Beautiful Lake love to go water skiing on it and enjoying my family would recommend this lake all…read morethe time to enjoy water skiing tubing Sea- dooing all the above too bad they didn't have parasailing, but I think they did at one point and it didn't go off very well

Staying in Chester, the western shore of Lake Almanor was a short adventure on the first night of…read moremy stay in the area. Some of the western shore comprises of private property with no beach access but there is a public beach and campground area a few miles out of town. The effects of the 2021 Dixie Fire are seen along the drive, but there were still some green pines along the shore. The beach itself was rocky but wonderfully windswept and dramatic. Late on a Saturday afternoon it was very quiet-only 2 boaters coming in and no one else using the day use area. The water was very choppy following some afternoon thunderstorms and the skies were very moody. It was a nice way to stretch my legs after a long drive from the Bay Area and hope I get the chance to check out the East shore during my visit.

We had a wonderful day with Captain Rob for our first time fishing on Lake Almanor. I hoped to…read morecreate some special memories by taking my father and my son on a surprise fishing trip, and Rob delivered on all fronts. He does an excellent job helping you to find and catch beautiful fish, but also is a friendly and knowledgeable guy who does his best to ensure you have a fun day. His boat is beautiful and comfortable. I highly recommend him.

Cannot say enough good things about about Capt Rob and Waypoint Charters. We had a group of 4 and…read moreended up having a great time fishing. Capt Rob is a fantastic host with a great personality and makes every effort to make the time as enjoyable as possible for his guests (even brought breakfast pastries and coffee for our group). He is a true professional and clearly a very experienced fishing guide with a wealth of knowledge specific to Lake Almanor. Furthermore, his boat is immaculate and certainly in a tier above most other lake boats with a closed cabin and private toilet. Do not hesitate to book a trip with Capt Rob, you won't be disappointed!

Drakesbad Guest Ranch - Beautiful setting, but still room for improvement…read more Drakesbad Guest Ranch is set in a truly spectacular location, but a few operational issues prevent it from being the exceptional experience it could be. We booked a two-night stay in one of the Annex 2 cabins. About a week before arrival, I attempted to extend our reservation by an additional night. I called multiple times and left messages but never received a return call. I also sent an email and never received a response. As a result, the extra night was never added. When I arrived, I brought it up in person and was told by the property manager that I would need to return at 3:00 p.m. to see if anything was available. He explained that their communication system had been experiencing issues and that calls and emails sometimes do not come through because of limited connectivity and spotty internet service. Unfortunately, this was my first impression. Needless to say, the additional night was never added. This communication issue really needs to be addressed. If guests need to modify, confirm, or cancel reservations, they should be able to reach someone reliably. The ranch itself is located in a remote meadow valley within Lassen Volcanic National Park. It is surrounded by forest recovering from the devastating 2021 Dixie Fire. Burned trees still cover many of the hillsides, but the landscape is showing remarkable signs of recovery. The meadow is filled with tall green grass, colorful wildflowers, and deer grazing throughout the fields. Despite the fire's scars, the setting remains stunning. Upon arrival, I was surprised to find no clearly marked reception desk or office. There are no signs directing guests where to check in, so you may need to find an employee for assistance. The property manager personally checks guests in using a laptop and escorts them to their room or cabin. There is also no information provided in the rooms. No guest guide or information sheet was available, so be sure to ask questions about meals, amenities, and property operations. Since there is no cell service, I asked about Wi-Fi. The ranch uses Starlink, but during our stay the signal was only reliably available outdoors and not inside the cabins. Given today's connectivity expectations, a mesh network or Wi-Fi extenders would significantly improve the guest experience. That said, being mostly off the grid was actually refreshing. Guests should also know that the Annex cabins do not have electric lighting. Small solar-powered lanterns are provided and offer just enough light to get around after dark. In addition, power to the ranch is shut off nightly from 10:00 p.m. until 6:00 a.m., so plan accordingly and charge devices during the day. The Annex cabins appear relatively new and are in good condition. My only design criticism is the deck railing. It sits almost exactly at eye level when seated, partially blocking what should be one of the cabin's best features--the VIEW. One of the highlights of our stay was the dining experience. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are included, and the staff were consistently friendly, welcoming, and attentive. The food exceeded expectations, and it sounded like the kitchen was happy to accommodate dietary restrictions. They also offered a nice selection of beers from local breweries, which was especially enjoyable after a long day of hiking. Unfortunately, horseback riding was unavailable during our visit. From what we were told, reservations appear to depend heavily on a single staff member. If that individual is unavailable, horseback rides may not be offered, which was disappointing. One important clarification for prospective guests: despite what some older information may suggest, Drakesbad no longer has a hot spring pool. The pool was damaged during the Dixie Fire and later destroyed by flooding. Today, all that remains is a pipe flowing hot spring water into a nearby creek. The surrounding hiking trails, including Devil's Kitchen, Boiling Springs Lake, and Terminal Geyser, were excellent and provided some of the best experiences of the trip. A few sections were heavily overgrown with thorny vegetation, so hiking pants are recommended. In some places the trail became difficult to follow because of vegetation encroachment. During the summer months, you'll also encounter hikers on the Pacific Crest Trail, which adds a unique element to the experience. Overall, we enjoyed our stay and but probably not return. The setting is undeniably beautiful, the staff are friendly, and the food is surprisingly good. However, improvements to communication, guest information, signage, Wi-Fi coverage, and activity coordination would elevate Drakesbad Guest Ranch from a pleasant stay to a truly exceptional destination.

We spent our 45th wedding anniversary, July 2025. We love this place. Even after the fire(s), it's…read moreLassen Park! Beautiful! The guest ranch is a wonderful base camp to experience this part of the park. The ranch staff make the experience happen. We felt like family (in the good way). These folks actually care. Look closely at their website for what they offer. For us, it was like you'd think of an early 1900s, Adirondack's mountain motor lodge to be like. Rustic but regal. The staff made it regal for us.

