Loch Lomond Recreational Area

love the place. been going since 1966. whenever going anywhere out of town call ahead people. then you won’t waste a trip. don’t put zero stars for your own stupidity for such a fine place.

CLOSED DUE TO DROUGHT! DO NOT GO! We drove all the way up there, using the worst directions ever from Waze, and found closed gates. They are closed until drought conditions improve, which isn’t going to be anytime soon. There was a worker there taking the trash out and said many people show up every day because no one seems to know it’s no longer open. When it is actually open, it get at least 4 stars.

I love coming to lock Lomond, rent the paddle boats and have a picnic. It’s so beautiful, and peaceful out there. The fishing use to be a lot better when I was younger, now the only thing you might catch is a tiny blue gale. Overall my experience has always been great.

Beautiful, peaceful place. No stress for parking. Although finding your way there may be a bit confusing.

Closed! Zero Stars!
That’s odd, we thought, as we saw the first sign. Closed, it said. But the website said they were open in March? Well, we’re only 20 minutes away, we may as drive all the way. Closed, closed, closed, the signs said. Ominous.
Finally, after almost an hour of driving with a van filled with camping and fishing equipment we pull up to the gate. Closed.

I go here all the time because I live in Felton. I have had many good times here and a few bad. It’s very hard to catch fish here, there is a women who works as a ranger and is sometimes in the lower store and she is very rude and not helpful. The people in the top booth are always nice, friendly and helpful. The man that’s in the lower store most of the time is awesome.
They sell out of electric boats most of the time so you need to get there early and always call ahead.
Loch Lomond is fun over all and is beautiful!!! Kid Friendly, but not dog friendly, I remember when you could bring your own boat without all the fees, it was much more easy going and simple back then.
10 years ago I would have given it ⁵⁄₅ 110% but it goes down every year now. Sadly :(

Finally checked out a new to me place: Loch Lomond Recreational Area in Felton. It’s about 1hr20min from Fremont, took forever cuz it’s windy on Hwy 17 & getting to Loch Lomond Way you have to drive around residential homes up in the woods, very windy, some blind curves. Scary drive.
Parking is $ 4 per vehicle, no senior discount. We parked by the Glen Corrie Picnic Area where there’s restrooms. Women’s had 5 flushed toilets/​2 sinks with soap & mirror. Seat covers by the sink u gotta bring into the stalls!
No Swimming because the water is their drinking water! Fishing is ok.
We did the Big Trees Nature Trail less than 1 mi loop, a bit steep, but most people can do it. See some old Redwood Trees. Meh to me.
Then we did Loch Lomond Loop around 5 mi. We had lunch at Deer Flat Picnic Area where there were benches & picnic table & 1 pit toilet that looked pretty clean. Nice view at the top to see the lake & there’s some weather stations up there.
We couldn’t do the entire loop, there was a sign for «Detour hornet activity», bogus, had to take a longer route on a hot day.
We made it onto the Island in the middle of the lake, picnic area is called Clar Innis. You can walk if it’s not flooded, or boat in.
Walked to the Park Store — it’s really just a shack that sells live bait for fishing, candy for $ 1, chips, soda.
Walked back to the car.
We stayed from 10am-​3pm. Worth going at least once.
Open daily from March 1 thru Labor Day & Weekends Only after Labor Day thru the 2^nd Weekend in October. Closed after that until next spring due to bad weather in the winter.
Boats are due off the lake 1hr prior to closing.

Went fishing here today. Didn’t rent a boat or anything just brought some foldable chairs and found a spot along the shore. Got there about 7am and there was a few other cars there.
My brother caught 20 fish, a mix of sunfish and bass. My husband caught 15. I caught 3 lol. I spent most of the day lounging though so I blame it on that.
I am sure we will be back — this place is gorgeous and had some good fishing!

