We have come here a handful of times now for fishing. Not only do we always have a blast, but it is…read moreabsolutely gorgeous here. We haven't been here at sunrise, but the sunsets and stars are so beautiful... you can't help but slowly walk out when it is time to go. Lake Theodore is right off the road and not too hard to spot the entrance. For parking, you can park on the side of the road, right up to the entrance. There is a park & route below about 50 yards away, but that's quite a walk. You do go through a swirly gate and down a path, and there is a trail that leads to the back of the lake. There are spots you need to really pay attention to because of rocks and tree roots. Some trees are growing into the path. There is also some scat along the way, but hey! It's nature. What else do you expect! I have yet to take the path all the way around the small lake, but I have gotten halfway. It's easy to get stuck casting in spots because you'll see some big fish swimming by, or we start catching. In this small lake, you can expect to catch big mouth bass, small mouth bass, lots of blue gill, green sun fish, and a few extras swimming around. For us, the most popular bait we use is the natural big earth worms and night crawlers. For the big mouth bass, the seenkos are pretty popular... 3"-4" long (and we use the watermelon ones). I do like to head back to the front before it gets dark. You can see random spiders building their webs as the sun starts to set and heaven forbid I walk through those trees and go through a web and end up with a creepy crawly! I love bugs and fishing... but a random bug will make me shriek bloody murder, lol! When the sun goes down(on my side of town), there are so many stars to look at. Planes mostly fly over from the backside of the lake and those are fun to watch, too. I think we sat one night until 11pm casting and watching the stars. It was nice the moon was not out this particular night because it made it nice and dark and the stars shined so bright... As precautions, I suggest bringing bug spray and sun block. Bring some small collapsible chairs. Stock up on some water or whatever you drink. I easily spend 4+ hours at a time here admiring the beauty of nature. For those of you that know... tight lines!

I drove here today with a friend. We did not mean to come here...just found it by accident…read more It is located off his 80 a little above Auburn ca. As you drive up...there is a small parking area. You cannot drive in...there is a gate...so you park on the outside and walk in. There is a dirt path you can walk or ride a bike. By the water you will find places to put a chair and fish. This is a small lake. It is not for boating...or swimming.. There is a sign that clearly states no boats. It is so beautiful here. Peaceful. It would be a great place for lunch or just to sit for a while. I saw some ducks...and birds but no other wild life. It would be a nice place to walk your dogs. Don't wear new shoes...lots of red dirt.

If you have never been to the Lake Natoma Recreation area, you are missing out on a very beautiful…read morelake. It is the place to Paddle board, swim in the water, look at sailboats big & small. There are kids learning to kayak in classes, families setting up day tents and people just enjoying a beautiful lake. The geese just paddle in the water and ducks fly low to the water as you paddle by. Right off of highway 50. This is my first paddle boarding experience. You take out the paddle board out of the bag, Lay it out. Blow it up, put on 3 fins on the bottom and you your paddle are ready to go. Have your life jacket, hat, water and a camera. I met really great people just floating and paddling today. This lake is really big. I stayed close to the main recreational area since I am new. I heard there is a cave you can explore. Natoma recreational park is a place for picnics, families, water sports, paddle boarding, sailing and fun in the sun. I am hooked on paddle boarding now. I love this lake! See you again. Bring the family or just yourself. Have an adventure. Julie A

Love Lake Natoma. Lots of water loving options for fun. Beach, picnic areas, connections to trails,…read moreand shade. No current is family friendly swimming for all. Love to take in a sunset on our stand up boards. You've got to check this place out for yourself. I am eager to return soon. Great place to beat the heat.

Love that this hiking trail is within 5 minutes of my home. Having the parkway available throughout…read morethe Sacramento area makes it Sacramento an even more disrespectful place to live. My husband and I go here for shorter rehabilitation walks (he is relearning how to walk after a spinal tumor was removed), I go here on my own for connecting back to nature and exercise, and the last two days I enjoyed taking a 6 mile hike with brother who was visiting. I have visited all up and down the parkway, at different entrance points, and different times of year. It never disappoints. I have had a yearly pass and it is well worth it for all the enjoyment I get from here.

I spent the majority of my vacation in Sactown along the American River. Just beautiful!…read more Loved this particular spot with wonderful views. I am assuming they get super busy when it is warmer but was nice to be here without a lot of folks around.

