Paradise Outdoor Adventurer Hiking Boating Rafting / Kayaking Fishing

Paradise Lake: Picnic in the Pines

June 21, 2024 (Originally published August 09, 2019)
Paradise Lake
Rediscover the Ridge

Par­adise Lake is a post­card pic­ture of a serene forest­ed lake with canoes lazi­ly drift­ing atop glassy water. It’s a spe­cial place in Butte Coun­ty to vis­it for a relax­ing pad­dle, pic­nic, or hike, and with gor­geous conifer wood­land sur­round­ing the shore­line, you might even spot a bald eagle or a bear! There’s a lot of room to explore via kayak, canoe, or row-boat on this 244 acre lake. Don’t for­get to bring your pole and fish­ing license if want to try catch­ing the big one with trout, bass, and perch pop­u­lat­ing the waters, and you’ll find many good loca­tions to fish from shore as well.

There are occa­sion­al restrooms and bench­es along the trail, and after your adven­ture, the shad­ed pic­nic area is a won­der­ful spot to gath­er with your fam­i­ly and friends. Kids can explore the play­ground, and there’s a horse­shoe pit avail­able, too. Sev­er­al group pic­nic areas as well as the scenic gaze­bo are avail­able for reservation.

The lake is open dai­ly, except for Wednes­days, from 5am to sun­set. Bring $3 for the park­ing fee if you’re stay­ing onshore. The fee for boat­ing is $10. The water in Par­adise Lake is an impor­tant drink­ing sup­ply for the area, so be aware of spe­cial reg­u­la­tions designed to keep the water pris­tine. More infor­ma­tion is at vis​it​par​adis​e​lake​.com and par​adis​eprpd​.com

Hike Par­adise Lake

On this easy trail, you’ll enjoy some of the best views of the pic­turesque lake. The trail is flat and well-main­tained with plen­ty of shade, mak­ing it per­fect for young or inex­pe­ri­enced hik­ers, even with the full 9‑mile length (you can always turn back at any time), as well as casu­al walks, trail-run­ning, and even bik­ing. Enjoy beau­ti­ful fall col­ors and keep an eye out any time of year for deer, var­i­ous birds, fish, and even a bear or two (just leave the dog at home, as they’re not allowed at the lake).

Key Info

Trail Dif­fi­cul­ty: Easy

Trail Length & Type: 9 miles out-and-back

Best Used: Acces­si­ble year-round

Dogs: Not allowed

Trail Map: PRPD Map

Oth­er infor­ma­tion: $3 park­ing pass required; closed on Wednesdays

Paradise Lake: Picnic in the Pines
@tootmaxwell

Direc­tions

Par­adise Lake is only about 30 min­utes up the hill from the floor of the Sacra­men­to Val­ley. If com­ing from the south via Oroville, take High­way 70 north past the City of Oroville and con­tin­ue north on High­way 70 at the 70⁄149 split. Turn left after six miles onto Pentz Road which will take you through the Town of Par­adise. Pentz Road will end at the inter­sec­tion with Sky­way after 11 miles. Those com­ing from the north and west via Chico can exit High­way 99 onto Sky­way (Exit 383). Take Sky­way through the Town of Par­adise and you’ll reach the inter­sec­tion with Pentz Road in 15 miles. Par­adise and Mag­a­lia are busy with recov­ery and rebuild­ing efforts so dri­ve with care!

From the inter­sec­tion of Sky­way and Pentz Road, con­tin­ue up the hill on Sky­way for anoth­er mile and turn right onto Couto­lenc Road as you enter Mag­a­lia. Con­tin­ue on Couto­lenc Road for 3 miles and turn left onto Lucre­cia Road. This short road will dead end at the Par­adise Lake pic­nic area. The boat ramps can be accessed by tak­ing Couto­lenc Road north for anoth­er two miles and turn­ing left onto North Lake Road.