absolutely beautifull place
love to visit again

What:
— Artificial lake reservoir in Santa Cruz
— Hiking
— Boating
— Fishing
— Island in the lake to which one can travel by boat
More Info:
— $ 4/​car entrance fee (Free after 4pm)
— Five car parking spots
— Restrooms near the car parking spots
— Several picnic areas with BBQ pits
— Park store inside
— Free trail map inside the park store
— No swimming in the lake
— Link to the trail map —
On a late Saturday afternoon, we planned to go hiking with friends to the Loch Lomond Recreation Area. After a little over an hour’s drive through the flexuous roads of the Santa Cruz mountains, we reached the Loch Lomond Recreation Area. The drive made my stomach a bit queasy. We did not know that parking was free after 4pm until we reached there and saw that the ticket booth was unmanned.
We took a break at the Glen Brae Picnic Area to drink maté (Argentinean tea), eat snacks and chocolates and then headed over to the Park Store to enquire about boating. The boat rental prices are quite economical. Pedal boat is $ 5/​hour and motor boat is $ 10/​hour with a minimum of 2 hours of rental. There is a boat launch pad right next to the Park Store. A couple of snakes were caged inside a glass box and placed in the Park Store.
Loch Trail — Highland Loop
Length: ~5 miles; Elevation: 1100 feet; Time: 3 hours; Difficulty: Moderately Strenuous
We started our hike on the Loch Trail at the Park Store and continued on the narrow trail along the lake, noticing several coves along the lake such as Cunningham Cove and MacGregor Cove. Clar Innis, the small island in the middle of the lake is probably reachable within a few minutes of boat ride. One can boat to the island, use the BBQ pits on the island and enjoy food in the middle of the pristine, beautiful lake. We definitely intend to return another day to take a boat to the island and enjoy a BBQ lunch on the island.
Loch Lomond Lake —
When we reached the MacGregor Cove, we noticed a few ducks paddling upside down with their heads underwater, forming circular ripples around them. It was such a cute sight.
Video of the ducks paddling upside down:
We continued to walk on the tapering Loch Trail along the lake, observing the Fir Cove and Huckleberry Cove until we reached the Deer Flat Picnic Area. There are a few benches here and a small dock on the lake. We spent some time enjoying the undisturbed lake and continued our hike on the Highland Trail.
The Highland Trail, which is paved on the mountains, runs parallel to the Loch Trail with no view of the lake. Although the trail was well shaded with trees on either sides, the steep ascends and descends made us all weary and sweaty. There were pesky flies all over the trail and we were waving our hands vigorously most of the time to keep them away. After reaching the highest elevation of the trail, about 1000 feet, a scenic point that revealed the view of the narrow lake amidst the lush trees knocked our eyes out.
View of the lake from highest elevation (~1000ft) of the trail —
Highland Loop trail —
The rest of the trail was so steep that every so often one of us in our group almost slipped while walking on the loose gravel. The park gates close at 8pm and as it was very close to 8pm, we tried to finish the hike as quickly as possible. It would have been a nightmare had we not made it on time, especially because the cell reception was almost null. We finally reached the paved road just 10 minutes to 8pm and literally ran to our car and darted out of the park exactly 2 minutes before 8pm.
Tips:
— Bring lots of food and water if you plan to take the Loch — Highlands Loop
— If you are interested in BBQ, definitely take the boat to the Clar Innis island and enjoy a BBQ in the middle of the lake. The experience, I think will be unique
— Wear hiking shoes or bring hiking poles if you decide to take the Loch-​Highlands Loop because the trail is very slippery due to loose gravel
— Be aware that mountain lions linger in the forests here; we did not see any but be cautious of them
— Wear covered clothing because the Highland Loop trail has a lot of flies around

There is really NOTHING to complain about (amazing). Fishing: Nothing caught but it was warm and mid-​day, three hits in two hours. Trout was stocked earlier in 2012, also good for bass and catfish from what I heard. Boating: At 11am all boats with trolling motors were on the lake, but they had 8 boats with trolling motors (45 lbs thrust, 12V) good for 2 – 4 hs. Cannot bring inflatable on lake, just FYI. Staff was friendly and helpful, prices are reasonable. And above anything else, the reservoir is simply unbelievably beautiful.

***You cannot take your own canoe or kayak on this lake***
Pros:
* Friendly staff
* Beautiful scenery (redwoods, mountain backdrop)
*Allows dogs
*Cheap entry fee ($ 4.00)
*Many and varied sites for day use (BBQ grill, picnic table)
*Wasn’t crowded on Memorial Day
*Short drive from Santa Cruz
Cons:
*Can’t take your own canoe on the lake
*They charge $ 1.00 extra to bring your pooch in, but your pooch can’t ride in their rental boats (simple, metal boats)
*Can’t park next to the lake; access to the lake is on foot only (from parking lots on the hill above the lake)
*Aside from day use sites right on the lake (which are a far walk if you have lots of stuff), the day use sites don’t have a lake view.
*All the day use sites we went to were shaded by the trees, which made it chilly, even on a 70+ degree day.
*Road into the rec area is very narrow and curvy.
It’s a nice spot for families without a pet who want to spend the day and rent paddle boats (as long as they either don’t care for a lake view, or don’t mind hauling their stuff down the hill and down a trail to day use sites on the lake border (and then back up).
Not what we were looking for, unfortunately. Though we love the close proximity to where we live, we likely will never return.

