Jackson Meadows Reservoir - Tahoe National Forest

The Tahoe National Forest is northwest of Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California and spans across Sierra, Placer, Nevada, Yuba, Plumas, and El Dorado counties. People come in crowds and hoards to Lake Tahoe itself, a quite famous destination for locals and visitors alike. Some go for the excitement of the towns and casinos while enjoying views or visits to the lake; others may go for the more natural scenery experience away from the tourists and tumult to see the lake from the serenity of its surrounding forests. Either way, lodging is hard to come by and very expensive, and campers have few options unless they start heading north. What campers may not know about are a dozen or more campgrounds north of Interstate 80 in the Tahoe National Forest, within an hour and a half of Lake Tahoe. Also less known is that this national forest is a destination in itself, with dozens of lakes and reservoirs, outdoor recreation opportunities, and pristine mountain environments.

One of the larger lakes in the area is the Jackson Meadows Reservoir. There are eight campgrounds to choose from, picnic areas, boat launches, fun water activities, and nature viewing. The reservoir is surrounded by forests, rocky slopes, and beautiful montane meadows. So naturally, when the Sacramento-Shasta Chapter of The Wildlife Society planned a camping trip for its members on October 9, 2015, the organizer chose Jackson Meadows. Coming from Interstate 80, Jackson Meadows can be accessed from State Highway 89 north from the Town of Truckee (also a cool destination for those who have time to stop and check out the historic part of town). The turn-off is marked, and National Forest Road 07 is the route to the reservoir; but it is a little tricky to get on and stay on the right road. Our group camp was at Woodcamp Campground on the western side of the reservoir. I arrived just as it was starting to get dark and very easily passed the turn. I eventually found my way and settled into the campsite with my friends and fellow wildlife professionals for dinner, a fire, a party, a very cold night, and a bear noisily trying to break into our bear vault.

The next morning, three of us hiked down to the reservoir--two birders and a botanist. We started at a sandy beach with scattered rocks, wood debris, and tree trunks. Then it dawned on me that the beach we were walking on was the lakebed itself. Still in the drought of 2015, the water level of the reservoir was extremely low.
Parts of the lakebed had hues of green algae on dark soil, and part of the reservoir looked more like a river than a lake.

Montane meadow (in the distance) by the reservoir

We passed a boat ramp that would launch the boat into dry sand. But rather than trip about the drought, we had a meadow to hike and birds and plants to see. As we walked beyond the reservoir into a rather wet and swampy meadow, I suddenly remembered I had been there before. When surveying for great gray owls back in 2005, this was one of the survey sites. Great gray owls nest and roost in the trees and forage in mountain meadows. Most of that work was done at night, and I recall--being the klutz that I am--tripping and falling into one of these swampy meadows.

White pelican

One-seeded pussy paws (Calyptridium monospermum)
is found throughout the Tahoe National Forest

We took our time and hiked about three miles, halfway around the reservoir. There were geese, a white pelican, woodpeckers, nuthatches, and many interesting plants and flowers. It was a long and rewarding walk; but at the end, I was pretty winded and happy to return to camp and chill. In the evening, we had a big group potluck and sat around the fire playing Cards Against Humanity--nothing more fun than wrong humor after a very right kind of day. We spent another night in our cold tents, had a grand potluck breakfast in the morning, and eventually needed to strike camp and leave the beautiful forest to return to the city. It was not only a needed getaway for me. After traveling much of the United States and several other countries, I still say California's Sierra Nevada ranks as one of the most beautiful places on earth. I am fortunate that for most of my life, I either lived near or in these mountains and spent countless precious days there.