Oakdale Recreation Area — Attraction in California

This small but beautiful recreation park was a place that I frequented, to go fishing, the diverse people's from all over the country. And the scenery of course, you can't leave that out. That is until they burn it all up and put 1,000 boulder's around the entire area and any parking spots along the road. Cutting off nearly all use of any convenient parking spots along the river. Some of these spots were amazing and full of wildlife and flowers and I caught 2 of the biggest fish I'd ever caught. But they torched it to clear out the over growth and in my opinion (and others) to clear out the homeless population underneath it and I haven't caught a fish on the Stanislaus river since. 'Fishy' But it is still beautiful, just in a different way. It's quiet and there's not a lot of traffic for the most part. I add...

There are lots of animals nice people and the river is there. To get to the Oakdale rec area ..if you're coming from Oakdale you turn left at River Rd and it's right down the street you turn left and follow that Rd all the way down through the gate...if you're coming from escalon Manteca area you take highway 120 towards Oakdale/Yosemite natl park turn right at River Rd and same directions. If you follow it all the way to the end there's good fishing and a family of river otters IT DOES NOT COST...

This is a beautiful place but one of the problems that I have encountered I'm sure many people have but have not had the guts to say anything but I will say it is that there's lots of homeless encampments being built along the river! I understand that the homeless don't have anywhere to go families go there to take their kids on a walk but do not go to a certain spot because it has a full encampment that has been there for months and all they can do...