 5-10 gal of water) dead out. If you dont bring your own wood that's ok. You are in national forest land if it's dead on the ground then you can burn it, dont get fires too large though. The fishing there is usually great in the summer time as long as the water isnt to high from the snow melt or a recent storm. I ate fresh rainbow trout when ever I took the short medium walk/ hike down to the river. The river is stocked with rainbow trout every Wednesday I think( check USFS website for current schedule and location) if you need to eat or have kids that wanna learn. Almost every cast was a fish for me. Albeit I'm not a beginner fisherman either so not much on the way of clunkers but still plenty of fun. However, there are many places where big fish are and every once in awhile you get a big fish. Some campsites are only for tents while some are for both. It's only available in summer due to roads to the campground are covered in ice and snow, as well as gates blocking the road (which allows the county to not have to plow in the winter.) In the summer it's usually pretty quite and the 10pm quite time, which meant voices down not a huge fire and no music, I allowed an outdoor movie if I was a large group and noise wasnt a nuisance to other campers. It was left to my discretion. Most party campers are only weekenders so weekdays are the best time for nature as well as quiet time. I dont really know about prices but I believe you can check USFS website for more details. The water temp varies is there snow run off? Is it raining or has it in the last 3 days? I found the best time to swim is later in the summer or go down the road to another lake for the day to swim. Fishing was best when the water was cold and slowed when it got too warm. Yes this is one thing I will say the large generator that is run at store was a problem and I've heard they are working on rebuilding so that may still be an issue but after the first 3 days it's not so bad plus I found that some campsites aren't as bad as others and you can barely hear it. Tent sites are even further away from the noise. Remember there are predators in the area; mountain lions, black bear, brown bear( I think however I've never seen one) Bobcats, eagles, falcons, owls. So keep children and small animals close, Watch out because the scavengers up there are very sneaky, raccoons, ravens and even the tree squirrels will steal unattended food as well as draw the bears and mountain lions closer so make sure all food is properly disposed of and stored correctly. Dont just lock it in your car, glass wont stop a bear( look it up on youtube) Remember if you pack it in, make sure to pack it out. Before you leave make sure your fire is completely out. Soak with water, stir, soak, stir, soak. If you can hold your hand over it and not feel any heat then you can leave other wise keep soak and stir. At the time I was in a motor home and was a green horn RVer and made many mistakes and had no idea what I was doing. Nor had i been shown how everything really worked. If you have an rv or travel trailer you can apply for a camp host position single or couple it doesnt matter no rent and pay on top of that. Make sure you bring what you need though there is a few stores down the road its roughly a 30- 45 min drive so double for round trip. There are several water filling stations on the way there( one was a mile sb108 at the forrest station) those are free but the dump stations I believe are all $10.00. If open, can be a line on busier weekends and holidays there are toilets at the campgrounds they are all vault toilets and were cleaned and stocked daily ( unsure if still being done).

I will definitely being returning over and over and F.Y.I If this campground is full their are about 6 more in the area plus a hike in site that's really great.

We stayed at Yosemite Pines while my husband worked a job from Jan - Mar in Groveland. Was amazing to have this HUGE campground all to ourselves! The sites are really big. Beautiful trees, paved roads for biking or scootering, hooting owls in the trees, huge unusual pine cones, a nature trail that goes to an old gold mine. Really special place. We had to relocate to a hotel every 28 days due to the max 28 day rules in CA (if campgeound is not zoned for long term campers, visitors can only stay 28 days at a time). There are laundry facilities on site. My only complaint is the rotting picinic tables. I also wish there was a rec room or something where we could all hang out during heavy rain or snow storms.

I’ll start with the positive. If you need anything stores are close and entrance to Yosemite is 15 min up the road. Now for the negative. We have 29 foot travel trailer and we reserved a premium pull through spot. Although we could pull through the spaces were very tight and we just happen to get lucky that nobody was across from us as there is only in one way in and one way out. We were able to use other empty spot across from us to turn around. Had it been full we would have had a heck of a time getting out. One family came in last night and their spot was at the very end and they had to back all the way out of the park so they could back their trailer all the way back in. It is ridiculous. Our spot was also very hard to try and level our trailer. We never did quite get it leveled the way we would’ve liked. The bathrooms aren’t very clean and the “beach” is over grown and i wouldn’t really even let my dog in the stagnant water. Bottom line this place is not good for your larger travel trailers our size or bigger. Especially if you are in a spot like we had which was spot 34 or a spot towards the end. Maybe better spot near the entrance. Class c generally would have no problem.

Summary as of late June 2020:

-Super nice, helpful manager -Great location for Yosemite/Hetch Hetchy -Large, clean restrooms -Inconsistent electricity -Bear Lot is right next to Hwy 120 -Coyote Lot is literally a new gravel parking lot, 4x4 required -No wi-fi in Bear Lot or Coyote Lot

First of all, I have to say that the manager (owner? I never caught his name) was very kind and tried his best to accommodate everyone there. The location is great for trips to Yosemite, and if you’re lucky enough to reserve a spot in the ‘main loop’ (I don’t see this ability online), you’ll probably love it. The bathrooms are large and clean and there is laundry, a small playground, a small pool (closed during our stay), and a privately run store on-site.

We brought our 28’ toy hauler here at the end of June 2020. We had reserved a spot in Coyote Lot, which we were told over the phone would be no problem. Upon arrival, the manager had his doubts but told us to “put the truck in 4x4 and give it a go!” Coyote Lot looks like a newly, semi-leveled gravel parking lot with full hook-ups… no trees or shade. There were some longer spots, but there was no way our trailer would fit in the one we reserved. The lot also exits through a run-down residential grouping of trailers, some occupied and some abandoned.

The manager put us in Bear Lot, no question, after it was determined Coyote Lot would not work. This lot is a little more established than Coyote, but still a gravel parking lot with electricity (inconsistently for many) and water hook-ups. The lot is pretty level and separated from Hwy 120 by a wooden fence. There are some picnic tables and fire pits, but not enough for each spot. We didn’t end up having to use our generator like others did. There were tent campers and rv/trailers in this lot.

Side note: the Rainbow Pools swimming hole that is recommended on the website was WAY overcrowded and I do not suggest going unless maybe you go in the early morning. There were tons of people, tons of litter, and no respect for nature… very sad to see.

Photo are of Bear Lot