A-frames near Topaz Lake with climbing
Topaz Lake is a high desert border lake town offering fantastic fishing, water sports, and land-based fun.
- Topaz Lake
Popular camping styles for Topaz Lake
A-frames near Topaz Lake with climbing guide
Overview
Located just north of the Nevada-California border along Highway 395, the small town of Topaz Lake is an ideal base for exploring the man-made lake of the same name that straddles the two states. With 25 miles of shoreline, Topaz Lake is a popular destination for boating, watersports, and fishing, particularly for trophy trout and bass. The surrounding high desert offers hiking, biking, horseback riding, and off-roading trails, with more rugged terrain to be found in the nearby Eastern Sierra Mountains. Enjoy car, tent, and RV camping around Topaz Lake, or additional options in the forests, lakes, and mountains nearby.
Where to go
Walker Lake
East of Topaz Lake, Walker Lake is a remnant of the ancient Lake Lahontan that used to cover most of western Nevada and eastern California. Fishing, swimming, water skiing, and speed boat races are popular here. Camping options can be found at Speedboat Beach north of Hawthorne and at the Walker Lake State Recreation Area.
Markleeville, Kirkwood, and Highway 4 Corridor
West of Topaz Lake, campers can find hot springs and camping at Grover Hot Springs State Park, near Markleeville. Additional campgrounds can be found along the west fork of the Carson River and several small lakes near Kirkwood, a popular outdoor recreation destination with a ski resort. Or head along Highway 4 towards Arnold and Calaveras Big Tree State Park and find numerous forest service campgrounds in the Stanislaus National Forest. For backcountry options, head into the Mokelumne or Carson-Iceberg Wilderness areas.
Lake Tahoe
Located just 40 miles northwest of Topaz Lake is the much larger Lake Tahoe with 72 miles of shoreline, which also straddles both Nevada and California. Dozens of beaches and campgrounds can be found around the lake, including at Nevada Beach Campground and Zephyr Cove on the Nevada side, and in South Lake Tahoe, Emerald Bay State Park and D.L. Bliss State Park on the California side.
Highway 395 South
Heading south along Highway 395, campers will find plenty of camping tent and RV camping options, including Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest campgrounds along the highway just south of Topaz Lake. Further south, find cabins, tent, and RV camping options around Bridgeport, Lee Vining, the east side of Yosemite National Park, and around June Lake and Mammoth Lakes.
When to go
Fishing season runs from January to September at Topaz Lake. Winter and early spring are the best times for fishing the lake, when other area lakes and rivers are frozen or covered with ice, though Topaz Lake does get some snow over the winter. Summer temperatures make boating and water sports like swimming, jet skiing, and water skiing especially pleasant.
