Lake Almanor Guide: Camping, Trail and Seasons

Lake Almanor is a 28,000-acre lake in Lassen National Forest, about 90 minutes from Chico by road (OpenStreetMap routing, without traffic). PG&E built it for hydropower and runs campgrounds on its shore; the Forest Service runs Almanor Campground on the west shore at 4,540 feet. Camping is a summer thing here: Memorial Day to Labor Day, generally.

Checked October 29, 2026

• 28,000acres, per the Forest Service
• 11 miLake Almanor Recreation Trail
• $18a night, Almanor Campground single site
• 109.6 inof snow a year in Chester, NOAA normal

Camping on The Lake

PG&E’s usual reservation season starts the Monday before Memorial Day weekend and ends a week after Labor Day weekend. Non-reservable Forest Service sites cannot be held or paid for ahead of arrival. From Chester, the Forest Service says to take Highway 36 west to Highway 89 south for Almanor Campground.

Forest Orders in Effect

• Order 06-26-03 (June 26, 2026 to June 26, 2028): no motor vehicles, including e-bikes, and no horses on the Lake Almanor Recreation Trail except at marked crossings. The trail runs about 11 miles along the west shore.
• Order 06-26-04 (same dates): no camping in the Lake Almanor Overnight Use Closure Area except in developed recreation areas.

Fish and Weather

The Forest Service lists salmon, trout, bass and catfish in the lake, and says the lake is good for boating, swimming, water skiing and sailing. Up here it is a different climate from the valley: NOAA’s 1991 to 2020 normals for Chester show a July average high of 86.1°F and January highs of 42.2°F, with about 109.6 inches of snow a year. See weather by month.

Area guide: Lake Almanor & The Feather River.

Map of Lake Almanor

Coming Up at Lake Almanor

What We Could Not Verify

• PG&E does not print the lake’s surface elevation or acreage on the pages we opened; the 28,000 acres is the Forest Service figure, and 4,540 feet is the campground’s elevation, not the lake’s.
• Rocky Point site count and fees are not printed on the Forest Service or PG&E pages we opened. Not confirmed
• The official Plumas County site has no visitor page for Chester, so we print no town facts beyond the Forest Service directions.
• 2027 opening dates are not posted yet. Not confirmed

Questions People Ask

When is Lake Almanor camping open?

Almanor Campground is generally open Memorial Day to Labor Day; PG&E reservations usually run from the Monday before Memorial Day weekend to a week after Labor Day weekend.

Can I ride an e-bike on the Lake Almanor trail?

No. A Forest order through June 26, 2028 bans motor vehicles, e-bikes included, on the recreation trail except at marked crossings.

How cold does it get at Lake Almanor?

NOAA normals for Chester show January lows around 21.8°F and close to 110 inches of snow a year.

Place Pages for This Guide

• Lake Almanor
• Chester

More Guides

• Bidwell Park
• Lake Oroville
• Feather River
• Lake Almanor
• Birding & Snow Geese
• Chico State
• Breweries (21+)
• Farm Country
• Swimming & Floats
• Almond Bloom & Fall Color
• All Guides

Sources

1. Lassen NF, Almanor Campground: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/lassen/recreation/almanor-campground (checked October 29, 2026)
2. Lassen NF, Rocky Point: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/lassen/recreation/rocky-point (checked October 29, 2026)
3. Lassen NF, Lake Almanor Recreational Trail restriction: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/lassen/alerts/lake-almanor-recreational-trail-restriction (checked October 29, 2026)
4. Lassen NF, Lake Almanor Area Camping Restriction: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/lassen/alerts/lake-almanor-area-camping-restriction (checked October 29, 2026)
5. PG&E, recreational areas: https://www.pge.com/en/about/in-your-community/recreational-areas.html (checked October 29, 2026)
6. USDA Forest Service, Lassen National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/lassen (checked October 29, 2026)
7. NOAA NCEI, 1991-2020 normals, Chester (USC00041700): https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/data/normals-monthly/1991-2020/access/USC00041700.csv (checked October 29, 2026)