Tuttletown Recreation

The drive there (from Oakland) was fun, lots if curves and open road.
We reserved campground 151 and from the map we assumed we would be ideally close to the lake. Wrong. Lake is pretty much dried up, as the other reviewers mentioned. It was in a sad state.
For the most part the heat was the main complaint.
Then night time came — raccoons, fire ants, tarantulas, and more! The whole campground was basically a fire ant hill and/​or spider den.
Not the most scenic or ideal, but still camp worthy.

This is your typical dry lands campgrounds near a lake. Unfortunately, the ‘lake’ is now around 38% capacity, so there wasn’t much to swim in. It was very muddy and there were too many sharp rocks. You can literally see how high the lake used to be and well, the lake is in a sad, sad state.
It was 102 degrees around 2 PM when we checked in, but it cooled down at night, which we expected it to. Lots of tiny bugs and weird creepy crawlies, all typical of such campgrounds.
Some camp spots do not have any shade whatsoever. So if you reserve, make sure your spot has trees!
Our spot was fairly close to the restrooms which had showers in them. The toilets there flushes and the showers are .50 cents for 5 minutes.
We also visited a small museum nearby since we were getting tired of the heat. The museum had a bunch of interesting brochures on the cities nearby and historical information of the area, such as it was home to the Miwok people, popular place to find gold and the different kinds of animals the areas are home to. There was also a telescope looking outside a glass door so visitors can view a nest of one of the type of birds in the area. We saw two giant birds!
Anyhow, this was an ‘ok’ campground. Just wish there were more water!

Recommended camp site. Clean, safe and easily accessible. Would definitely return!
–Pet friendly
–Paved driveways
–Bathrooms with toilet paper
–Coined showers ($ 0.50 for 5 min, you can add more quarters for longer time) This is the only place you will find any info about the showers, so take note of it and bring your own quarters.
–Park rangers are always around– I see one every 10 – 15 min.
–Different hiking trail options
–Clean and well maintained amenities– grill, fire pit, table, benches…
–Parking (this is also probably the only place you will find info about parking an additional car): some reserved camp sites allow 1 or 2 car parking, additional car is $ 8, up to 1 to 2 cars, depending on the size of your reserved site.
It can get very hot and dry in the summer, 100s during the day and 60s at night. The lake was dry when we got there– drought :(so we couldn’t take advantage of any water activities. The lake was very low and depressing to see, another reminder we need to work harder on conserving water. Had a great and relaxing experience, would definitely return.

Surprised by the negative reviews. I’ve camped in many places over the years because I used to ride dirt bikes a lot and have to camp in really off the beaten path places. Tuttletown is the nicest place I’ve ever camped at.
The roads are well groomed and campsites are clean. And as far as the porta-​potty complaints, I’ve actually never used one here. They have actual bathrooms on site and showers. They’ve always been clean and well stocked with toilet paper. Maybe I’m the only one who knows where they are located? I have a fear of porta-​potties myself and wouldn’t have camped here over a dozen times already. Sure there are areas were there are no plumbing and you have to use those bathrooms that goes straight into a large septic tank, but they aren’t exactly porta-​potties.
Location wise Tuttletown is super convenient. So much so that you can actually just set up your tent and some chairs and not cook at all the entire weekend. Town is really close by with lots of food, even fast food, Walmart, Big 5, you name it. You literally could just show up with no gear.
The heat? That part is definitely true. The entire area is in the 100’s during the summer. Even with shade you are slugging around and barely moving in that heat. Most people just bring a 10’x10’ pop up shade/​canopy and that does the trick. Many campsites do not have trees particularly the drive up sites but the tent only ones usually do. I usually come here in off seasons it’s just more pleasant. Also just an fyi, many sites do have a bit of a hill and aren’t flat. Kind of cool if you need privacy but sort of a pain for unloading cars/​parking, or setting up huge tents. Also the map is misleading. It looks like you are close to water or have a view on some sites but you really have to see it in person to judge.
Fishing…I tried it once here and no luck. By the camping areas you sort of have to get through rocks and stuff to get to the water. Once there there isn’t really a bank for you to set up a chair and hang out. While it is possible to do so the surface is rocky and uneven and sitting in a chair is difficult (we tried). There are however other places to fish such as by the boat launch and by the roads running around the edge of lake.
Noise? Ugh. It’s so unavoidable in these places. In an open area especially with less trees you can hear the toilet flush or a car door from across the camp. I’ve been fortunate to come only when it was off-​season and very quite. People are friendly, we make friends with the current camp host, and wave to the sheriff as they make their rounds about half a dozen times a day. They really do make a LOT of rounds. I only had a bad noise problem once from a party across the camp but they shut up around 1am. It’s rare, and a problem in any camp you go to. Particularly on holidays. As a matter of fact, we came here once with our family (large family) and were playing board games around 9pm. We weren’t loud or drunk but occasionally would laugh playing the game. A sheriff did come and tell us we needed to keep it down. Seriously, we weren’t a bunch of partiers or anything we even thought it was ridiculous.
How happy you’d be will likely depend on your own experience camping. If you’re used to the camping «resorts» with pools and cabins and general stores, this might not be for you. This place is pretty basic and simple which I like. Most people that come here are older people or during holidays mostly families. Only on holidays do I see more of a younger crowd. Now compared to the many other places I’ve camped, where there is no awesome view such as this lake (it really is amazing at dawn and dusk!), no camp hosts, no sheriffs patrolling, dirty campsites, etc., this campsite is the top of my list and I highly recommend.

