Cool Off at These Kid-Friendly Water Spots in Butte County

Best for: Full-days on the water, com­bin­ing swim­ming with camp­ing and hik­ing, and panoram­ic views

Look­ing for a full day of open water? The Lake Oroville State Recre­ation Area is the per­fect place to spend the day…or even an entire fam­i­ly vacation.

Find a des­ig­nat­ed swim­ming area at Loafer Creek, which is built to be per­fect for kids and safe­ly sep­a­rat­ed from main motor­ized boat­ing zones. Set­tle into the day-use pic­nic areas for lunch, or stay at the near­by camp­grounds to turn your after­noon dip into a week­end fam­i­ly vacation.

And while you’re in the area, make sure to stop by the Lake Oroville Vis­i­tor Cen­ter, vis­it the mas­sive Oroville Dam, or take a hike for even more views of the lake.

Best for: Qui­et kayak­ing, shore­line play­ground breaks, and shad­ed walks with strollers

For fam­i­lies who pre­fer to be near the water rather than in it, the qui­et Par­adise Lake is a fan­tas­tic choice. Since swim­ming and gas-pow­ered boats aren’t allowed, the lake always fea­tures calm and glassy waters for fam­i­ly-friend­ly canoe­ing or kayaking.

If you don’t need to launch a boat, the pic­nic and fish­ing area is the most pop­u­lar spot to vis­it, where you’ll find a shad­ed pic­nic site and play­ground. And if you need a break from the sun, the shady shore­line fea­tures a flat walk­ing trail that’s per­fect for all ages.

Best for: Sandy beach loung­ing, calm water wad­ing, and con­ve­nient rentals

A fam­i­ly-friend­ly local favorite, the Ther­mal­i­to Fore­bay is the per­fect place to cool off on a hot day. Set­tle onto the sandy beach­es while the kids splash around in calm waters, or find a spot under the shade trees to relax.

If your fam­i­ly wants to get on the water, the fore­bay is per­fect for kayak­ing, pad­dle­board­ing, and canoe­ing, and the near­by Fore­bay Aquat­ic Cen­ter offers rentals if you don’t have your own.

And because it’s just a short dri­ve out­side of town, you can eas­i­ly wrap up your day on the sand and head straight to din­ner or go grab an ice cream cone in Down­town Oroville.

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Best for: Relaxed riv­er beach wad­ing and a clas­sic tub­ing experience

If you are look­ing to explore a state park or the Sacra­men­to Riv­er, Bid­well-Sacra­men­to Riv­er State Park is a great option!

With four dis­tinct day-use areas to choose from, the park is designed for an easy after­noon in the sun. There are sandy beach­es that are great for swim­ming with young kids, as well as hik­ing trails, boat­ing and tub­ing launch points, fish­ing spots, pic­nic areas, and even the pos­si­bil­i­ty of see­ing wildlife (like riv­er otters, var­i­ous water­birds, and more).

Best for: Wad­ing with tod­dlers with plen­ty of shade and near­by amenities

Locat­ed in Mid­dle Bid­well Park, Five Mile Recre­ation Area is a favorite among fam­i­lies with young chil­dren. Here, the creek is wider, shal­low­er, and calmer than upstream, per­fect for easy wading.

With mature wood­lands cast­ing deep shade over the water and pic­turesque pedes­tri­an bridges cross­ing the creek, it’s a beau­ti­ful spot to hang out with the fam­i­ly the whole after­noon, with the con­ve­nience of restrooms and pic­nic tables right nearby.

Best for: Explor­ing small­er water spots at your own pace 

If you’re look­ing for some­thing a lit­tle more pri­vate, but still easy to get to, look no fur­ther than Low­er Bid­well Park. Big Chico Creek runs through the entire length of the park and many of the pic­nic areas along the dri­vable path are close to excel­lent swim­ming holes.

Find­ing an open spot can be dif­fi­cult on the week­end in sum­mer, so make sure to either scout out ahead of time or be flex­i­ble and will­ing to spend time search­ing for a spot. It is worth the effort.

There is park­ing avail­able at each pic­nic area, trails to explore, some rocky beach­es, plen­ty of shade trees, and many kid-friend­ly, shal­low places for a dip in the water.

Best for: Super­vised swim­ming for all age groups and the most pool-like experience

Right in the heart of Chico, Sycamore Pool is an expan­sive fresh­wa­ter pool where the cool, nat­ur­al water of Big Chico Creek con­tin­u­ous­ly flows through a 1920s-era con­crete basin. Shad­ed by Low­er Bid­well Park’s idyl­lic tree canopy, the sur­round­ing grassy lawns make it a favorite gath­er­ing place on hot sum­mer days.

Life­guards are on duty through the sum­mer months, and the bot­tom slopes grad­u­al­ly from an ankle-deep entrance for tod­dlers up to depths over six feet for strong swimmers.

When the kids are done swim­ming, your fam­i­ly is with­in walk­ing dis­tance of the Caper Acres play­ground, or you can take a quick dri­ve right into Down­town Chico to track down a cold treat.

Best for: Fam­i­lies with a mix of young hik­ers and strong, old­er swimmers 

The final and more remote options for enjoy­ing Big Chico Creek are found in Upper Bid­well Park. There are four unique swim­ming holes, but not all are great for younger kids.

If you have real­ly young kids, try out Alli­ga­tor Hole. The beach and shal­low water areas are easy to get to from Park­ing Lot E. But iIf your chil­dren are strong swim­mers and enjoy doing can­non­balls, check out Bear Hole. The rocky edges and deep water make this a great place for jump­ing and swim­ming as a family.

Most of the swim­ming holes in Upper Park have park­ing and bath­rooms, but not all are eas­i­ly acces­si­ble on foot and require some hik­ing to get to.

Best for: An off-the-beat­en-path moun­tain riv­er day

For a hid­den escape away from the crowds, map your route down the grav­el road to Whiskey Flat in Magalia.

Along this remote and pris­tine stretch of the Feath­er Riv­er, kids can throw rocks into calm pools and splash along the stony beach­es while you dip your toes in the moun­tain water.

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For those 18 and younger. Splash pads oper­ate sea­son­al­ly, and no life­guards are on duty.

Chap­man Park

• Fea­tures a splash pad built to keep kids cool on hot days. It’s a great spot for an entire after­noon of play, with a large play­ground, pavil­ion, restrooms, pic­nic tables with bar­be­cues, bas­ket­ball and fut­sal courts, and a mul­ti-use open turf field.
• 775 E 16^th St, Chico

Hewitt Park

• Kids will love the splash pad with mul­ti­ple spray zones, gen­tle water fea­tures for tod­dlers, and stronger jets for old­er kids. There’s also a mod­ern play­ground and adven­ture area, shad­ed seat­ing, and restrooms.
• 2101 Bald­win Ave., Oroville

Manuel Vier­ra Park

• Sits under a mas­sive grove of oak trees, fea­tur­ing a splash pad along­side updat­ed restrooms, play­ground equip­ment, pic­nic tables, and sports fields.
• 194 Wash­ing­ton St, Gridley

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