The Perfect Weekend Getaway: Caswell Memorial State Park

Caswell Memorial State Park is located along the Stanislaus River near Ripon, California. The Park is an 80-mile drive from San Francisco and an excellent weekend camping destination. Caswell Memorial State Park is surrounded by farmland, but the area around the river remains much the same as it was 100 years ago. This park is on the list of possible closures due to California state budget cuts.

Stanislaus River California Central Valley

The Stanislaus River is slow-moving much of the year and only gets a heavy flow during the rainy season. Day-trippers and campers float down the river in inner tubes or relax in the sandy coves during summer. The river flows through the Central Valley before merging with the San Joaquin River, which ultimately flows into the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and the San Francisco Bay. Prospectors panned for gold along its banks during California’s Gold Rush era.

Caswell Memorial State Park Camping & Hiking

A huge Oak Forest covers Caswell Memorial State Park with hiking trails twisting underneath the canopy of trees. Camping facilities include 61 campsites, most of them near the river. Each campsite comes with a table, camp stove, and food locker. Sites will accommodate trailers up to 21 feet long or motor homes up to 24 feet.

Caswell Memorial State Park is a small, wild refuge in the center of the Central Valley of California. This unique park protects one of the last remaining oak riparian woodlands that once flourished throughout the valley. Native Americans who lived along this river and collected acorns among these ancient groves were Yokuts.

Caswell Memorial State Park History

In the early 1800s, Spanish explorers traversed this area, and fur trappers found the river bountiful. Thomas Caswell, the landowner, enjoyed this wonderful forest and felt it should be preserved. In 1950, his children and grandchildren donated 134 acres to the people of California. Additional donations and state purchases brought Caswell to its current size of 258 acres. Caswell Memorial State Park was open to the public in 1958.

Camping Reservations

Campsites are usually booked up for weekends during the summer months. You can reserve a campsite for up to seven months in advance. Reserve a campsite at Caswell State Park 60 camps are available for reservations. There is one group site min. Nine persons. Fees include an entry for one vehicle and one legally towed vehicle or trailer; additional vehicles will be charged per night at the park.

Getting to Caswell Memorial State Park

Location – Directions From 99, take the Austin Rd. Exit. Head South on Austin Rd., and you will run into the park at the end of the road. Open year-round day use is 8:00 am to sunset. The entrance station is open from May through September on spring and fall weekends. 28000 South Austin Road, Ripon, California.

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California Central Valley Day trips

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