Tuttletown Recreation Area

Summary

Tuttletown Recreation Area offers visitors a wide variety of activities from fishing to rock climbing, and is surrounded by plenty of natural beauty and other attractions. Facilities and amenities are available, including flush toilets, showers, water spigots, picnic tables, fire rings, and fish cleaning station. The area has a Mediterranean climate, offering visitors warm and dry summers, and cool and wet winters.

Overview

Tuttletown Recreation Area is located at New Melones Lake on the Stanislaus River. The 12,500 surface-acre lake is the fourth largest reservoir in California and is situated along the edge of the Mother Lode, the rich gold vein that prompted the California Gold Rush of 1849. At an elevation of 1100 feet, the Foothill Oak Woodlands hug the 100 miles of shoreline.

Popular activities on and around the large lake include fishing, boating, water skiing, wake boarding, jet skiing, sailing, swimming, kayaking, canoeing, wildlife viewing, rock climbing, hiking, biking, and picknicking. The New Melones Visitor Center offers year-round interpretive events and a museum highlighting natural and cultural resources.

 

*COMING APRIL 2021: A new disc-golf course is being constructed and will be available for play! 

Recreation

Hiking, fishing, wakeboarding, waterskiing, boating, sailing and biking are just some of the activities available in Tuttletown Recreation Area. Equestrian trails are also present in the Peoria Wildlife Mitigation Area and open for the general public. Camping is also permitted in designated campsites.

Other interesting sites include Natural Bridges, which can be accessed from Parrott's Ferry Road. It has a hiking trail and creek that flow through a marble cave. The Table Mountain Trail provides visitors an opportunity to hike to the top of an extensive lava flow which occurred over nine million years ago.

Facilities

The campground provides modern conveniences like flush toilets, showers and water spigots. Visitors will also find a fish cleaning station and electric vehicle charging station in the Lupine day use area. Picnic tables and fire rings are provided at each campsite.

Recreation Area gates close at:

9:00pm: October 1 – March 31

10:00pm: April 1 – Memorial Day (May)

11:00pm: Memorial Day (May) – Labor Day (September)

10:00pm: Labor Day (September) – September 30

Natural Features

New Melones Lake is located in Northern California between the historic gold rush towns of Sonora and Angels Camp. The terrain varies from rolling hills to steep marble cliffs, and the vegetation consists of oaks, Ponderosa pines, chamise and buckbrush shrubs.

Visitors can experience the beauty of New Melones by hiking the many trails in the Tuttletown and Glory Hole Recreation Areas.

The climate is Mediterranean with warm, dry summers and cool, wet winters. For those who wish to venture outside the main recreation areas, there are many unique places to visit. Overall, the geography is quite varied and provides many opportunities for all types of recreation.

Nearby Attractions

Tuttletown Recreation Area is surrounded by countless places of natural beauty, including Natural Bridges, Camp Nine, Yosemite National Park, Stanislaus National Forest, Moaning Caverns, Big Trees State Park and Columbia State Park.

Angels Camp Museum, Calaveras County Museum and Sonora Military Museum provide great opportunities for learning interesting information about the area.

Surrounding communities are popular vacation and retirement destinations and provide necessary services and shopping opportunities. Golfing, snow skiing, river rafting, commercial caves, historical railroad and Native American museums are also located nearby.

Charges & Cancellations

All site changes and cancellations need to be done through the Recreation.gov website.