Peninsula Campground

Ponderosa State Park is located on a 1000 acre peninsula a very short distance from McCall ID. The park borders the very beautiful Payette Lake. Hiking, fishing and water sports are popular during the warmer months as are winter sports when this area can become bitter cold. McCall is only 2 hours drive from Boise so this little town (pop. 3000) and the surrounding area can be very busy during the summer and winter months.

The majority of the nicely spaced RV campsites are located under a canopy of beautiful, mature ponderosa pines. A utility pedestal at the 113 sites nearest to the lake offer 30 amp power and water. A separate RV campground offers 49 full hookups but is not located directly adjacent to the lake. A dump station is conveniently located on the way out of the park.

I believe the park could be fairly noisy during the summer as it is an ideal place to bring the entire family. I've only camped here after children have gone back to school.

Ponderosa State Park is one on the finest state parks I have ever frequented.

Ponderosa State Park is a well-kept lakeside campground nearby the lovely, tasteful resort town of McCall. As a guy who spent the summers of his 20s in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York, Payette Lake looked, smelled and sounded for all the world like Lake George, but without the cheesy T-shirt shops.

The park's namesake ponderosa pines and an understory provide a decent amount of privacy from neighbors -- human neighbors, that is, for we had a pair of fawns that hung around our campsite and didn't seem very disturbed by us or our dogs.

It was a ~100-yard walk to the shore of Payette Lake, where a couple of floating docks and a swimming beach were situated. Dogs aren't allowed on the swimming beach, so we instead negotiated a steep bank to access the water to the north of the docks.

We had a pull-through site, and unlike some campgrounds this was an actual loop, not just a parking area along the road. Hookups were uneventful, and trash cans are provided every few campsites for easy disposal. The RV dump at the campground entrance includes four stations and drinking water.

We stayed on a Thursday night in July, having booked a couple of months in advance. We enjoyed the park so much that we wanted to stay on an extra night, but the campground was sold out for the weekend and despite numerous calls, there were no cancellations or early departures.

Nice campground next to Payette Lake with swimming, kayak and canoe rentals. Lots of shade at least in the loop we were in. It it looked like most if not all of the campground was shady for the most part which was good as we were there the last day of July.
We were tent camping and had a large site with picnic table and fire ring. Bathrooms were clean.
There’s a hiking trail that goes around the lake that was near our site as well as paved paths for bicycles.

Peninsula Campground is a quiet campground within a short walk of Payette Lake in Ponderosa Pine State Park. The lake access has docks for fishing or launching non-motorized watercraft, if you're into paddling your park access will include the day use fee to launch a boat in the North Unit of the park to paddle The Meanders. The Ponderosa Pines are absolutely massive and create a peaceful setting minutes from McCall with great access to Payette National Forest.

Pay close attention to the campground map when selecting a site for a reservation, the bearproof garbage cans at the entrance are loud and close to a few sites and the dump station is also close. If Peninsula Campground is full, the RV Campground at Ponderosa Pine State Park has a similar setting but further from Payette Lake.

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To clarify- both Peninsula campground & Ponderosa RV campground are in the Ponderosa State Park. I attached a picture of the park map. The RV campground is to the right and further from the water, it does have dump at the campsites but you pay $10/nt extra for it. I highly recommend going to Ponderosa first since its right next to the water and the sites are big enough. Our 30' fifth wheel and f350 had plenty of room. The dump is right at the entrance/exit of these sites.
The ponderosa sites have water, and 30amp power, and propane refill tanks on sites. There are single and double sites so pay attention to which one you're going into as the doubles are $50/nt instead of $33. Also, if you have an idaho annual park pass its about $5 cheaper a night, but that pass is $40.
This park is very clean, friendly, and so many beach access sites that are perfect as well as biking and hiking trails. Currently showers are closed bc covid, but bathrooms are open. Take your bike for a ride all the way down to osprey cliff overlook for an incredible view!
There is a few places to eat in town as well as an Albertsons for groceries. Also recommend driving all around the lake and stopping at the north end, there is a nice kayak trail up there (picture attached).

I had stayed in the RV loops of Ponderosa State park previously. I enjoyed the full hookups, paved pads, and wide roads. It was a little far form the lake, but nothing terrible with a bike. Getting down to the lake with paddle boards or anything large and you really needed to load up the truck.. Not the case in the Peninsula loops!
I was very surprised with how spacious the sites were in the Peninsula loops! I have a 37' fifth wheel with 3' deep slides on both sides. I had zero issues fitting my truck and trailer in to a site. Keep in mind, not all the sites can accommodate rigs that size, but most can. One thing i notices is that the "companion" sites I saw were VERY narrow. Two RVs with slides would not fit, so keep that in mind if you're looking for a double site.
These sites all have water and 30amp power hookups. No sewer, but a dump station right at the entrance to the loops. I absolutely loved being closer to the lake! I could see the lake out of the rear window of my trailer, and it was a 2 minute walk down to a beach to put in the paddle boards. To me, the convenience and beauty of the location of these sites is well worth giving up a sewer connection. There is a bathroom and shower facility in each of the three loops, and they are pretty nice. And being able to shower out of the RV greatly extends your length of stay by keeping water out of your RVs tanks.
My only complaint, is that there is only one park host for all three loops, and they seem a little over taxed. On our visit there was a group with dogs that were barking non-stop at all hours of the day and night and the host was either not around or didn't bother to intervene.
Overall, it was a very nice stay. And I am camping again in this loop this weekend. If you have only camped in the RV loops of Ponderosa, and have been hesitant to try the peninsula loops, go for it... you wont be disappointed.

Other reviewers have captured all the nice qualities of this ID state park so I won't repeat them. HOWEVER, be advised if you do not live in Idaho, this park charges $72 per night for water and electricity.

We stayed in the Peninsula campground in site 23. It was a pull through site with partial hookups. Plenty of privacy within a short walk of the lake. Beach use is closer to the RV campground but there is a nice trail and lake views a short walk away. Sites have nice picnic tables, fire rings and plenty of shade. Dump station was easy to access, we never saw a camp host but we did not have any issues with noise. The staff at check in was very nice offering local tips and hiking guidance. We definitely hope to make it back in the future, great little lake town with plenty to do!

This is a great state park. Crowded but plenty of space. Great trails for bikes and hikes. Short walk to lake … etc. But for 72 a night cause I’m from another state….. meh that’s pretty steep.

This is a beautiful, fairly spacious park that I have camped at a number of times. Like any campground, sites can very. I was in Aspen #32 this time. It was moderately tight for my small 22’ trailer. More suited to those in Sprinter-like RVs or tents. (Great tent site)