The Northern California Camper
A RVer's Guide to the best Campgrounds in Northwestern California
by Daniel C. Merrill MD
Published in eBook format by eBookIt.com http://www.eBookIt.com
ISBN-13: 978-1-4566-0061-7
Copyright©2011 by Daniel C. Merrill MD All Rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without the permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review without prior consent by the author.
Disclaimers and/or Legal Notices The information presented herein represents the view of the author at the date of publication. Due to the rate at which conditions such as camping fees, telephone numbers, Email addresses and other pertinent information relating to campgrounds change, the author reserves the right to alter and update his opinions based on new conditions. While every attempt has been made to verify the information in this report to make sure it is accurate, neither the author nor any of his affiliates/partners assume any responsibility for errors, inaccuracies or omissions of any kind. This book is for informational purposes only.
About the Author
The Merrill brothers, Dr Merrill’s father and uncle, were pioneers of the Seven Day Adventist Colony in Eel Rock, California in 1933. Eel Rock is located on the banks of the wild and scenic North Fork of the Eel River, about 20 miles upriver from its junction with the South Fork at Dyersville.
Because of the educational limitations of this sparsely populated rural area, the Merrill’s ultimately moved to Myers Flat on the more populous South Fork of the Eel River in 1948. Dr Merrill graduated from the South Fork High school in 1955. He subsequently graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a degree in Physiology. Four years later, when Dr Merrill graduated from the University of Southern California Medical School, he became the first student from South Fork High School to become a MD.
After completed his internship and a year of surgical residency in California, Dr Merrill moved to Minnesota where he performed his Urology Residency at Minnesota Health Sciences Center in Minneapolis. After completing his residency, Dr Merrill performed a NIH special fellowship in Urology at the University of Minnesota and subsequently joined the staff of the Urology department at that institution.
In 1973 Dr Merrill was recruited by the University of California at Davis to administer their Urology training program at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Martinez California. Dr Merrill served as Chief of Urology in that institution until its closure for seismic considerations in 1991.
Dr Merrill and his family have a summer home on the banks of the Klamath River, about 30 miles upriver from its mouth, and have spent their vacations at this retreat for the past 36 years. This, of course, is right in the middle of Big Foot country.
Since retiring in 2001, Dr Merrill and his wife Tina have spent a large part of each summer exploring the numerous campgrounds in Northern California in their camper. The totality of his lifelong attachment to this beautiful part of the state gives the author a unique perspective of the area .
About This EBook
This web book does not attempt to cover all of the campgrounds in Northern California. Rather, I review only 66 of the hundreds that are to be found in the northern part of our state. Those not reviewed are primarily situated around the large manmade lakes in the middle and eastern part of the state. These campgrounds are frequented by fishermen who use boats with noisy outboard motors to fish for lake trout and the other fish that inhabit the lakes.
In any case, the 66 campgrounds I cover in this EBook include all of important RV campgrounds in the three most beautiful areas of California. About one third of these campgrounds are located along our beautiful coast in Marin, Sonoma and Mendocino counties. The remainder are found in the magnificent Redwood Empire and in Humboldt County’s Bigfoot country. I have a lifetime of experience in these areas and share it with you in this EBook.
With two notable exceptions, all of the campgrounds reviewed are owned and operated by the county, state or federal government. The reason for this, of course, is because government agencies own most of the scenic areas in our state. The private campgrounds, for the most part, are situated on less attractive parcels of land.
This 29,286 word EBook includes 98 colored photographs. I know that you will find that the pictures greatly enhance the informational value of the text describing the campgrounds.
As mentioned above, the EBbook is divided into three sections. The first section covers the 31 campgrounds located along the Northern California Coast. The second section deals with the 18 campgrounds situated in the Redwood Empire and the third section describes the 17 campgrounds to be found along, or close to, the banks of the Trinity, Klamath and Salmon Rivers in Bigfoot country.
Each section of the E book begins with a comprehensive introduction of the area reviewed. This discussion includes, not only what to look for, but more importantly, what to watch out for. For example, the treacherous one lane Salmon River Road which is unsafe for even the smallest RV! The introduction includes, points of interest (don’t miss the Women’s federation Grove in Southern Humboldt County); where to buy provisions; where to fuel up; when to visit and what kind of fishing tackle to use in the rivers and streams you will be camping near.
Each sections introduction is followed by table showing a summary of the campgrounds reviewed in the section as shown below.
The tables are followed by a map which shows the locations of the campgrounds reviewed in the section.
This map shows the approximate location of the campgrounds in Bigfoot Country
The tables and maps are followed by the reviews of each campground in the section. An example of a write up from each section is shown below.
10 Fish Lake (from the Bigfoot section)
Rating- 10/10
Campsites- 24, no hookups, RVs to 35 feet, open July to October Garbage disposal- yes Reservations- no Contact- Six Rivers National Forest 1(707) 442 1721 or 1(530) 627 3291
Camp host-yes Facilities- Each campsite has a picnic table and a fire ring with grill. The campground has restrooms with vault toilets. Well simply put, this is my favorite campground in Northern California! My family has been coming to this campground for over 30 years, even though we have a great place on the Klamath River only 30 miles away.
Everyone who visits us at our Mawah retreat wants to do one thing when they visit us the next year; they want to revisit Fish Lake. The serenity of this place is indescribable! In the fall when the other campgrounds on the Klamath River are crawling with fishermen, this beautiful place is literally empty. I hope the photographs will give you some idea of the beauty of Fish Lake.
The Lake is at the 1750-foot elevation and 4.9 miles of trails leading to the smaller Blue and Red Mountain lakes climb to 2750 feet. Except for exercise, these trails are not worth hiking to because Blue and Red Mountain lakes are small and covered with lily pads. On the other hand, the 1-mile trail around Fish Lake takes one through a forest wonderland. Everyone knows about the giant old growth Redwoods that may be found in Humboldt County; however, little press is given to the