Crazy hot in July and not enough shady spots for tent… it gets suffocating in the tent come 7am in the morning. Coin operated showers and flushable toilets, but can be a walk if your campsite is not close. There is a porta potty but it’s nasty. Location is otherwise is ok, but close to Natural Bridges for nice hike down to the caves for a swim or a drive to another beach/​lake (w/​o boats) for swimming.

I stayed at the Fiddleneck group site in July. It was super hot but everyone had a great time. The group site, near the Lupine day use area, is located in its own little area with a restroom a short walk away. No other campsites were near so we were able to be as noisy or as quiet as we wanted to be. Plenty of trees, plenty of space, with an overflow lot nearby. The ranger came by Saturday and Sunday to make sure we were okay and well taken care of. As for the water, we had jet skis and boats so we drove down to the boat launch. The beach is more rocks and mud but we found a dry patch to set up. Fun was had by all. We were able to drive to nearby Angels Camp to get more ice and other things we needed. There were no negatives about this place and I will definitely return.

Wow !! I live less than 15 minutes away over in Columbia for the past 20 ± years ! Fish here regularly camp occasionally, Never knew It was such a sh#t hole !! The reviews here are the bad ones that can happen at any camp site anywhere !! People are quick to post a bad review because there still upset ! I‘m not saying it‘s the best camping ground in the world, But it‘s not as bad as it has been made to sound !! Fishing can be great ! There are some huge Bass, Catfish and trout in there !! A boat is a big help ! But you can do good from the shore !! Give it a chance !!
Thanks ! Pops

Omg! This has to be the nastiest campground I have ever been to! The bathrooms are porto pottys and they are disgusting! The sites are small and on hills. Will never be returning here again. But the nastiest thing, when we went to the lake for a day by the lake we found that THERE WAS LEECHES IN THE LAKE MY KIDS WERE COVERED IN LEECHES!!! BE AWARE… WE ENDED UP LEAVING AND GOING TO TULLOCH LAKE RESORT FOR THE DAY…

I wish I could give this place –10! AWFUL! Dirty, very RUDE campers. Do not be fooled by the photos. All the campsites here are not even near the water. They have a CURFEW of 11pm if you want to spend the evening out on the town then that could be a problem. It isn’t the type of campsite where you will have privacy. So if you are planning on having sex with your partner this isn’t the place for it. lol. There are no big pretty trees and pine cones. It just feels like your homeless and living in a tent! Does not give you that warm fuzzy camping in the woods feeling. And forget about police protection! If you were to be attacked by a lion, tiger, bear or drunk person and you call the police they will not come to help you. If you want to go down to the reservoir be prepared for a steep hike down and when and if you get down to the reservoir you might not want to stick your toes in the water because it is simply gross. This place is just EWWW your better off sleeping in your car.

ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE CAMPGROUND FOR FAMILIES, PEACE-​LOVING PEOPLE, OR ANYONE WHO EXPECTS TO SLEEP AT NIGHT!!!
We booked Tuttletown for a special occasion; it wasn’t just Labor Day, it was my girlfriend’s birthday. She wanted to camp somewhere quiet & peaceful, right on the waters edge. Tuttletown Rec Area turned out to be neither. We booked 3 nights, but stayed only for 2.
IT WAS PURE HELL !!!
Here is our story.
FRIDAY NIGHT, AUG 31^st
We arrived at 8:30 p.m. & were tired after working all day and then driving, so we made camp and went to bed at 10:30. This camp has a rule-​no loud noise after 10:00 pm-​so I expected it to be quiet. Instead, we heard a big group (2 or 3 sites combined) of LOUD, EXTREMELY DRUNK ADULTS across the parking lot raising hell – loud laughing, cussing, women frequently screaming, etc. These rude drunken idiots kept this crap up until 1:30 a.m.
Earlier we saw rangers drive by & the camp host drove by in his little cart. Since they were patrolling we *thought* they would do their jobs & enforce the rules and handle these loud obnoxious jerks. But instead NOBODY patrolled our area after 10:00 p.m. – if they had they no doubt would have heard them! I have no idea what the park employees were doing instead, but I had hoped they would feel *some* sense of obligation to patrol *all* areas of the camp periodically after 10 to make sure all was quiet. Clearly, they don’t.
SATURDAY MORNING, SEPT 1^st
The next morning I went to the guard shack at the park entry & reported all this to 2 rangers. They apologized and asked where the offenders were camped. I told them & they said they’d tell them no loud noise after 10:00 p.m. I thanked them & we left. I trusted them to take care of it and looked forward to an evening of peaceful, quiet sleep.
I couldn’t have been more wrong.
SATURDAY AFTERNOON
We came back that afternoon & noticed 3 nearby campsites (which were empty earlier) were now full teens, maybe 15 of them or more. THIS WAS A DIFFERENT GROUP THAN THE LOUD DRUNKS FROM THE NIGHT BEFORE. It was only 5 p.m., but once they started talking I could tell they might get noisy later that night. The bearded camp host drove up at around 6:00. I told him my concerns and asked who I should complain to if things go bad. He said he couldn’t take complaints (uhh…excuse me??), but he assured me the camp was well patrolled. I asked him if he heard my complaint about the people last night. He said he had & said park staff & rangers *had their eyes on them*. I felt good about that & thought if there’s any problem tonight with the previous group OR with these teens, this time the staff of rangers & hosts who patrol this campground will be on top of it and will quell any such problem instantly.
Yep, that’s what I thought. *sigh*
Once again we went to bed at around 10:30 p.m. The camp was quiet. I could hear crickets. We slept.
This place boasts they lock the entry gate at 11:00 p. m, but these kids just lay a plank over the exit lane spikes and drive in anytime they want (what idiot designed THAT security measure??) So at 1:30 a.m. we hear about 20 car doors slam, then a nonstop stream of shouting, cursing, and, just like the previous night, the party was on but now it was these teens instead — we couldn’t believe it! These underaged kids with ice chests full of beer & NO concern for anyone around them owned that campground & kept carrying on, screaming obscenities, etc. By 2:00 a.m. I’d had enough, and I yelled out a very loud «QUIET!!* They yelled back
«F— YOU, IT’S LABOR DAY, SO SHUT THE F— UP!!» (there were sites with families nearby with small children who no doubt heard all this, I feel sorry for them)
SUNDAY MORNING
At 2:15 a. m I called the Toulumne County sheriff’s dept. & they assured me they’d send someone out – THE SHERIFF IGNORED MY CALL & NEVER SHOWED UP!!!
The obnoxious teens finally fell asleep by 3:30 a.m. By then I was so angry I couldn’t sleep (wouldn’t you be too??)
The next morning out of sleepless frustration, at 7:00 a.m. we packed & left a day earlier than we had planned.
In extreme anger I reported everything-​first at the entry booth, then again to ranger Deborah, & again to chief ranger Billy. They apologized & Billy actually offered me a complimentary stay if we wanted to return. I almost laughed — WHY THE HELL WOULD WE COME BACK TO A CAMP WHERE THE RANGERS, HOSTS & SHERIFFS OFFICE ARE ALL POWERLESS & CAN’T EVEN STOP A GROUP OF DRUNK TEENS WHO BREAK INTO THEIR CAMP AFTER 1:30 A. M & SCREAM OBSCENITIES ALL NIGHT?
This disaster ruined my girlfriends birthday & what should have been a nice Labor Day weekend for us both. I’ve camped in hundreds of campgrounds over the last 30 years & have NEVER had such a bad experience as I did at this horrid place!
To be perfectly clear: THOSE MOST RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS FIASCO ARE RANGERS & HOSTS AT TUTTLETOWN REC & THE TOULUMNE COUNTY SHERIFFS OFFICE.

