#43 Emeralds Among The Pines

Sly Creek Reservoir &
Little Grass Valley Lake;
Plumas National Forest
530-675-1146 or 530-534-6500

Sly Creek is 14 miles south of La Porte
on La Porte Rd.
Little Grass Valley Lake is 2 miles north
of La Porte.

After driving only 45 minutes from Oroville, we were awestruck to discover Sly Creek Reservoir, a beautiful, emerald-hued, 562 surface-acre lake, resting among the pines at 3,500 feet elevation.

Two campgrounds with less than fifty total campsites serve Sly Creek, one with stunning views of the lake, and the other (Strawberry) nestled in the forest where we could hear the creek flowing only a few feet from our campsite. We couldn't decide which campground we liked best. Both have their charms.

Open to small boats, Sly Creek has one paved launch ramp and one cartop launch.

Little Grass Valley Lake, a 1,615 surface-acre lake, sits at 5,040 feet elevation and has several forested campgrounds with over 300 campsites, plus three paved launch ramps.

Rainbow, brook, and brown trout fishing is good at both lakes, and swimming, picnicking, hiking and gold panning are all enjoyed.

A special treat the day we were there was seeing the brilliant red snow plant, which blooms on the heels of the melting snow, usually in late May. It grows at elevations 4,000 to 8,000 feet.