Funday Sundaze! Love…read morethis place!! A local getaway to have some fun in the sun with the whole fam. Whether it's paddle boarding, kayaking, swimming, fishing or just BBQING. Can't beat the calm water! Have been paddle boarding here year after year. Other: -Day pass $10 -cash and card -Plenty of parking -Plenty of bathrooms -Plenty of places to set up your tent -some life jackets available/ first come first get lol - this place is right next to the aquatic center - if you want to rent a kayak other gear you go to the aquatic center first.

We came here over the 4th of July weekend and let me say how pleased I was to see not as much…read moreovercrowding as I was expecting and no price gouging on rentals due to the holiday! Parking included. ($10 only) This place makes for a great lake day not too far from Sacramento and right off the Hazel Avenue freeway exit. I'll take a 20 minute drive versus 45 to 1 hour to Folsom any day. Unless of course you plan to do boating or jet skiing. I have not been here since I was in college. As a Sac State student (Go Hornets!) you get discounts on the rentals. However, if you're not a student the pricing on their rentals were very affordable. For reference, we rented a paddle board and kayak for 3-3.5 hours paying only $100! Again, over a holiday weekend! That's a win in my book. The shore is pretty rocky in some areas, especially the beach area near the entrance. If you continue towards the bend there is more sand for little ones to dig and play with. You'll encounter rocks but not nearly as large and in such an abundance. The beaches, walkways, and parking lot were pretty clean. Bathroom wasn't disgusting either! We absolutely will be back again for the rest of this summer and through the warmer months after!

Small parking lot at the beginning with restroom. Nice grassy field to picnic. Once you head out…read moreyou have three choices when you get about a 100 yards down the paved bike path. (1) Stay on the bike path (2) take the dirt trail towards San Juan Rapids which is what me and the fur baby do or (3) take the dirt trail on the left. All three choices end up at a nice picnic area with tables and benches. You can cool off in the river or cross Jims Bridge and continue the trail. Its fairly level on all three paths. There is some shade but be aware of occasional rattlesnake in the brush on hot days and coyotes.

I grew up near bannister park! It's a wonderful place to play with your kids or bring friends to…read morespend time together. You can ride bikes along the path or take a long walk to enjoy the scenery. There river access for you to float on the river or go fishing. There's tons to do at bannister park!

Hours: 6 AM-9 PM daily Entrance/Parking Fee: $10…read moreKayak/Paddle Board Rental Hours: 9 AM-6 PM weekends https://www.lakenatomapaddlerentals.com/ Solos: 1st hr $20, each hr after $15 Tandem (2 people): 1st hr $30, each hr after $20 I had a very hard time finding info about this lovely spot, so there you go. Hope it helps! Entrance is accessible from Greenback Ln with $10 fee required per vehicle. 2 Parking lots available - 1 closer to boat launch area and another further lot that's more convenient for picnic areas and tables. Plenty of tables and area for lots of families to enjoy some water festivities! Have a big party or just want to lock down a few tables? Highly advise to come early. If you just need some space to place your mats down, it should be just fine. Incredible trails alongside the water for walking, jogging, and bike riding. Dogs are welcome but just make sure you pick up after them (I noticed a good number of dog poop near the water edge). Want to take a dip? Feel free! Quite cold but more than welcome to. Biggest reason why we came here? To see how the Kayak Rental system worked. Scan the QR code or visit the site to book your rentals and sign waivers. I was told they rented daily by a worker (young ones) but their online reservations just show weekends and random Wednesdays.. so good luck. Honestly Rental prices are higher than another spot we've been to, but this spot was much closer to home and easier to access. Price for convenience! We didn't go kayaking on this particular day but definitely plan to return with our own paddle board/Kayaks since it just makes sense to invest and go whenever we want versus rent a few kayaks with high rental feels. Who wants to return within 1 hr?! No way, you gotta stay out in the midst of nature for at LEAST a few hours! Pathway Tip: Walking or jogging? Stay on your left. Biking? Stay on your right. Standard Placer County rules. Great spot for families whether you want to picnic, swim, paddleboard, kayak, go for a nice walk, jog, or bike along gorgeous river waters scenery. Have fun!!

Went out to Black Miners Ravine to get on the paddleboard and just decompress a little. This time…read moreof year out there is hard to beat... good vibes, calm water, and a chance to shut the brain off for a bit. Nothing super exciting in this review, just one of those peaceful days you appreciate more as you get older lol. Now fair warning... that water is COLD cold when you first step in but once you're out there it's worth it. Even the ducks were just cruising around being friendly and minding their business. Sometimes you don't need much, just a board, some fresh air, and a little quiet.

