I arrived Wednesday May 17th at campsite #77. Silverwood Lake is only 45 minutes from my house. This makes it a great “nearby” destination for camping in the off-season…. However, from Memorial Day to Labor Day, I have been told it’s a madhouse.
The campsite was wonderfully convenient… I would totally go back to the same spot. I pitched my tent under the shadiest place available. It was perfect.
The temperature at the campsite was in the low 80’s. I didn’t bring any cold weather clothing, but the overnight temp was only 58F (I slept very comfortably).
My friend Danny came along. He got there after me, but by 3pm we were settled in. We had a choice to go bike riding or relax, have snacks, talk, and drink a glass of wine. You know exactly what we chose to do.
Danny insisted on being “head chef”…. Snacks, Dinner, and even Breakfast. I didn’t argue…. I was happy to be pampered. However, I brought all my gear, food, and water just in case something went sideways. Maybe Danny gets bitten by a snake, or eaten by a bear. I have to make sure I can take of myself!!!!
We had wine, cheese, Triscuits, and Basil leaves… Very nice. Danny had a big campstove, and he made Pasta with cheese bread for dinner.
I have to say, Danny brought a lot of stuff in the back of his pickup. He wanted to have a fire, so he brought 2 bundles of firewood, and plenty of Coleman fuel to light the fire. He wanted to sit in a luxury chair while sitting next to the campfire, so he brought a reclining, padded chair (with cup-holder). He had a solar-power lantern that he used constantly. I felt a bit like a simpleton. I didn’t have all that fancy gear.
Around 9:30 pm, it was pitch dark. We were talking around the campfire, and all of a sudden,…. A semi-large animal (not a squirrel) came racing down the hill from above our campsite, made a sharp turn around a tree, and ran in between me, Danny and the fire-ring. It all happened in 2 seconds. We were left in shock, wondering if we had a bobcat or coyote sprint past us. It was over in the blink of any eye!!!! For the next hour, Danny walked around waving his LED lantern at everything, and nothing.
By 11pm, I was sooooo ready for bed. I got in my tent/sleeping bag and slept fantastic, even though I peed 3 times (was that too much information?). Danny curled up in the “king-cab” of his truck.
At dawn I got up, packed up all my gear, and awaited breakfast (coffee, ham, eggs, cheese, bell peppers, and potatoes). However, Danny left his fuel canister attached to his stove for 12 hours and all the gas leaked out so he couldn’t cook a thing. He was severely unhappy (photo unavailable).
I then setup my campstove, and made espresso-coffee for the both of us. I still had fuel, so I offered to let him cook breakfast on my equipment. After some hesitation, he made a 6 egg cheese-omelette. Danny wasn’t convinced that I had enough fuel for ham and potatoes, but after all was said and done, I had fuel leftover.
My next adventure was riding my bike around the lake. Danny brought his mountain bike, but it had a flat, so I went alone.
On January 21st, 1972, the first Northern California water spilled into Silverwood Lake. It was named after W.E. “Ted” Silverwood a Riverside County resident who worked unceasingly for water and soil conservation. Silverwood Lake is the highest lake of the California Water Project. It’s elevation is 3,379 feet with a storage capacity of 25 billion gallons of water. Originally the area was home to the Serrano Indians.
Lessons Learned: As a former Boy Scout…. “Always Be Prepared”
Ranking of this Trip: I will go back again because it’s so nice in the off-season, mid-week.
