USFS · California

Eldorado National Forest

Eldorado National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in the central Sierra Nevada mountain range, in eastern California.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest793,653 acresUSFSCA88 campgrounds within 10 mi60 Forest Service sites266 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗
3 fires
active
Fy27 Hemlock Rx (prescribed burn) · 28 mi from the center
2 more within 50 miles
Incident details ↓

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StateCalifornia
Size793,653 acres
Forest Service code0503, region 05
Center point38.79° N, 120.36° W
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 13)

Boundary map

1 outline

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Eldorado National Forest30°40°50°60°70°80°January: 9.62 inches of precipitation, 10.1 inches of snowFebruary: 8.77 inches of precipitation, 17.3 inches of snowMarch: 8.83 inches of precipitation, 13.5 inches of snowApril: 4.90 inches of precipitation, 5.4 inches of snowMay: 3.17 inches of precipitation, 0.6 inches of snowJune: 0.93 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJuly: 0.03 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowAugust: 0.06 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowSeptember: 0.55 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowOctober: 2.92 inches of precipitation, 0.1 inches of snowNovember: 5.30 inches of precipitation, 3.8 inches of snowDecember: 9.38 inches of precipitation, 7.4 inches of snowJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 37.9°F averageFebruary: 40.6°F averageMarch: 44.3°F averageApril: 49.3°F averageMay: 57.2°F averageJune: 64.5°F averageJuly: 71.9°F averageAugust: 70.6°F averageSeptember: 65.9°F averageOctober: 53.5°F averageNovember: 42.9°F averageDecember: 36.6°F average0 in5 in10 in15 in20 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Pacific House, 8 miles from the center point at 3,450 feet, station USC00046597 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 54 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 58 inches a year on the same inches scale. The station sits about 1,500 feet lower than the center point, so temperatures on the ground run cooler.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

47 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 41 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Airport Flat Campground
First-comeCA
FS · Inside
Azalea Cove Campground
First-comeCA
FS · Inside
Bear Group Campground
ReservableCA
FS · Inside
Bear River Group Campground
Reservable4 sites
FS · Inside
Big Silver Group
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Black Oak
Reservable4 sites
FS · Inside
Bridal Veil Group Area And Picnic Ground
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Caples Lake Campground
First-comeCA
Show 4 more

76 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 60

The Forest Service lists 60 recreation sites in this forest, among them 38 campgrounds, 10 group camps, 5 cabins, 2 ski areas. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 60

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 266 named trails in this forest, 856 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Pony Express ↗38.2
Rock Creek Loop ↗28.2
Pacific Crest Trail ↗26.6
Caldor Loop ↗23.4
Rubicon ↗21.1
Plummer Ridge Loop ↗20.3
Gold Rush ↗18.2
Carson Emigrant N.R.T ↗17.6
Camp Irene ↗15.6
Big Mtn. Loop ↗14.5

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas. This trail list was copied from Trailhead Atlas on November 1, 2026 and is copied again on each weekly run. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 266 trails in Eldorado National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Fire nearby

Within 50 miles · as of 2026-11-01
  • Prescribed
    Fy27 Hemlock Rx

    28 mi from the center point

  • Prescribed
    Big Trees State Park Broadcast Burn Rx

    35 mi from the center point · 170 acres

  • Prescribed
    Madrone Springs Underburn Rx

    47 mi from the center point

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge, and is measured from the center of a boundary that may be many miles across. Check the agency page for closures.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Register listings within 15 miles · 40 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Guidebooks for California

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Walkabout Northern California
    Tom Courtney, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Backpacking California
    Wilderness Press, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Coastal trails of Southern California
    Linda B. Mullally, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking northern California
    Bubba Suess, 2017
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking the Pacific Crest Trail: Southern California
    Shawnte Salabert, 2017
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Eldorado National Forest?

793,653 acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Eldorado National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Eldorado National Forest in?

California.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Eldorado National Forest?

Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites. Check the forest page for closures. The federal campgrounds within ten miles are listed under Where to camp.

Source: Where to camp

How do I get to Eldorado National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 38.785° N, 120.362° W. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

Is there a fire near Eldorado National Forest right now?

3 active incidents within 50 miles as of 2026-11-01, the nearest Fy27 Hemlock Rx at 28 miles. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge.

Source: Fire nearby

Are there historic places near Eldorado National Forest?

The National Register has 40 listings within 15 miles, including Coloma and Georgetown Civil War Armory.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • Description: Eldorado National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.