Caswell Memorial State Park

We stayed one night when our reservation at Anthony Chabot was abruptly canceled on short notice. This is a lovely setting in trees along the river. However, the registration process is very confusing and misleading. You have to click on an individual site and look carefully under amenities to see what the actual site length is. When we selected trailer under 20 feet, it said there was one site available matching our criteria, and then it listed 51 sites. You have to look at each individual one and read the details. The photo for site 38 did not even show the actual pad, only the path behind it to the picnic table. We could barely fit our 17 foot Casita in and had to block the road completely in order to unhitch and put the tow vehicle beside it. Restrooms are OK, but showers are one dollar for the first 5 minutes.

We’re always looking for an okay public CG on the 99 corridor between Sac and Bakersfield. Caswell SP is a great location however facilities were poor. Perhaps it is because we stayed there off season. Restrooms and showers were posted out of service “due to lack of water pressure”. Other drinking water source had a boil water notice posted. If you have a longer rig (over 25 feet) there are NO sites that appear large enough. No hookups. Our Class C motor home fit fine in Site No 19. We were pretty much alone for our one night except for a couple sketchy campers. I think that we should have been notified by Cal State Parks when we made reservation that facility was operating at limited service. We felt ripped off paying $37 for an overnight. Cellular phone service is one bar. We could send and receive text messages but no music stream. California State Parks are inconsistent and “hit and miss”; Caswell SP is a miss. We’re still looking for that good public CG between Sac and Bakersfield.

We stayed here in September, 2020 - we didn't plan ahead, just had to change plans due to fires in the mountains so came here for a night. Pleasantly surprised by the greenery, the water level in the river and the nice shaded sites. We like to stay hooked up if possible and there were a few open sites that would have worked for us - we grabbed #18, which was large and shaded. The river was just across the campground road and we saw fish! There is a nice trail to a beach with water access. We found a spot just behind an empty campsite so let the hot black Lab get a little wet there. Dogs are not permitted on the hiking trails, but this wasn't really a trail. Worth a stop if you need a place to stay for the night in CA's central valley or would be a nice destination for a family with the river access.

We were heading for site 21, so after entering the campground area, we turned left at the 2nd stop sign and we saw just after the toilet block on the right was a water faucet. There was enough room to pull over and fill-up my trailers fresh water tank. The faucet has a screw connector which was convenient, and we were able to fill-up without blocking the road.

We have a 21 ft trailer.

Site 21 doesn't have a view, but the wide pad allows the trailer and car to sit side by side. The river access is directly in front of the site, so you couldn't be much closer. The site itself is spacious and well shaded.

Site 35 is good for trailer and camper side by side and the site has a table with a bit of a river view, and a fallen tree for climbing on.

Site 25 has the best river view, with a pad large enough for car and trailer, while still being close enough to the beach access.

Site 45 is a long way from the river, but has a fairly long single wide pad which short car and trailers could fit in. The site has no view, but has some really nice climbing trees.

There are no dump stations, so you'll need to drive to Flying J in Ripon or the Rest Area on i5 in Vernalis.