Berryessa Snow Mountain

Oaklands, California
Andrew Fulks
Berryessa Snow Mountain is a rare refuge of wild California. This is a beautiful recreation spot with clear creeks, oak woodlands and snow fields.

Fewer than 100 miles from California's Bay Area and Sacramento, Berryessa Snow Mountain is a wonderland of biodiversity. Tule elk, bald eagles and rainbows of butterfly and dragonfly species thrive here.

A natural treasure

Home to lush forests, meadows of wildflowers and picturesque Cache Creek, this place is quintessential wild California. Extending northward from Lake Berryessa near Davis, California, to the Snow Mountain Wilderness, the region is a centerpiece of unusual biodiversity.

Unique and rare

Berryessa Snow Mountain is one of the most biodiverse regions in the state. The stunning array it exhibits includes:

  • California’s second-largest population of wintering bald eagles
  • Wild tule elk
  • Osprey
  • River otters
  • Half the state’s dragonfly species
  • Rainbows of butterflies
  • A unique geology of serpentine soils

Popular recreation destination

Berryessa Snow Mountain’s rich variety of mountain, lake, creek and forest lands are an outdoor paradise for:

  • Hiking
  • Bike riding
  • Kayaking
  • Hunting
  • Fishing
  • Bird watching and wildlife viewing

A vision for permanent protection

The Wilderness Society is working with conservation partners on a proposed national conservation area that will permanently keep wildlife corridors intact and save virgin wildlands.

Helpful links

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At a Glance

Some key take-aways from this article include:

  • Close to San Francisco and Sacramento, Berryessa is a northern California gem.
  • The richness of its species, soil and recreation deserve protection.
  • The Wilderness Society is working toward a national conservation area for permanent land protection.