Woods Lake
The Vitals-elevation 8200', Swimming,
Cliffs, Fishing, Good Handicapped Access.
click here for Woods
Lake Photo Gallery. Click here for topo
map.
Woods Lake is one of the many well guarded secrets of Alpine County.
I had been to Kirkwood, Caples Lake, and Carson Pass probably close
to a thousand times before my first trip to Woods Lake, which is
situated between the three. It is a lake of great beauty where the
drainages from Round Top Lake and Winnemucca Lake meet before heading
to Caples. From early July to early August the wildflowers are abundant
and the water is plenty warm for swimming. There are some small
cliffs (rocks really) from which you can dive into the lake. When
swimming or walking around the rocks, beware of fish hooks that
may litter the landscape. The fishing is plentiful here with the
public use area providing many handicapped access spots for fishing
and picnicking. There are 25 camping spots here that as far as I
can tell are doled out on a first come first served basis. There
is also a trail head for those heading to Winnemucca Lake, Round
Top, or the Mokelumne Wilderness in general.
Disclaimer-
Jumping into Alpine Lakes has inherent dangers regardless of water
depth. People break bones every year jumping from cliffs without
ever hitting anything but water. Additionally, water depths flucuate
greatly during periods of limited precipitation.
When runoff from snow melt is significant, the water can be so cold
that movement is difficult.
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