Tahoe Vista is an ideal place for camping adventures of all kinds. Tahoe Vista is an adventure-filled destination for those who love the outdoorsy camper lifestyle. But it's also great for those who prefer to spend time near the city, exploring and sightseeing. Ready to plan your adventure? Check out our campgrounds near Tahoe Vista and user-submitted reviews.
$15 - $30 / night
"The lake and the surrounding area takes on a different appearance depending on the season you visit, and whether it's been a wet year or a dry one."
"We stayed here for just under 2 weeks around Thanksgiving. Very beautiful area with hiking near the lake and mountains. The horses nearby were nice. Right between Reno and Carson City."
$47 - $128 / night
"The campground itself is beautiful, walking distance to Fallen Leaf Lake and short drive to South Lake Tahoe. My husband, my pup and I liked the campsite a lot."
"From the East you’ll pass thru all of that, past the Camp Richardson and finally turn away from Lake Tahoe into Fallen Leaf Campground."
$23 - $75 / night
"Right next to the water, and close to town. Cell phone reception. is spotty ."
"It was late and we couldn't find the owner so we ended up staying outside the park on the road. The manager got things worked out in the morning and refunded our money for the night before."
$30 - $160 / night
"Just returned from a weekend getaway to Loon Lake. We (2 people, 1 pup) stayed two nights at site #25 at Loon Lake Campground. Perfect location for daytime fishing and nighttime stargazing."
"These two sites are right on the road next to the toilets and trash bins. Some smells and lots of noises and foot traffic, some 4x4 traffic as well."
"I guess it’s a 5 minute uphill walk from the PCT and is hidden (plus not on PCT maps) so it’s relatively unused for non-locals. Always find something fun here left behind. 8 bunks."
$6 - $25 / night
"But most stay in other "dispersed" camping, and there aren't nearly as many vehicles as you might see, for example, in a Nevada dunes off-road park."
"First, it's quite an adventurous (read: bumpy) drive to get to it from the nearest paved road. Once you arrive, you'll be amazed at how much space there is between the sites."
"Fun historical place a nice hike away from Castle Peak and far enough away that you don’t get the crowds. Kitchen, firewood, fireplace, and a bunch of bunks"
$5 / night
"we just did 20+ miles, from echo lake in, around, and out to Aloha before heading back over 2.5 days. Aloha is kinda surreal. "
"This is a great glimpse at what the High Sierra lakes further south look like... but better. Dispersed camp sites all over. (Make sure to follow signs and camp appropriately distanced from the lakes)"
"Rocky and steep road access to Scott’s lake, but easy camping on the edge of the valley."
"come early for a spot. nice views around. lots and lots of bugs. i sleep in my car and crack the windows a little bit and i woke up to a shit ton of bugs that got in my car. even more surrounding the cars"
ScoutThe good part is this is a beautiful place in the trees to camp with nearby hiking,. And it's equestrian friendly if you want to bring your horse. The Verizon connection was strong. Even when the campgrounds full on weekend. It's very quiet, more soldier in the week. Bring water as there is none available due to poor quality.
GuideIf you like Bird Watching (or wildlife in general), Boating, Fishing, Hang Gliding, Paragliding, Equestrian Activities, Camping or BBQ's, or even history, then this is a place you might enjoy.
The lake and the surrounding area takes on a different appearance depending on the season you visit, and whether it's been a wet year or a dry one. Sometimes when it has been extremely dry, the larger of the 2 lakes dries up either partially or entirely, leaving the smaller one as a valuable water source for Wild Mustangs who live in the area. (which is a great opportunity for photographers).
When the larger lake bed dries up a little, it extends the hang gliding / paragliding landing zone. (take off point is up on the hill on Eastlake Blvd, which is also a good view point of the lakes).
During the wetter years, the larger lake fills up, allowing water activities such as boating to take place on both lakes, and provides you with the opportunity to bird watch at any of the wildlife viewing areas provided. The smaller lake also provides bird watching opportunities (Osprey and other birds of prey like to fish there) You can also fish at the smaller lake, just don't eat them, the area was once used for the processing mills during the mining boom.
Also if you are into wildlife, there is the occasional coyote hunting the area, owls, hawks, bald eagles, and if you want to see deer, take a little drive up Eastlake Blvd towards little Washoe Lake, and one of the fields on the right often has huge herds of Mule Deer, and the occasional wild horse. Talking of Wild horses, you are requested not to feed or harass the wild Mustangs anywhere in Nevada (Washoe lake park included). Horses can be defensive, especially when they have young foals. Also feeding them anything other than what they naturally eat in the wild, not only causes a high number of deaths in the herds, it also creates dangerous situations on the roadways when horses come to retrieve the food. (it can also cost you thousands of dollars in fines) There are people who regularly monitor the interaction visitors have with the horses. But if you want to interact with a horse, why not bring your own for a ride around too, people often bring their horses down for a trot around the grounds.
There are restrooms available throughout the park, and facilities for camping. It is a good place for dogs, though it is requested that you clean up after them. There are doggie clean up stations available, and containers for waste.
The land the park sits on was once owned by one of Nevada's wealthiest men Theodore Winters, who was a prominent businessman and politician in early Nevada history. He once owned some of the most famous racehorses in the world, and his cheese was world renown. His Ranch is still around, and you can find it located just on the other side of the lake (Old Route 395), not far from the Chocolate Nugget Candy Factory (which is great if you get a hankering for something sweet), and Old Washoe City.
The lake's history goes back even further than that, the area was once inhabited by the local tribes people, and before the early pioneer's came and settled here, they used hunt ducks on the lake, and fished here. There is probably still the odd chance you might come across old Native tools and arrowheads, but the State of Nevada does ask you to leave artifacts where they are found. Check the local and federal laws before attempting to remove anything.
