Camp Nelson Lodge — Hotel in Porterville

The Camp Nelson Lodge is a wonderful, luxurious place to stay in the High Sierra. If you love exploring the wildnerness, but appreciate a soft bed and warm shower at the end of the day, this place is perfect for you. I have come to expect run-down, shabby, inferior places up in the mountains, but the Camp Nelson Lodge was a very pleasant surprise. ||||Amenities: We stayed in room #6, a generous sized room with a glorious high vaulted ceiling. There was even enough room for me to spread out and do yoga in the morning. The bathroom was quite large, and the shower was fabulously spacious with good strong water pressure. The furnishings were tasteful, with a rustic bed, chair and couch. There was a nice fireplace in the room with a carved wooden mantle as well. The bed was heaven~ huge, comfy, with lots of big luxurious feather pillows, soft cotton sheets and a beautiful quilt. ||There is no AC, but you won't need it. There is a fan and it cools off nicely in the evening at this altitude. There is a heater and fireplace in the room.||The room has no phone, no TV, and no hair dryer. ||||The main lodge building was divine. Gladie, the manager, gave us a tour and related the history of the lodge. The grounds are beautiful, with flowers blooming and a green lawn where the deer come out of the forest to graze. The rooms are in a separate building in the back away from the road, and they all have a view of the lawn and grounds. ||||Meals: There is a very cute old-fashioned diner in the main lodge building, but it was closed when we were there. The manager said it may open soon, so check with her when you make reservations. ||There is no cooking in the room, but there is a small coffee maker, so you could make cup of soup or oatmeal. There is a nice fridge in the room so bring stuff for sandwiches and salads. There is a general store right across the street, where you can find basic supplies (and ice cream!), also a small tavern so stop in for a cold drink. There's a coffee shop eleven miles up the road in Ponderosa that serves tasty hot sandwiches. ||||Activities: hiking trails abound, we saw many people riding bikes, and we saw motorcycle trails on road 22S05. Trout fishing is great up here. Go rock climbing on the Needles. Explore the many streams and waterfalls, or check out the swimming holes in the Tule River. We visited three sequoia groves, including the awesome Trail of 100 giants. This is a great location for birdwatching, we saw Western Bluebirds in Parker Meadow. Wildflowers are abundant. Tour back roads of the area by car, and take advantage of countless photography opportunities. In autumn, the quaking aspens and black oaks are incredibly beautiful. Winter brings cross country skiing and snow play. ||||You will benefit from buying the national forest service map "sequoia national forest", it shows all the roads, streams and rivers, campgrounds, towns etc. And all sequoia groves are clearly marked. ||||Location: from the 99, take hwy 190 from Porterville, up into the Sequoia National Monument. There are many groves of giant sequoia trees here, with less tourists than Yosemite or the Giant Forest area of Sequoia National Park. ||Gas is available nearby in Ponderosa. ||||Summary: We will definitely stay in this incredible lodge again. The manager, Gladie, is very professional and helpful, and just one of the nicest folks I have met up in the mountains. Comfort, oh yes, we slept like babies. It was also very clean.||My favorite thing about our stay was sitting on the balcony in the evenings, watching the deer play in the yard. Ordinarily I would never be out at nightfall in the sierras because the mosquitos are brutal. But there were bats flying back and forth all night happily devouring thousands of mosquitos. The bats did not pay any attention to us at all, and I didn't get one mosquito bite. This just might be the most peaceful and relaxing...

We stayed here in the off-season (winter) for a long weekend away. The building is really beautiful and in a serene, quiet location. The room was very nice, with a big bed. The "Lodge" consists of a large office with fireplace & 60's-like diner. In the back of the property are many rooms. ||||HOWEVER, when we stayed there, the lodge was completely closed, including the diner. I never actually saw anyone who works there--our door was open when we got there, our bill was tacked onto the door when we left. Less of a lodge, more like a motel. We were never told that the lodge would be closed, and we were totally confused about how they could run a "lodge" with no one there. There was a phone number taped on the "lodge" door, but we had no phone service so couldn't call anyone. When my husband saw someone working on the property, he rushed over to talk to her, and she was quite rude to him. We mused one evening that, had we accidentally locked ourselves out of our room, we would have to spend the night in the car. Which is funny and ridiculous. How can they run a lodge without anyone working there? What if we had a problem--the toilet overflowing or something breaking in the room? We'd be entirely on our own. And for $375/2 nights, this place was NOT cheap! I understand that in the off season many things are closed or not running at full capacity, but that doesn't mean you can close the property, except for one room that you leave open for a guest. We thought it so strange that we spoke with neighbors about it, who said that the property is mainly rented out to religious groups who rent out the whole property. If they aren't going to provide service to people staying there, close the property. Definitely don't recommend coming here in...

I dont really understand the issues others have had. I guess it was a little weird not reserving on line, but Dave responded right back once I called and left a message. He and I then were able to text back and forth. No problems at all. Checking in, well, we made arrangements for a key. ||We stayed 2 nights and happened to be no other guests those two days. For us, it was perfect. So quiet and calm. The room we stayed at was the Giant Redwood and wow it was giant. It was a huge room with a beautiful rustic decor. Had a futon along with several very comfy chairs to relax and read. I loved that there was no TV!!! Great rocking chairs outside to enjoy the beautiful night. ||There was a lovely simple continental breakfast that was perfect right before a day of hiking.||The bad things, the shower was pretty small and the carpet needed some help. (I think the bed was tilted a bit too maybe) The tavern across the street, if you are there on a Thursday make sure to reserve a dinner spot. Otherwise after I think it's just pizza there. And the next town that had food, about an hours drive. WiFi was really bad in the area, but we were in the wilderness so put the phone down! ;) ||Would stay again for sure. Again, loved the scenery, the lodge and grounds would be just perfect for a wedding...