I visited Folsom Lake State Recreation Area last month with two friends after meeting up in…read moreSacramento. We were looking for something fun to do during the day and figured you can't go wrong with a California State Park. While the park itself didn't disappoint, I'll admit we barely scratched the surface of what it has to offer. After paying the entrance fee, we drove around a bit but found there weren't too many roads to explore by car. We stopped at the lake long enough to take a few pictures and for me to use the restroom. The seasonal workers cleaning the bathrooms were friendly, though they were unable to share any fun facts about the lake (I guess I won't hold it against them). Since I don't have a boat, there was no getting out on the water... though one of my friends teased me to go inquire about the young man zipping around on a jet ski. Aside from boating, it seems like there are also camping spots and some hiking trails but we didn't get our shoes dirty on this visit. If I return, I'd love to slow things down and enjoy the park properly by maybe setting up a hammock by the lake, getting out on the water, or even trying a little fishing - as long as someone else handles the bait and any fish I inevitably catch! Overall, a beautiful spot with plenty of potential, I just need a do-over to experience it fully.

The entrance fee is $12 and you can use it any of the parks for the day. We just went to the one…read morepark, but drove by other entrances on our way out. We entered in through Granite Bay. My husband has never spent time in Granite Bay and wanted to check it out. We went to Granite Bay's Main Beach. Wow!!! The water is so low. We had to hike to get out to it. There were a few people at the water's edge with us. The one party brough there whole picnic with them. It made me jealous that we didn't bring any food or drinks. We had snacks in the car and water, but it was no feast like they had. Just a note, there snack shack is closed for the season and will open back in March. I'm not surprised, but I still would have liked to gotten lunch there. After we spent a bit around the lake we went back to our car for a drive around the lake. There are so many alcoves and other views of the lake we saw during our drive. My husband said it reminded him of Tahoe, without the expense and long drive. It's very scenic and we took a great picture of the two of us with the trees in the background.

I was at River Bend walking my dog and got great information from Will L about renting a raft. Very…read moreinformative.

Had an amazing experience, had a young man help us carry a boat out bc it was to heavy and we were…read morealr running late ! thank you !

Char: "Daniel, why haven't you taken me here, sooner? I don't even feel like I'm in Sacramento…read more Everything is so lush and green!" This was my first impression as soon as we drove into Ancil Hoffman Park. I didn't realize that the golf course and park combination was so big and separate at the same time. It's truly a hidden gem, hidden behind such beautiful, large, custom homes and huge, gorgeous trees - after all its nestled in The City of Trees, Sacramento! I really enjoyed my first time visit. To be clear, the half dirt/half cement trail is a little over 3 miles (per Apple Watch) that outlines and circles the golf course. It's nice because most, if not all of the trail is shaded! You can hear so much birds and sounds of nature, but you're not somewhere in the center of the woods, you're literally just in the suburbs of FairOaks and Carmichael- it's crazy! Adjacent to a huge part of the trail is the American River. There are parts of the trail that lead you to the river where you can lay out by the water and just listen to the water, so Relaxing. The pro is clean, safe and has so much space. Great place to run, walk, ride your bike and or walk the fur babe! I highly recommend this park, for it has so much to offer!!!

I have been to this park a few times. I have walked the trails and seen deer, turkeys and a coyote…read moreas well as using this as a place to stage a second car when kayaking from Sailor Bar.

The American River Parkway is a gem. Nice paved trails are patrolled and kept in great shape. Dirt…read moretrails veer off the main paved trail for additional biking fun. I regularly ride from Hazel (Nimbus( to Beale Point and back, about 20 miles. On weekdays the trails are sparsely populated; on weekends very crowded. Get a Poopy Pass to park at a State Rec Area. And don't bother trying to park on the weekend, likely the lots are full and you'll be turned away. Nice picnic areas along the way, some with toilets.

Running along the American River Parkway trail delivers a seamless mix of natural beauty and…read moreoutdoor convenience. The clean, paved trail is ideal for all activity levels, offering shaded pathways and stunning views of the river throughout. Whether you're getting in a serious workout or just taking a relaxed weekend walk, it provides a quiet, refreshing environment.