It has some lovely sunsets here, the view can be spectacular at times and changes according to season and weather, and the wildlife seem to enjoy it. Nice place to go and hang out with family and friends, and if you happen to forget to bring anything, you are only a little drive from Carson City :)
GuideWe stayed here for just under 2 weeks around Thanksgiving. Very beautiful area with hiking near the lake and mountains. The horses nearby were nice. Right between Reno and Carson City. Access to Casinos and Restuarants nearby(10 minute drive or so). The Park has showers and bathrooms as well as water and electricity hook ups. The camp host was nice and provides us with a huge bundle of firewood for only a $5 donation.
GuideBeautiful spot 1/2 mile walk to lake, wild horses roaming camp, quiet & clean.
LegendWe got a last minute cancelled site at the Fallen Leaf Campground, and thought we’d truly lucked out. We stayed at site 87 which is nestled among towering native pine trees on the South end of the campground and one of the few sites which doesn’t have neighbors on all sides. The sites have the standard standing BBQ's and fire rings at all sites (but we couldn’t utilize them because of the fire ban), old picnic tables and various amounts of space for RV’s/cars and the tried and true bear box. In this campground you NEED to utilize the bear boxes. They have signs everywhere about the mass amount of bear activity and how there is a mother and her 2 cubs which have been terrorizing the campground for some time this season (2018). Again, you need to keep everything (food, toiletries, etc.) in the bear box at all times. The sites are reservable, and on top of the $35 (nonelectric) per site there is a $7 fee for a second vehicle, Yurts go for $86 which do have power and a nonrefundable $10 service fee…. While the campground allows dogs, they aren’t allowed in the Yurts.
There’s lots of bear proof dumpsters around the campground, lots of potable water in strategic spots and a number of decent restrooms, and it was nice that at some of them they provided hot (pay) showers (at $1 per 3 minutes) and while the ADA has some control the standard one has no control over the heat or pressure its simply on or off. Also, the restrooms have no soap, paper towels, or hand dryers, etc. Which was a little disappointing for the cost.
My biggest disappointment in the setup of the campground has to do with the bears and cleaning your dishes. There is no dish-washing area in the entire ~200 site, ~14 bathroom campground. They specifically ask that you don’t wash your dishes in the sinks or at the water spigots as they don’t want any food particles going down the drains. So, when I asked about disposing of the dish water they said to just toss it at the base of a tree, as it’s dry and the trees would appreciate it. This doesn’t help keep the bears away… While we scrapped and collected every bit of food waste we could and tossed it into the dumpsters, ff you’re just tossing food scrap-soaked water at the base of the trees the bears are going to come for the smell… I’ve stayed at other sites in bear country which have setups for disposing of the waste water and food scraps to detract bears and Fallen Leaf definitely is lacking and this is possibly part of the reason they’re having such an issue with bears.
While, our site (87) would probably normally be a great location with the Fallen Leaf Lake being the only thing behind you and no neighbors on at least 2 of your sides, we happened to somehow book the same weekend that a corporate event was taking over the vast majority of the campground with almost 200 people….
While, not entirely the campgrounds fault it was a little disruptive to have this mass number of people come directly next to us in site 88 for their meals as they’d decided to make that site the meal prep site for breakfast (they started prep at 5:30 am) and dinner (we actually had to ask the drunk group to stop screaming at midnight) these were both well outside the “quiet hours” and definitely surpassed the “6 people per site” rule.
Otherwise this campground is in a great location to see the area as it’s only approximately one-quarter mile north of Fallen Leaf Lake. The trail from the campground was only 3 sites over from us. The Taylor Creek Visitor Center is directly across Highway 89 and is a great location to talk to the Rangers about other potential hikes in the area. They also have interpretive programs, guided walks on the Rainbow Trail and to the Stream Profile Chamber (which was closed because someone decided to break it. Although it should be repaired now… end of September 2018). Also, nearby Baldwin Beaches or Pope Beach, which cost $10, or you can go to the Tallac Historic Site with tours and events at its historic buildings and grounds and the free (dog friendly) Kiva beach which is exactly the same as the other pay access beaches….
There’s also a really nice paved bike trail that runs 3 miles along Highway 89 and can be used to access all of the above. You have access to excellent day hiking and backpacking in Desolation Wilderness via the Glen Alpine or Mt. Tallac trailheads which are also nearby.
TravelerNever been during peak (summer) but both times we have stayed here in winter and it was FANTASTIC! Close to Georgetown and to the El Dorado National Forest. Super clean and easy to get to. Signs off 193 are well marked! The have horse corrals too if you’re into that. Highly recommend!
TravelerThis is a well-kept and forest-dense camping spot. There are tons of activities to partake in: relax and do nothing, hike (entire lake is 9.5 miles with a waterfall!), kayak, fish, sun bathe, swim, play games at your camp, if you have a horse- camp with your horse in one of those sites). It just really is amazing that this gem is only (approx) 1 hour from Sacramento! I cannot wait to go again!
TravelerMust visit for horse lovers!
TravelerThis state park is a very nice park and campground. There's an abundance of space in each site with Cabana and fire ring. We even saw some wild horses.
Horse camping in California offers a unique opportunity to explore the stunning landscapes while enjoying the company of your equine friends. With a variety of campgrounds catering to horse enthusiasts, you can find the perfect spot to set up camp and ride the trails.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular equestrian campsite near Tahoe Vista, CA?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular equestrian campground near Tahoe Vista, CA is Washoe Lake State Park Campground with a 4.7-star rating from 23 reviews.
What is the best site to find equestrian camping near Tahoe Vista, CA?
TheDyrt.com has all 30 equestrian camping locations near Tahoe Vista, CA, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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