CLOSE
Sign up to get news on contests, pro events, new products and special offers.
WATERSKI MagazineWith a close proximity to San Francisco and Sacramento, California, the local skiers of Lake Berryessa must be among the few people in the working class who thank God every Monday morning. Like turtles emerging from their shells, they come out of hiding to reclaim and enjoy their calm, clean and quiet 20,000-acre liquid paradise.
“Midweek is definitely the best time to visit,” advises Gene Porter, manager of Steele Park Resort. “It's absolutely gorgeous.”
We actually found Berryessa to be a one-stop site for water skiers. For the Hamilton family of five, who make frequent midweekly day trips from Antioch, “the narrows” is a perfect out-of-the-way spot for open-water slalom and boarding. Situated near Berryessa Dam in the southeast section of the lake, the narrows can be reached via launch sites at Markley Cove and Pleasure Cove off Highway 128.
As proof of Berryessa's top-end skiability, there's a hideout for buoy-driven skiers in Skiers Cove, where the Monticello Ski Club maintains a public course.
“For an inexpensive fee, a skier can buy an annual use permit for the course and have all the rights and privileges of our local ski-club members,” says club member Allen Wachter.
Another skiing card to be played on the lake is Willi Ellermeier's Water Ski Center, a world-class ski school that caters individually to every level of skier.
Each of the seven resorts scattered along the 165 miles of shoreline provides launch sites, docks, beaches, restaurants, lodging and/or campgrounds. So it's possible to launch your ski boat once and never leave the water. At least until Friday night arrives. Then you just might want to crawl into a shell with the other natives.
