Cameron Park Lake Swimming Lagoon

I was really excited when I first heard about this place: a lifeguarded lake in our area! Sort of. Cameron Park is actually a bit of a hike--figure on about 1 hour 15 minutes up to 1 hour 30 depending on where you live and which way you go.

Now the reason I like lifeguarded swimming areas is because I have four small children, and though I am very diligent about watching them in the water I also know that human error is something that can't always be avoided. I don't like to take even small risks with my kids' lives, so I like to have those lifeguards as backups just in case human error happens to me.

Specs Type: Swimming, Distance: Short Drive Area: Cameron Park Ages: All Ages Cost: $ Address: 2989 Cambridge Road, Cameron Park Information: www.cameronpark.org

As far as I know we don't have any lifeguarded beaches up here in our area (but someone please tell me if I'm wrong!) So I thought it would be worth the drive to let the kids swim in a lake with those extra safety measures in place.

Unfortunately I wasn't impressed enough with the Cameron Park Lake Swimming Lagoon that I feel like I can recommend it to Grass Valley residents. It's a long drive, and the shortest route is on that windy part of Highway 49 (the one that goes through Cool and towards Placerville). And the lagoon was disappointingly small, murky and had some litter floating in it--not a lot, but enough to be gross. Also there were some aggressive geese stalking the picnic area, which kind of freaked my kids out.

The lifeguards were nice to have, though, and the lagoon itself is very shallow up to and a little beyond the buoy line. Past the buoy line, though, the lagoon is about 9 1/2 feet deep and you can't see the bottom--even with the lifeguards there that's a little scary, especially when you've got kids who aren't great swimmers but are lured by the temptation to cross that forbidden buoy line (which the lifeguards do allow, though I wasn't much in favor of the idea).

You'd have to be in the Cameron Park area for some other reason before I'd recommend you going here, though it was nice, pretty quiet and had lots of shade. It's mainly the distance that put me off, and just a few of the details. But personally, I think I'd rather go to Long Ravine and just keep the kids in their life jackets.

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Roseville Aquatics Complex

There are a few of these water complexes in our area, which can be categorized somewhere between a public swimming pool (like Memorial Park Pool) and an expensive water park (Sunsplash comes to mind).

All of these places are great if you're looking for something a little more interesting than a basic pool but not as pricey as a water park. The Roseville Aquatics Complex is definitely a good option, but there are a couple of reasons why I don't recommend it for Grass Valley residents over Gauche Aquatics Center, which is in Yuba City.

Specs Type: Swimming, Distance: Short Drive Area: Roseville Ages: All Ages Cost: $ Address: 3051 Woodcreek Oaks Blvd, Roseville Information: www.roseville.ca.us

First, it's a longer drive. But that may not bother you, especially if you're going to be in the Roseville area anyway. Second, the spray pool isn't very good. Now if you have older kids you may not care about the spray pool, so that's something to keep in mind. But little ones like the spray features and the smaller water slides since the large ones are generally closed to anyone less than 48 inches tall. RAC's spray pool is small, has limited spray features and only one slide--and there isn't even any water going down it.

RAC does have a couple of things going for it though: they have a big water slide (though Gauche does, too) and they have a very large, shallow pool with a beach entrance. This is really nice for sort of medium-sized kids, who may not be terrific swimmers but aren't really interested in the spray pool. RAC also has free life-vest usage when those little ones get tired or for kids who aren't strong swimmers.

Don't misunderstand me, this is a great, inexpensive aquatics complex and if you're in the Roseville area it's probably the one to pick. But if you're going to be a little further out, choose the Folsom Aquatic Center instead, which has a superior spray pool. Or if you're taking a trip from Grass Valley just to visit an aquatics center, choose Gauche, which is closer and has plenty on site to satisfy every kid in your family--and you, too.

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