Clear Lake State Park

About Clear Lake State Park

Clear Lake State Park is located on the shores of California's largest freshwater lake. The area is ideal for all kinds of water sports, including swimming, fishing, boating and water skiing.

Fishermen can catch large mule, blue fish and catfish, and the park is known as a breeding ground for waterfowl.

The park's visitor center displays panels on the natural and cultural history of the area, and hikers enjoy self-guided trails that show how the Pomo, who lived in the area for centuries, used their resources. Paths lead to a former "Pomo Village," and California State Park is proud to soon be installing - and building - rustic cabins.

If you are planning a trip and would like to stay in one of these cabins, we recommend contacting Clear Lake SP directly for more information about the cabins and a full list of rooms and amenities available.

Several thousand years ago, a landslide blocked the natural drainage of the valley into the Russian river. As the water flowed into Cache Creek and the Sacramento River, it rose to become a Clear Lake, the largest lake in the state of California and one of the most important water sources for the city of Sacramento.

Most of the water comes from a source in Soda Bay, which comes from the San Joaquin River, the Sacramento River and the Russian River. Most of that water also flows down the drain into Cache Creek, the main source of water for the city of Sacramento.

The lake is the state's largest and home to some of California's largest perches, locals proudly claim. Perch fishing is so popular in Clear Lake that it has been named the "largest perch lake in the nation" because of the catch numbers. There are also a large number of other fish species, such as bluefish, perch, trout, whitefish and a variety of small mouthfuls.

Clear Lake is estimated by geoscientists to be 2.5 million years old and is the oldest lake in North America. That is the conclusion of the US Geological Survey (USGS) and the University of California at Berkeley.

Clear Lake State Park stretches for about two miles of shoreline and offers broad public access to the lake. Clear Lake is a natural lake, which means it gives you a sense of nature and is quieter than some of the other lakes in the area, such as Lake Tahoe and Lake Mead.

The State Park is located on the south shore of the lake and includes a number of hiking trails as well as a variety of picnic areas and picnic tables. Swimming, water skiing and hiking are popular in the park, and fishing is as big as the lake itself.

The modern visitor centre displays exhibits of the Indian traditions of the lake as well as information about the history of Clear Lake and its inhabitants.

The Dorn Nature Trail runs along the slopes of Clear Lake and offers great views of Lake County.

From the visitor centre you can reach the entrance (Parkstraße), where you can see the signs for the nature trail "Dorn." Use the parking lot at the Kelseyville Visitor Center, south of Lakeport, follow the signs for Soda Bay Road to Clear Lake and then turn right onto the path that joins the nature trails.

On your way back from the loop, turn left onto Soda Bay Road and walk along the road until you are on DORN (left) and you return to your car on Soda Lake Road (right).

Stay left and climb for about 400 meters until the side road turns right and leads to Upper Bayview Campground. We continue on the thorn path to an overview platform and then up into a forest area.

The path curves a little and soon offers the first view of the lake, then the path climbs again, while it climbs again and curves, before curving again and climbing back into the forest.

Oaks and Manzanita surround the lake, which is surrounded by vineyards and orchards along the coast of Mendocino. A little further down the path, a second view offers a view of the lake and Konokti Mountain. The descent continues over a fern - a slope with outlines to the west and overgrown - and drops back down to a park road and a hiking trail. Halfway through we pass a track that branches off to the right and leads to the Lower Bayview Campground.