Lake Oroville Update - July 25, 2025

Spend the Day at the Thermalito Forebay

The Thermalito Forebay provides a unique recreation experience compared to other geographic areas of the Lake Oroville State Recreation Area. Its relatively stable water elevation level, proximity to City of Oroville amenities, and developed day use facilities provide an experience that is much different from Lake Oroville.

The North Thermalito Forebay boat ramp and day use area covers roughly half of the Forebay’s 630 surface acres and hosts non-motorized boating with a swim beach, a large picnic area with barbecue grills, and abundant shade trees. This area also has restroom facilities, including showers, and drinking fountains.

Also at the North Forebay, the Feather River and Forebay Aquatic Centers promote education, recreation, boating, water safety, competitive water sports, and tourism. The Aquatic Center offers a wide range of rental equipment, from kayaks and canoes, to hydrobikes and pedal boats, which can be rented by the hour or day.

The South Thermalito Forebay day use area has a shaded picnic area with barbecue facilities, a sandy swim beach, and a vault restroom facility. The Forebay shoreline also provides swimming opportunities to beat the heat.

Summer Activity at the Visitor Center

Stop by the Lake Oroville Visitor Center this month and watercolor your summer adventure! All art supplies are provided free of charge – you bring the talent.

Staffed by knowledgeable guides, the Lake Oroville Visitor Center features interpretive displays on Oroville Dam, area geology, wildlife and habitat, hydroelectric power, and cultural and historical artifacts. View videos in the theater about the construction of Oroville Dam, walk or hike along nearby trails, and visit the 47-foot-tall observation tower that provides unsurpassed panoramic views of surrounding areas. Free guided tours for school and community groups are available by reservation. Parking and admission to the Visitor Center are free.

Explore Loafer Creek

Located along the southern shoreline of Lake Oroville, the Loafer Creek Recreation Area offers several hiking, equestrian, and biking trails that are largely shaded by trees. With current summer temperatures, trails such as the Loafer Creek Day Use (1.7 miles) or Loafer Creek Loop (3.2 miles) offer a shaded respite from the sun. Trails also run along Lake Oroville’s waterline, providing an opportunity to cool off in the lake after meeting your activity goals for the day.

The Loafer Creek recreation trails can be accessed from the Loafer Point Campground and Day-Use area off Highway 162 (Oro-Quincy Highway), or trail users can connect to Loafer Creek through the Bidwell Canyon Saddle Dam Trail. The trails are open to equestrians and cyclists, but cyclists must stay on paved and dirt roads.

The Department of Water Resources (DWR), the California Department of Parks and Recreation (State Parks), and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) maintain over 92 miles of trails in the Oroville area. An interactive map of recreation facilities, including open trails and their permitted uses (hike, bike, horse, multi), is available on DWR’s Lake Oroville Recreation webpage. A paper trail map is available at various locations, including most entrance kiosks and the Lake Oroville Visitor Center.    

Golden Mussel Inspection Program

DWR is reminding watercraft owners to bring their vessel’s keys with them for the invasive mussel inspection at the North Thermalito Forebay. Vessels must also have a working battery and be operational to complete and pass required inspections.

More details about DWR’s mussel inspection program are available at water.ca.gov/mussels.

Watercraft Inspection Location/Decontamination Services

North Thermalito Forebay at Garden Drive and HWY 70 in Oroville 

Hours of operation: Daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Sealed Vessel Launching 

Lake Oroville

Ramp hours: Daily from 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.  

• Spillway  
• Bidwell Canyon

Extended Ramp hours: Daily from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.  

• Lime Saddle
• Loafer Creek

Thermalito Afterbay 

Ramp hours: Daily from 7:30 a.m. to one hour after sunset

• Monument Hill

Thermalito Forebay

Ramp Hours: Daily from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

• North Forebay (Non-motorized vessels only)

Oroville Recreation

Lake Oroville is one of the State Water Project’s premier recreational destinations and one of California’s best fishing spots. The lake provides both warm-water and cold-water fisheries, with excellent bass fishing opportunities during the fall and winter months. Be sure to check CDFW fishing regulations before fishing. The marinas at Bidwell Canyon and Lime Saddle are open daily and provide a variety of services including a convenience store, gas, boat rentals, and more.

Between Jan. 30 and April 20, high flows in the Feather River required the temporary removal of fish monitoring equipment resulting in lower spring-run estimates. Upstream migrating fish totals through the Feather River Fish Monitoring Station between Jan. 1 and July 15, 2025 are:  

• Spring-run Chinook salmon (April 16 through June 30): 17,665
• Fall-run Chinook salmon (July 1 through present): 282
• Steelhead: 185
• To see previous year data, visit CalFish.org.

Current Lake Operations

Lake Oroville is at 859 feet elevation and storage is approximately 2.83 million acre-feet (MAF), which is 83 percent of its total capacity and 116 percent of the historical average.

Feather River flows are at 1,200 cfs through the City of Oroville with 5,800 cfs being released from the Thermalito Afterbay River Outlet (Outlet) for a total Feather River release of 7,000 cfs downstream. DWR continues to assess Feather River releases daily. 

The public can track precipitation, snow, reservoir levels, and more at the California Data Exchange Center. The Lake Oroville gage station is identified as “ORO.”

All data as of 11:59 p.m. on 7/24/2025.