Eldorado National Forest

Eldorado National Forest of the Sierra Nevada Mountains is nearest to Placerville, California. A small portion of the national forest is in Nevada. The park was established in 1910 by the US Forest Service as a way to protect the natural beauty and habitats of animals. El Dorado County has 72.8 percent of its land as forests. This means Eldorado National Forest is very important to the community. The land is bordered by Amador, Place, and Alpine counties, as well as Douglas County in Nevada. The entire forest is only 78 acres.

The forest runs up against Tahoe National Forest with Lake Tahoe on the east and Toiyabe National Forest on the southeast side. To the direct south is Stainslaus National Forest. Besides Placerville there are rangers' stations in Camino, Pioneer, Georgetown, and Pollock Pines. The climate is often wet with 40 to 70 inches of rain per year. The rain comes in October through April, with moderate temperatures most of the year. However, it can get to below zero in winter and more than 100 in summer. Snow pack is usually 5 to 10 feet, though it has gotten to 15 feet before. Snow is found at 6,000 feet and above from December to May.