This place is awesome and tucked away deep in the redwoods. I love it. Packed on the weekends. You can’t put your own boat in the water. You must rent or just walk the shore. Pretty scenery. Rangers are very on top of the ticket scene and they use binoculars.

The World According to Noelle
Allergic Girl’s Guide to Life
Ages ago it was a family tradition to come to Loch Lomond and go fishing. Came here last Sunday with my husband and rented a row boat. We were lucky and scored parking in the parking lot nearest to the water.
They ran out of battery operated boats so we opted for the row boat. We had lunch on the lake on our row boat. I spied the small island in the middle of Loch Lomond that my family would picnic and fish.
Everything was beautiful, serene, peaceful and calm. At times the current was super strong. We had a great time paddling around the lake and definitely will be back again. I have read the other reviews and its a shame they haven’t restocked the lake for fishing.
Noelle’s Notes
This is a great place to get away from it all and just be still.

The fiancé and I discovered this place on a whim. We were at home on a Saturday afternoon, after sleeping in most of the morning, and we wanted to get outside and do something. After doing a search online for a hiking trail that met all of our requirements: shady & dog-​friendly, we decided on Loch Lomond. The directions it gives you online is a little vague so I’d recommend using your smart phone to navigate, although the reception is a little weak on the drive up. It definitely is a hidden gem! The drive up here is SUPER windy and twisty, so if you get carsick easily, this might not be the best place to come. You’ll start to grumble and complain that the drive feels like a journey to Narnia [Are we there yet?] but once you get up to the top and see the view, the utter beauty will shut you right up.
You can hike, fish, picnic, BBQ or go boating. They have paddle boats and row boats you can rent out for pretty cheap! The trails are awesome and scenic. Definitely one of our top favorite hiking trails! You could probably come hiking out there on a hot day and still manage to stay cool with all the tree cover you get from the redwoods and various trees. Also, there’s an island in the middle of the lake that you can boat to. I haven’t had a chance to go boating but it’s on the list of things to do when we come back here! One thing I must mention: NO alcohol is allowed here folks. So leave your keg at home.

Pros: Absolutely gorgeous scenery. Plenty of shade. Picnic & bbq areas. Various boat rentals. Very peaceful (no gas powered boats or jet skis, etc). Pretty good bass fishing. Lots of scenic trails.
Cons: they haven’t planted trout for a couple years, which means trout fishing is pretty non-​existant. The boat rentals aren’t cheap (though not outrageous) & the boats themselves are kind of crappy (you’re better bringing your own canoe or kayak).

No fish, shitty expensive boats. The trails are slippery and steep, not for the elderly. Lots of animal poop everywhere. Its always windy. No alcohol is allowed, my friend got arrested for having 1 unopened beer when they inspected his backpack.

What a beautiful park! If it wasn’t for the windy drive, I would totally give it a 5 star!
The lake is absolutely beautiful, the glittering sunshine reflecting off the lake — so breathtaking! There’s also a tiny island in the middle of the lake, and I had the pleasure of visiting today after running into Aaron L. The island is equipped with a dock for you to park your boat, BBQ grills and picnic tables!
The park also has boat rental. They have motor boat, pedal boat and row boat. The motor boats are $ 10/​hour an the motor boats & pedal boats are $ 5/​hour with a 2 hour minimum. Reasonable price! The park store also sells fishing equipments, rod rentals, and temporary fishing licenses!
The park has plenty of picnic areas scattered throughout the hiking trails. Some parts of the hiking trails (especially the park right next to the lake) are quite narrow. The hike is easy to moderate — not a whole lot of ups and downs, and the trails are mostly shaded!
The park is full of wild lives — water birds, amphibians… some lizards… and apparently mountain lions, too!

This year Loch Lomond will inspect your boat for Zebra Mussels and store it for a fee! This is great news. Of course, you can only use your boat on Loch Lomond, but I see this as a huge plus.
The fees seemed reasonable; about $ 200 per boat to store, a $ 25 cleaning fee, and a pass fee (about $ 100).
Loch Lomond is the best kept secret in the Santa Cruz Mountains. I am really looking forward to restarting my Saturday and Sunday morning kayaking routines.

Beautiful, verdant scenery complete alien to the Santa Cruz Mountains. Trees descending slopes down to the water’s edge, a great place to picnic or fish (you’ll have to rent a boat there, however.) I consider the mountains here relatively dry, without many bodies of water, so this is a nice little gem.
It’s a little bit out of the way, but not all that far from Scotts Valley. There is a small island with docks for picnicking. Boat rentals are reasonable, and while the electric motors are, well, slow, they are quiet. The fact that everyone has the same puny motor really adds to the serenity of the lake.