Fallen Leaf Lake — Attraction in South Lake Tahoe

Let me preface this by saying I’ve been camping 2-4 times a year for 20 years and have never felt like I was being profiled at campsites by park rangers or workers. But coming here I definitely felt like my family and I were not welcome. The workers were not kind or helpful. We thought it was “just the way they are” NOPE. Big nope. They were really friendly and kind to other ppl.we were one of the only ethnic families I saw at the campsite. The pointing and stares and looks from ppl are enough to make anyone uncomfortable when we’re literally just camping. Like everyone else. I wouldn’t have expected to feel so uncomfortable when we’re trying to create good times in a beautiful area. We got complaints over noise . We went to sleep at 9. Even tho the noise ordinance stopped at 10. Regardless I still wanted to abide by the rules because that’s what you do when you camp. Someone complains you’re making noise and you stop making noise because you’re sharing a space . It’s common sense really. But there were many a times that the workers would watch our area in specific just waiting for us to make a mistake. There were ppl riding their bikes into our campsite. Laughing and throwing trash into our site when we left. I have never ever felt so othered as a P.O.C trying to camp. Ever. The bathrooms were ok. They do charge 1 dollar for 3minutes of shower time which I thought was a little ridiculous but what was even worse was that the showers would be cold so that sucked. The lake is beautiful and regardless of my experience there I’ll be back because I’m not going to let ignorant ppl run me and my family out of an area we paid to be at and I’m not going to let anyones perception of who we are ruin us wanting to see our countries beautiful sites. Disappointing to say the least. And I don’t mean the lake which...

Fallen Leaf Lake was GORGEOUS and we chose it because it's nice to not have the crowds that Lake Tahoe has. We tried to paddleboard across the lake, but (1) that's a looong way actually!, and (2) the wond picked up slightly making it choppy/harder to paddleboard.

Motors were allowed, but tons of paddleboards and kayaks. The water can get quite choppy whej the wind picks up! The water itself is pretty clear as you can see the stuff atvthe bottom until you get to a certain depth.

Fallen Leaf Lake has a tiny little general store right by check-in booth but never made it inside with so many other things to do. Nice to know though. There are over 200 campsites here, but quite spread out and relatively quiet given the attendance -- we were all very pleasantly surprised! (Apparently wood bundles are $9 each though, not bad.)

Also most camp sites its a hike from the water so be prepared to drop off your stuff at the Lake and take your car back. Best drop-off point we found was between sites #74 & #75 to carry stuff up and over that hill, but be advised that it is UP & OVER...it was longer than I thought trying to carry two paddleboard backpacks and a bag of snacks. Multiple trips would've been smarter if I had the manpower to have someone stay at both ends with the stuff.

BE AWARE ⚠️🚨it's BEAR COUNTRY 🐻, and mismanagaing your food storage and clean up is considering baiting a bear which comes with a huge fine...think it was $5000 but details are in the on-site signage (believe I took a pic of it for...

I read the previous reviews before visiting this lake, and I assure you it's really a hidden gem in the dense forest around South Lake Tahoe. It is not as commercialized as Lake Tahoe so you will most likely find lesser crowd, especially during morning hours. There is very limited free parking space in front of the lake but if it's full, you might find it hard to even reverse your car.

Let me warn you in advance that the route to this lake is very narrow and Google maps wasnt very clear on it. A single lane used for 2 way purpose with the risk of falling off the cliff if driver isn't careful. Maybe that's why crowd is limited. However, other drivers were cooperative and we could reach safely. There's another overflow parking half a mile before. If you have a bicycle, park the car here and ride till the lake. Overall, its a must visit. Please reach early.

Kayaking and boating is cheaper here than in Lake Tahoe. Very few people mostly near the shore so you might have the deep waters to yourself. Water was crystal clear ideal for a swim. There's not much space to sit in front of the lake. Hardly any beach area. You may want to hangout in the cafe...