EMIGRANT LANDING - BOAT RAMP

Emigrant Landing offers an eight-lane boat launching ramp, a marina with boat rentals, a beach, several picnic areas, and restrooms. Fishing is also accessible to Handicap and wheelchair users in this area of Pyramid Lake.

Directions

Emigrant Landing can be reached via Smokey Bear Road off-ramp from I-5. Exit Smokey Bear Road and head south on Pyramid Lake Road until you reach the Emigrant Landing parking lot and center.

Hours

Emigrant Landing is open daily from 7:00 a.m. to 7 p.m. The last boat launch is at 4 p.m. Boats must be on your trailer by 6 p.m. The gates close at 7 p.m.

PYRAMID LAKE

CAMPGROUNDS & PICNIC AREAS – BY BOAT

These campgrounds offer beaches and picnic areas that are only reachable by boat which makes them very unique. Fish, camp, swim, eat, relax, enjoy. See the Pyramid Lake map below to locate and visit these great destinations.

• Spanish Point
• Tin Cup
• Bear Trap
• Yellowbar
• Serrano
• Oak Flat

FISHING

You can fish everywhere at Pyramid Lake except on launch ramps, designated swimming areas, and docks. You can catch fish such as large-mouth bass, small-mouth bass, striped bass, blue gill, crappie, and trout.

Courtesy docks and a ramp leading from Parking Lot A to accessible fishing site are available.

A valid California State fishing license if you are 16 years or older is required. Please clean fish in the cleaning station located in Parking Lot B and please dispose of fish heads from the cleaning station.

BOATING & WATERSKIING

Boating speed limits differ in parts of the lake. Canoes, rubber rafts and rowboats are often seen in the canyons where power boats are restricted to low speeds. Higher speeds for waterskiing are allowed on the main body of the lake.

Boating speed limits differ in parts of the lake. In the canyons where many canoes and rafts are seen, power boats are restricted to low speeds. Higher speeds for waterskiing are allowed on the lake's main body.

Pyramid Lake is accessible via Interstate 5 at the Smokey Bear Road exit for Emigrant Landing.

Arrive early on weekends because the maximum number of boats at Pyramid Lake is set daily. Depending on the conditions, Lake Management will limit the number of watercraft to about 50 jet skis and 150 boats. When the limit is reached, those waiting to enter the Lake will be let in only as boats and jet skis leave the Lake.

The recreation program is administered by a concessionaire, Recreation Resource Management, operating under an agreement with the U.S. Forest Service. Phone:

(661) 295-7155

Pyramid Lake is accessible via Interstate 5 at the Smokey Bear Road exit for Emigrant Landing.

Arrive early on weekends because the maximum number of boats at Pyramid Lake is set daily. Depending on the conditions, Lake Management will limit the number of watercraft to about 50 jet skis and 150 boats. When the limit is reached, those waiting to enter the Lake will be let in only as boats and jet skis leave the Lake.

PYRAMID LAKE HISTORY

In 1843, gold was discovered near Pyramid Lake and in the Santa Feliciana Canyon, just south of what is now Pyramid Dam. But the small find failed to trigger a rush to the mountainous countryside. Only Francisco Lopes, owner of Rancho Temescal, a Mexican land grant, and a handful of ranchers attempted to settle the region.

Pyramid Lake and Dam, completed in 1973, were named after a pyramid-shaped rock carved out by engineers building the Old Highway 99. Travelers between Los Angeles and Bakersfield christened the landmark "Pyramid Rock," which still stands just adjacent to the dam.

Pyramid Lake is formed by Pyramid Dam on Piru Creek, near Castaic, California. The 180,000-acre-foot reservoir is in the southern portion of the Los Padres National Forest.

The 386-foot-tall earth and rock dam was built by the California Department of Water Resources and was completed in 1973. Pyramid Lake is part of the California Aqueduct, which is part of the California State Water Project.

Downstream is Castaic Lake, which is the terminus of the west branch of the aqueduct. Pyramid and Castaic act as the upper and lower reservoirs for a 1,495 megawatt pumped storage hydroelectric plant.

Pyramid Lake is the deepest lake in the California Water Project system.

VISITOR CENTER

Vista del Lago Visitor Center provides information about the SWP, Pyramid Lake, water conservation and many other topics of interest to Californians.

The Center is open daily free of charge to visitors who want to take a break from Interstate 5 traffic to learn about the California water system and experience awesome views of Pyramid Lake and the surrounding Angeles and Los Padres National Forest mountains from the Visitor Center Outdoor Deck. The deck offers the best vantage points for taking photographs of Pyramid Lake.

Pyramid Lake hours of operation, campground reservations, and boat rental information is available by calling the following number.

Vista Del Lago Visitor Center

Open daily between 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. except on Christmas, Thanksgiving, and New Year's Day.

(661) 944-8740