Icehouse Reservoir

Wanting to escape the 100+ degree heat in Sacramento, my Dad and I decided to head up to the foothills. We took our two kayaks and made our way to Icehouse Resevoir for the afternoon. Located off highway 80, about an hour and half from Sacramento, Icehouse Resevoir was so serene and beautiful.It cost $8 to park a car at the boat launch parking lot. There were a variety of watercraft there but it was NOT overwhelming (like it is at Folsom Lake). The boats and jet skis were small and everyone was very courteous out on the water. There were other kayakers, sail boats, and paddle boats. Lots of families and dogs swimming (there are campsites on the reservoir). The water was cool but not as cold as I anticipated. There are lots of spots to pull up on shore and jump in the water or enjoy a picnic. Just remember: what you bring in, bring out. There are trash and recyclable bins located in the parking lot near the boat ramp. An absolutely beautiful afternoon out on the water, surrounded by the towering trees and clear blue sky.

Icehouse Resevoir is located on Icehouse Road in Pollack Pines, California. As a child, my parents would take us kids trout fishing on the lake, but my father would always tell us that the lake was also stocked with German Browns. Unfortunately I still haven't been luckily enough to catch on of those elusive bugger's(German Brown trout is a larger variety of fish) . My siblings and I often made time to swim in the clear mountain water. Ah! So many wonderful childhood memories!Not much has changed since my last visit. The lake is beautiful as ever ! The lake itself is 700 acres surrounded by the "Eldorado National Forest" at an elevation of 5500 feet. The lake offers camping, fishing, boating, hiking /biking trails, picnic area's & restroom's. There is even a little resort as you make your way up Icehouse Road. Here you'll find a restaurant, gas, and groceries.It's nice to get away for a little R&R. Take a deep breath of clean mountain air and appreciate nature's wonder's ! Enjoy !

October 2018The reservoir was so low! I'm amazed as all the reservoirs down south are full. It's sad to see such a beautiful body of water surrounded by walls of dirt that was once covered with water. There was lots of parking! RV parking available here for rigs that are too big for the campgrounds. Surrounded by amazing trees and foliage. Hopefully the winter will bring this reservoir more water for locals and tourists to enjoy.

Hats anyone??? Last time we spent time in our canoe our noses got sunburned so big hats were in order for this outdoor adventure. We loved this reservoir and spent hours here.  It wasn't crowded and we were able to see and catch trout here. The trout here are big too. We actually could see the trout when standing on the shore. We panned for gold here but we found no gold only fools gold, swam, played in the dirt, canoed, and fished. It was a great place to relax and cool down at. This reservoir is big so you can find plenty of places to enjoy the water and nature without feeling crowded. We saw ducks here. We also saw many runers run on the dirt road.The only down side is that there is no restrooms nearby. When coming to this reservoir bring lots of food, water, sunblock, and bait with you.

Awesome place to ride our jet skis. It was never full. Plenty of shade. No need to bring a canopy. Water was very clean. There are picnic tables and bbq's. Restrooms were filthy. The smell of urine was so strong it burned my nostrils. That is my only complaint about this place.

The resort restaurant staff is absolutely terrible. We asked for chiken strips and on the menu (and our recipe) it says it brings 4. So the waiteress comes out with only 3. When we point it out to her and the cook from the back comes up and sais they measure them by the oz. We told her it was on the menu like that, she raises her hand up and sais "I'm not going to argue with you." And leaves. Then as we pay she makes a smart remark about how we all received separate checks as the waitress brings them to us. It does say no separate checks on the menu, but mined you we didn't ask for it, the waitress offers it to us. Again we try to explain what happend and she has the audacity to call US rude and say that we should have insisted she put them all on one check. So over all shitty food thats over priced with shitty staff who tries to fuck you over on top of it. Perfect.

Great place for anyone looking to get away and camp. Roughly an hours drive to South Tahoe and Desolation Wilderness. Stayed at campsite 52. Large and spacious site next to the restrooms with a lakeside view.