Hensley Lake, California - May 25th to 26th, 2024
Hensley Lake was not in our original itinerary. It was a backup to our backup for two nights we couldn’t get reservations in Sequoia National Park. But it turned out to be a lovely place to relax and get away from the Memorial Day weekend crowds.
Our original plan was to stay in Sequoia for five days, then five more days in Kings Canyon. However, due to road construction, road closures, and late campground openings, we didn’t get the campground reservations we were hoping for. We managed to get two nights in Lodgepole Campground, then find somewhere else to camp for two nights, then come back to Lodgepole for three nights followed by three nights in Stony Creek, a National Forest Service campground between Sequoia and Kings. For the two nights we had to leave the park, we originally booked in Island Park Campground at Pine Flat Lake, east of Fresno. It is an Army Corps of Engineers campground less than two hours from Lodgepole Campground. However, about a month prior, they cancelled our reservation because they closed the campground due to rising water levels. We were in a little bit of a panic since the two nights were the Saturday and Sunday nights of Memorial Day weekend. But we managed to find a spot at Hidden View Campground in Hensley Lake Recreation Area, another Army Corps of Engineers campground. Whew!
Saturday was a travel day. Hidden View was about a two hour and 45 minute drive from Lodgepole. Most of the drive is just getting out of the parks and down out of the mountains. There were quite a few areas of fire damage along the way. It was a rather eery landscape, trees with black trunks and white, bare branches. The road was stained with streaks where the fallen trees had been dragged down the road.
Just before reaching Fresno, we reached the valley floor, back to the land of orchards. We stopped in Fresno at an REI to pick up some sun gloves for hiking. As we age, we become more and more concerned about how much we expose our skin to the sun. We want to continue enjoying the outdoors and don’t want skin cancer to get in the way.
REI was in a large shopping complex. The heavy traffic with aggressive drivers and the mass of people at the shopping center was a shock to our systems after being in the wilderness of Sequoia. We were happy to leave Fresno and turn onto some country roads as we worked our way over to Hensley Lake. Ah, that’s better. However, one of the roads we were on turned to dirt. OK, we don’t have to be that remote. But it was only dirt for a couple of miles until we turned onto another paved country road.
The campsites at Hidden View are perched on a slope overlooking the lake. It was a little tricky figuring out how to level our rig in our site, but we managed. After setting up camp, we walked the campground loops. We covered 1.5 miles, including walking down to the boat ramp. Ann was happy to see quite a few paddle boards and kayaks. Hopefully she’ll be able to paddle on Sunday, unlike her experience at Pyramid Lake a few days earlier (Pyramid Lake, California - May 20th to 22nd, 2024).
Sunday morning we walked the Day Use area of the park. It was Memorial Day weekend, so there were lots of people hanging out. However, it didn’t seem overly crowded. It looked like most of the people in the park and campground were local, from California. There were a lot of families, with kids running around having a good time. Boating, swimming, and fishing were the activities of choice. There was more energy and noise than most places we visit. Many were playing music, both on and off the water. We heard a lot of ethnic folk music, quite a variety.
In the afternoon, Ann got the paddle board out. It was a short walk from our campsite down to the boat ramp. This time she was out on the water for more than an hour. She explored a couple of the coves and went around a few of the little rocky islands. Now that’s better! However, she didn’t stand up much and spent most of the time on her knees. The wind wasn’t very strong, but the motor boats on the lake were creating wakes and waves. It made Ann feel a little uncomfortable riding those waves up on her feet. She had no problems negotiating the roughness on her knees.
The rest of the day we relaxed at our camp site. Keith was bugging Ann about getting StarLink. We had a good Verizon signal there, but we hadn’t had good cell service at most of the campgrounds so far this season. Even when we had good Verizon reception, our Verizon Jetpack likes to drop the connection periodically. It would come back, but it was rather annoying. Keith pleaded with Ann until she finally gave in. Before she could blink, he had the dish ordered and ready for pick up in Fresno the following day.
Although Hensley Lake was not planned, it turned out to be just what we needed. And Ann was happy she was able to get some paddling in. It may not be a big destination, but it was a nice little place to get away to.
Check out our related video: Hensley Lake, California
(Ann)