Location: County: Merced. Nearest City: Gustine.
Campsites, facilities: Basalt: There are 79
sites for tents or RVs. Piped water, fire grills, and picnic
tables are provided. Flush toilets, showers, a dump station,
and a boat ramp are available. A grocery store, laundry facilities,
and propane gas are nearby (about 1.5 miles away). The facilities
are wheelchair accessible. Leashed pets are permitted. Madeiros:
There are 350 primitive sites for tents or RVs. Some shaded ramadas
with fire grills and picnic tables are available. Piped water
and chemical toilets are available. A boat ramp is nearby. Leashed
pets are permitted. San Luis: There are 53 sites for tents
or RVs with electrical and water hookups. Fire pits, picnic tables,
and pit toilets are provided. A dump station is nearby at Basalt
Camp. Leashed pets are permitted.
Reservations, fees: Basalt: Phone 1-800-444-PARK/7275
($7.50 reservation fee); $12-$16 per night, $1 pet fee. Madeiros:
No reservations; $7-$10 per night, $1 pet fee. San Luis:
Reservations are required; $15 per night, $1 pet fee.
Contact: Phone the San Luis Reservoir SRA at 1-209-826-1196
or fax 1-209-826-0284.
San Luis Reservoir SRA
31426 Gonzaga Road
Gustine CA 95322-9737
Operating hours, seasons: Day use hours 1/2 hour before
sunrise to 10:00 pm. Boating 1/2 hour before sunrise to sunset.
Camping, check-in 2:00 pm, check-out noon; open all year round.
Directions: Basalt: From Los Banos, drive 12
miles west on Highway 152 to the entrance road. Turn left and
drive 2.5 miles to the campground. Madeiros: From Los
Banos, drive 12 miles west on Highway 152 to the intersection
of Highway 33. Turn north on Highway 33 and drive a short distance
to the campground entrance. San Luis: From Los Banos,
drive 15 miles west on Highway 152 to the signed entrance on
the right.
Weather, clothing: Summer temperatures here average
in the mid-90s and occasionally exceed 100 but evenings are usually
cool. Rainfall averages 8 to 9 inches a year, mostly between
November and April. In winter, temperatures seldom go below freezing,
and tule fogs are frequent.
Trip notes: Basalt: San Luis Reservoir is a
huge, man-made lake, covering 13,800 acres with 65 miles of shoreline.
It fills by late winter and is used primarily by anglers, water-skiers,
and windsurfers. When the Delta water pumps take the water, they
also take the fish, filling this lake up with both. Striped bass
fishing is best in the fall when the stripers chase schools of
bait fish on the lake surface. Spring and early summer can be
quite windy, but that makes for good windsurfing. The adjacent
O'Neill Forebay is the best recreation bet because of the developed
marina and often good fishing. Madeiros: This is a vast,
primitive campground set on the stark expanse of foothill country
near San Luis Reservoir. It is best known for wind in the spring,
hot weather in the summer, and low water levels in the fall.
Striped bass fishing is best in the fall when the wind is down
and stripers will corral schools of bait fish near the lake surface.
San Luis Campground: is located on Los Banos Creek near
San Luis Reservoir. It is adjacent to the reservoir and O'Neill
Forebay, home of the biggest striped bass in California, including
the world record for landlocked stripers.
© 2001, Miwok Lodge 439, Order of the
Arrow, Santa Clara County Council Inc., BSA
Revision 1.2
