June 2018
What a hidden gem this mountain lake is! Nestled in the El Dorado Forest off highway 50 in Pollock Pines, you’ll find Jenkinson Lake. It was so beautiful, lots of pine trees and emerald green warm water! I was a little hesitant to book here as most people I talked to had never heard of it. What a nice surprise! It’s also very close to the Bay Area. I already booked for next year to secure a lakeside view site.
We arrived at sunset after a 2 1/2 hour drive in 100 degree heat. The cooler mountain air felt great! We learned it’s harder to set up camp in the dark than we thought, but we did it.(Note! Find the closet bathroom before the sun sets! It wasn’t fun looking for the bathrooms in the dark.) Jenkinson lake is true camping, no showers and pit toilets! We broke out the Kelty Blockhouse privacy changing shelter and the Helio Pressure Shower. We both agreed this is one of our smartest buys. It’s also great for dish washing when you don’t have water right at the site. We used it a ton on this trip!
We mostly spent our days sitting by the lake and rowing around in our kayak. We tried out the paddle board rentals and we think that’s a great deal. Only $60 for the day.We went searching for the best sites near where we were staying and the ones we like areSierra 67, 68, 69, 70. We hiked over to the pine cone area to photograph sunset and liked sites 10, 12, 14 there as well. All are lakeside water view sites. see map for site locations:
Jenkinson Lake is very dog friendly. Although dogs are not allowed in the lake water, they can ride in the boats. We kept hearing a lot about the waterfall but didn’t make it there. Next time!Note- Safeway is right off the freeway on your way in. There is also a great little market across the street from the lake entrance that had a good selection of necessities.
Here are some of our favorite pics from this trip:
