Vista Del Lago Visitor Center — Attraction in California

This is one of SoCal’s best kept secrets for parents with young children! We were looking to do something new this Memorial Day, so made this our first stop on a somewhat whacky day trip.

The Vista del Lago Visitors Center (I’ve seen it elsewhere called an interpretive center) is right in the beautiful Pyramid Lake! You get great views of the lake and the many boaters and water skiers below.

Though it’s not called it, this place is a water museum. Since it’s free, I was expecting something along the lines of the King Gillette Ranch Visitors Center it the Placerita Canyon Nature Center... but room after room, this place kept going! Most parents of toddlers will appreciate the many buttons to push! There are some very fun activities too! There was a nice movie going that had large plastic animals the kids could sit on. There’s even an observation deck for even better lake views! There’s also a large theater, but there wasn’t a presentation when we were there. On the way out, kids are free to take paper hats, bracelets and more!

A great place to take kids! Don’t get me wrong... it’s not Disneyland nor The Natural History Museum, but for a FREE Museum, it’s the best I can think of at the moment!

There are many other things to do not too far from here to check out. There are also restrooms and...

Great views and friendly personnel. My visit was in the afternoon the day before Thanksgiving, 2014, and as I was leaving, a man with a family group stumbled and fell, cutting his forehead pretty badly on a cement object near the entrance to the building. Being first-aid/CPR trained, I offered assistance, and the guard gave me their first-aid kit to help the poor hurt gentleman. A little cleaning up and several butterfly bandages, and the man was ready for his ride to a doctor for stitches. It was wonderful that the Visitors Center had the first-aid kit right there, available for an emergency such as this. Rarely if ever needed, when they ARE needed, First Aid Kits are crucial to mitigating the effects of an unintended injury such as this. The staff were great, caring and helpful. I called the Vista Del Lago Visitors Center just after Christmas to follow up, and they had already restocked their first aid kit to stay prepared! Good going!...

Often overlooked by drivers crossing over the mountains to Los Angeles or the Kern basin the Vista Del Largo Center is a great place to take your kids to learn about the water needs of California. There are many interactive displays and the views from the center of Pyramid Lake are awesome. It's an easy turn off as you cross over the mountains but it's easy to pass up if you're not looking for it. This would be a great place to take School tours to learn about water lessons that are often in many English reading curriculum at this time. If you have the opportunity I strongly suggest you stop and take a look at this great display provided by the national park system. I will also try to post the video presented on the California map that I took while I visited...