After too many bad experiences with rude and filthy campers over at Fleming Meadows we decided to try something new. We had no idea what to expect and the few reviews were not helpful at all except to warn me the descent to the water would be steep from the campsites.
What an awesome experience we had here. No garbage ringing the campsites. No rude campers wandering through our site on their way to the bathroom, water, marina, or just anywhere. There were no late night parties going until 4:00 AM and the sheriff patrolled the area to ensure everyone slept well.
Positive things: Water spigots placed generously throughout. Clean bathrooms with flush toilets and coin operated showers. Large launch ramp and parking close to the campground for boaters. If you are camping then the launch fees are included in the cost.
Negative: Oh yes, the hike to the water is steep, and rocky. If you don’t want to deal with that then go over to the launch or day use area. If you’ve ever been to the Shasta area then this shouldn’t surprise you or even be a negative. No lake shore dispersed camping. =o (
Oh yes. I will definitely be back here before I go there again.

Positive things: Clean, large sites, Water was warm, and pretty views
Negative:If swimming is part of your ideal camping experience DO NOT GO IF you have small kids, pregnant, disabled, have bad knees, hips or back. There is no camp site that has easy access to the lake, extreme steep walk, jagged rocks.
If you make it down to the swimming area and you have not broken your leg. swimming is your only option because there is zero place to put a chair or even to lay out a towel to sit on.
I was not a fan.

The pickins are a little slim for campers in this area. Which is a shock, seeing it’s so close to Sonora. Well, you take what you can get, and what you got is this large campground on Melones.
Melones is a typical reservoir in the California foothills. Good for boating and fishing, and the lake is so big that the two can coexist. If you want to stay here for a few days, there are two camps, one on the Angels Camp side (Glory Hole) and one on the Sonora side (this one).
The offerings are on the small side, though. Not many trails. You can walk down to the lake, although the walk can be steep. A joke of a playground. Although the campground is big, it’s laid out in small sections so that you can get to know your neighbors. Boat ramp close by. Be warned that the foothills get *HOT* in the summer, and oak trees don’t offer a lot of shade.
The location is pretty good. Three miles on a well-​maintained road to Highway 49, then maybe six winding hilly miles to Columbia. Supplies are in Sonora, including a Wal-​Mart. Good if you’re on a budget.
It’s a place to check out if you’re staying in the area and love the great outdoors. Just lower your expectations a little and you’ll be fine.
(As a side note: I read Dr. Seuss’ ABC book, and the letter T is «twelve tired turtles in a tuttle-​tuttle tree». What is a tuttle-​tuttle tree? I guess you find them in the little burg of Tuttletown!)

I stayed in the Tuttletown Acorn campsite #65, 66, and 67, but preferred 67 and 68 due to more lakeview. #60 is pretty nice too.
Problems I have:
–Restroom by campsite is non-​flushable. However, if you walk down the slope for 4 – 5 minutes, you will get to a restroom with coin-​operated shower and flushing toilets.
–Each site is relatively small. It may fit up to two small tents. Some may only fit one.
–Running water is not clean enough for cooking.
What I enjoyed:
–Sites I stayed at are well-​shaded.
–There’s enough activities you could do during the day such as swimming, hiking, and fishing.
Natural Bridges is a must-​do hiking activity, but you would have to drive for 30 minutes from the campsite to the trailhead (ask the ranger at the gate for hiking maps). The hike itself is rated moderate. 1.5 miles roundtrip. It is a beautiful trail that would take you to water and cave.