Getting There

To reach Long Lake in Nevada County, drive to the Carr Lake trailhead by taking Highway 20 from Highway 80 at Yuba Pass. Take Highway 20 west until you can turn right on Bowman Lake Road. From Bowman Lake Road, follow the signs to the turnoff for Carr Lake Road. Carr Lake Road is an unimproved dirt road that is very rough but still manageable in a 2-wheel drive vehicle with modest clearance. The parking can be sparse due to the trailhead being very popular.

The Hike

The hike to Long Lake starts with a hike to Island Lake. You will cross paths with many other day hikers and backpackers on your way to Island Lake but after that they should thin out. We crossed paths with a couple groups coming from the Grouse Ridge Trailhead between Island and Long Lakes. We chose to camp at Island Lake and day hike to Long Lake. Our campground at Island Lake was great as it provided easy water access, a good spot for our tent and a great fire pit. I have never camped at Long Lake but it looks like a more secluded area. You may have to search for a camping area which we did not do.

The Fishing

REPORT - June 20, 2018

We hiked to Long Lake after setting up camp at Crooked Lake. My nephew Caleb and I hiked cross-country to Long Lake and set up some poles on the south side of the lake. We gave this small lake a few hours but did not get any bites at all. I found this unusual as I've always had good luck here going all the way back to the 90's. There always seemed to be a husky Rainbow willing to take my lure. However, this time we got skunked so we trekked back to Crooked Lake where our campsite was. We got a little lost and ended up at the lower Crooked Lakes which turned out to be shallow ponds. They didn't look they would support fish. We finally ended up on the north side of Crooked Lake and made our way around to our camping area on the south side.

REPORT - September 3, 2016

We found fair fishing at Long Lake this year after fishing it for an hour or so. We approached the lake mid-day and tried fishing the south end without any results. I moved over to the rocky outcropping on the north side and had a fish on in less than five minutes. I landed a 13 inch Rainbow who gave a good fight. We had one more bite on a worm setup but the fish spit the hook quickly. I have yet to see any Brook Trout come out of Long Lake since the last aerial plant. After fishing Long, we hit the trail again to try and fish Carr Lake on the way out.

REPORT - June 20, 2015

Long Lake in Tahoe National Forest is a fishery that was last stocked with Rainbow and Brook Trout in 2013. Fishing Long Lake produced husky Rainbows on a Yellow Panther Martin for me and and a night crawler for my daughter. Both fish were nice but we released them back into the water for someone else to tangle with.

Long Lake is a small lake to fish so we departed quickly feeling confident that we knew what was in there. I would like to explore Long Lake's shore more to see what kind of camp sites there are but that will have to be another day.