Great fitting wetsuits, pretty quick delivery, locally made and reasonably priced! The owners are…read moreresponsive and friendly. You will get a very reasonably priced and well made USA manufactured wetsuit here. I highly recommend

Mark is one of the best fly fishing guides in the Lake Almanor/Eagle Lake area. He has consistently…read moreput us on fish very time that we've gone out with Mark. He's extremely knowledgeable of fishing techniques for all times of year and every area of the lake. He has a good sense of humor and it's always enjoyable to be on the boat together.

We decided to backpack in to the lake and spend the night as our first attempt at backpacking. We…read morechose this spot because since it is in the National Forest, not the National Park, it is dog friendly, plus it's not often traveled. The road is a good gravel road. No problems for any type of vehicle. You park on the side of the road in a small turnout. No permit needed. The trailhead is well marked. The trail is all uphill, until a few hundred feet from the lake. It's listed as an easy hike, but I think it should be considered a moderate hike. The uphill hike is already on the edge of being moderate, but if you add in the dozens of downed trees, it definitely makes the hike more difficult. In a 25 lb pack, those things are really irritating. Most you can step over, but there are several you have to climb, and as of yesterday 9/14/13, 3 that have to crawled under. Almost at the lake, you cross South Digger Creek. In September this creek is a few inches high and there are lots of rocks to hop over, but I would imagine in the spring this is quite higher from the snow run off. The lake is small, but very scenic. It was heavy on the weeds and quite green though, so we were not going to swim in it. We decided to hike back to the creek so that we could use the creek water (still filtered) for drinking. We found some decent flat spots on the creek to sleep and were very comfortable. The lake, I later found out is quite full of leaches, so do not swim in it. Hang your food, I found a few piles of bear poo around the lake. You cannot make a campfire, only stove use in the summer. Please don't burn our forest down with illegal campfires. Once you see all the downed trees, you will agree this place is a disaster waiting to happen. This was a great place to try backpacking out and I recommend it for being very fun for dogs. See my pictures of the trip attached on the site.

This is a great hike but be prepared. As of our hike (6/3/2012), the trail is in need of…read moremaintenance. There are numerous logs down across the trail and the trail is quite difficult to pick up in places. In one place, close to the lake, the trail leads right into a swamp area. If possible, have a GPS and a map. It's pretty much all up hill on the way in but the views at the lake are well worth the trip.

Golf course is great. Owner /manager is a piece of work. Very unpleasant and rude. Also they will…read moretake water away from you on a hot day if you try to bring your own. Money is king here. The owner says I threw a fit. Actually he did when he heard I was telling a couple guys about another course. They wanted to avoid getting caught behind a tournament. He came into the bar and shook me down in front of everyone. Instead of taking me aside if he had a problem. I simply left. And came in the next day to tell him I would not be back. I love the golf course and spent thousands there every year. But I'm not going to be treated like that. I do recommend Bailey Creek to people still. It's a good track.

Loved playing this course and the staff is so friendly and welcoming. Making plans already for next…read moresummer. Highly recommend!

A gorgeous waterfall with an equally stunning hike throughout! I had originally planned to hike…read moreLassen Peak but there was still too much snow for the hike to be considered safe in condition. Decided to hike the 5 mile loop trail from Kings Creek to Bench Lake instead and it was awesome! Came here on Memorial Day Weekend around 8:30 am, and I was able to find a close spot near the trailhead. There's no actual parking lot near the Kings Creek staging area, but you can easily park along the road. By the time I finished my hike though, the cars were lined down the highway for almost a mile! Would definitely get here early to secure parking, and especially since it got HOT in the afternoon. There was still snow on the trail in late May. In fact, there was a huge pile of snow right at the beginning of the trailhead. Another lady and I realized that the trail was actually down a set of stairs that we couldn't see because snow was blocking our view. The Kings Creek Trail starts here. The hike to the falls is actually pretty easy. It's a short 2.7 miles round trip, but you can extend your hike by connecting to several other trails nearby. I hiked a 5ish mile loop to I Kings Creek, Bench Lake, and back. The trail starts off pretty mild through a shaded forest that runs alongside Kings Creek. You can hear the water from the creek flowing almost the entire time. The trail was a bit hard to follow due to all of the large snow chunks, but there were several small reg flag trail markers that helped to keep me on track. There's a small break in the trees where you'll have some of the most amazing views of the backside of Mount Lassen as well as the beautiful Shasta Valley. The views are pretty unbelievable here. A little over a mile in, you'll reach Kings Creek Falls. There wasn't anybody at the viewpoint when I arrived, and I had the beautiful view of the falls all to myself. Not too many people on this trail, so it was very enjoyable. From here, you can either go back the way you came, or you can connect to another trail. I took the loop trail to Bench Lake. After Kings Creek Falls, the trail becomes a little hard to follow again, but there are some trailhead signs to keep you on track. Bench Lake is small but very peaceful. Again, there was nobody there when I went. I took a break and had lunch here, and didn't see a soul the entire time (just the ants that really wanted my food). After Bench Lake, there's a steepish hill that you'll hike through but it's shaded. The trail continues until it loops back to the tail end of the Kings Creek trail. Some exposed spots but if you're going clockwise, the sun will be facing your back. Also, there was a ton of thick snow that I had to hike through. If you're coming in May, make sure to wear waterproof hiking boots if you don't want wet socks. The scenery throughout this hike is so amazing. Every little stop and turn affords you the most striking views. This is a hike that I would definitely do again. Kings Creek Falls is beautiful and the hike alone is worth the trek.