New changes to boats and watercraft allowed at Rancho Seco Lake. See below and in this news release.

Rancho Seco Recreational Area

Get back to nature at Rancho Seco Recreational Area
Take a 45-minute drive from downtown Sacramento and you’ll find the 400-acre park that makes up the Rancho Seco Recreational Area. Take a short vacation and enjoy bird watching, boating, camping, fishing, hiking and even a sanctuary for rescued exotic animals and wildlife. Camp in comfort with recreation and concession buildings, shade structures, laundry facility, boathouse and newly renovated restrooms and showers.

New boating restrictions

The golden mussel, an invasive species, found in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta for the first time in North America, can have wide-spread impacts throughout our economy and waterways if allowed to spread. Out of an abundance of caution, we’re issuing these new boating restrictions for Rancho Seco Lake.

No trailer-launched watercraft will be allowed on the lake.
Hand-launched watercraft will be allowed, as long as the watercraft has not been used in other waters, including the Delta, within the previous 30 days.
No live aquatic bait, including all baitfish, crawfish, crabs, mussels, etc., can be used on the lake.
Small electric trolling motors and other hand-launched watercraft such as hand-launched canoes, rafts, kayaks, rowboats, paddle boats, inflatables, sculls and other hand-launched recreational watercraft will still be allowed on the lake.
All permitted watercrafts will be required to undergo a watercraft inspection by a certified inspector or canine upon park entry. Inspectors will restrict any boat that has been in any other body of water in the last 30 days or that they deem a risk.
All watercrafts must be clean, drained, and dry. Boaters will be required to participate in visual inspections of their watercraft.
All visitors planning to launch any flotation device will receive inspection and must be fully clean, drained and dry before launching.

Please ensure your watercraft is safe and free from invasive species by using this free Expect to Inspect mapping tool that includes free, self-service cleaning stations. Learn more about the golden mussel. Thank you for helping us keep the lake safe and free from invasive species.

Hiking opportunities

Self-led hikes

Enjoy an easy seven mile round trip hike at the Howard Ranch Trail. The walk along the lake offers something special in each season – vernal pools in late winter, soft carpets of wildflowers in spring, contented cattle grazing on lush grass. It’s a working cattle ranch, so please leave your canine friends home.

Docent-led hikes

For those who would like to learn from local naturalist volunteers on docent-led hikes, the Cosumnes River Preserve offers springtime hikes on the Howard Ranch Trail. Each hike begins at 8:30 AM, takes 3+ hours and is taken at a casual pace.

More information

For information and reservations, call 1-800-416-6992 (Monday through Friday).

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