High Sierra State Parks |
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High Sierra State Parks Overview
The state park system is responsible for almost a third of California's scenic coastline. State parks include underwater preserves, parks, redwood forests, plant and wildlife reserves, state beaches, recreation areas, wilderness areas, reservoirs, historic parks & homes, Spanish buildings, lighthouses, ghost towns, waterslides, conference centers, and off-highway vehicle parks. Below you'll find a list of the more popular High Sierra state parks and ones we personally recommmend from Sugar Pine Point along the shores of Lake Tahoe to the giant sequoias of Calaveras Big Trees. |
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High Sierra State ParksSugar Pine Point is located on the west shore of Lake Tahoe, ten miles south of Tahoe City on highway 89. The park offers a pristine forest at lakes edge. A featured attraction is a mansion built in 1903 known as Pine Lodge. Activities include fishing, swimming, hiking and cross-country skiing on groomed trails. D. L. Bliss is located 17 miles south of Tahoe City off highway 89, a couple of miles north of Emerald Bay. This park hugs the edge of Lake Tahoe's southwest shores and features hiking trails and vistas of the lake. From some of these trails you can see a hundred feet or more into the depths of crystal clear Lake Tahoe. A favorite is Balancing Rock Nature Trail for its precariously perched, 130 ton granite boulder. Activities include camping, fishing, hiking and swimming. 
Emerald Bay is located 22 miles south of Tahoe City off highway 89. This cove was once a separate lake from Lake Tahoe and contains some of the clearest water on the lake. The only island on Lake Tahoe is in Emerald Bay and is just large enough to support a tiny stone tea house. A featured attraction is the Vikingsholm, which is a small stone castle-like home of Scandinavian architecture and is now manage by the park. Camping is literally at lakes edge. Activities include swimming boating, camping and hiking. Sand Harbor is located 3 miles south of Incline Village off Highway 28. This Nevada-side State Park is one of Lake Tahoe's most popular beaches offering swimming, picnicking and unparalleled beauty. Enjoy sunbathing or swimming from the sandy beach or photographing the boulder-laden turqoise shoreline that Tahoe is known for worldwide. Sand Harbor is undoubtedly the most photographed location in all of Lake Tahoe's 71-miles of shoreline. The Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival is held at Sand Harbor every year from July through August. Bring your picnic basket, wine and revelry for a lakeside evening with Shakespeare. Grover Hot Springs is located south of Lake Tahoe on Highway 89, just outside the town of Markleeville. No matter which direction you come from, it is one of the most beautiful and remote drives in the entire state. The highlight of Grover Hot Springs are several heated mineral pools that are enjoyed by visitors as well as locals from the area. A large campground is within walking distance of the pools. The nearby town of Markleeville offers a restaurant, bar, groceries and fuel. 
Mono Lake is located north of Lee Vining off Highway 395. This large but shallow lake is one of the oldest lakes in North America. Mono tufas are mineral deposits that protrude above the lake's surface. The water is 2.5 times saltier than the ocean, which results in additional bouyancy when swimming. You don't want to get it in your eyes or cuts. Alkali flies sometimes cover the shoreline of the lake but stay near the surface and are not really a nuisance. Activities include hiking, canoeing, kayaking, swimming and cross-country skiing. Consider an upclose view of the tufas with Mono Lake Boat Tours. Bodie Ghost Town is located off Highway 395 between Lee Vining and Bridgeport. What a cool place this is, and definitely California's best ghost town. Tucked in the high sierra foothills, this town of 20 grew to a thriving city when gold was discovered in 1877. Within a few short years the gold ran out and the town was completely abandoned. The goldmine employed thousands and stories of rampant gun fights follow. Buildings from the original town and mine still exist in a state of decay. Original furniture and stocked shelves were left as they were found. A cemetry exists up on a hill outside of town and tells a tale of the harsh winters miners experienced. If you are anywhere near Bodie, this is a must see. 
Calaveras Big Trees is located east of Stockton and four miles northeast of Arnold on highway 4. This is a giant redwood forest with a self-guided trail and campgrounds. Activities include hiking and camping. Some campgrounds are located adjacent to the redwood forest but other, more secluded camps, are further into the park. The self-guided tour is the most interactive we've seen in a giant redwood park with multiple walk-through trees and a bench that tilts back perfectly to relax and view the entire span of a giant redwood. The hardpacked trails and boardwalks through the forest are wheelchair accessible when dry. |
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