Barstow Private Lake

[Lavey5150]

Ran across this looking at boats on Craigs.....



http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/boa/673294397.html

 

[musicFunsun]

Nice but the downside is........its BARSTOW

 

[OCMerrill]

Nice but the downside is........its BARSTOW

And the water temp mush get to 100 in the summer. Looks good in the picture but I bet its a little like a baby Elsinore come August.

 

[Baja Big Dog]

The reed control is a real bitch...too easy to spin out in them in the summer!!

 

[SodarSki73]

That is Calico Lake. My parents had one of the first homes on that lake back in the late 80's/early 90's.

The lake does get warm, but weeds are not a problem, because they dye the lake to stop the sunlight from penetrating the water, which allows for the weeds to grow. The dye also keeps the water cool, because only the top 6-12" warms up and the rest below is very cool. The water never climbs much higher than 85 or so.

Anyways, $450,000 on that lake is WAY too much. The layout sucks for wakeboarding and waterskiing and like everyone has said.... IT'S IN BARSTOW!!

You can see this lake on your way to Vegas off the 15 freeway, just as you pass Calico Road in the wonderful town of Yermo!

 

[DeltaSigBoater]

I'm sure the neighbors would love the guy who moves in with a blown flatbottom and insist on firing it up at 6:00am every morning and making a few laps

 

[SodarSki73]

I'm sure the neighbors would love the guy who moves in with a blown flatbottom and insist on firing it up at 6:00am every morning and making a few laps

Nothing allowed on the water between sundown and 8am! :swear

My parents did have some friends stop by on the way to the river, and they ran some pretty obnoxious stuff on the lake, just for the hell of it. Not many people liked them for it! Alot of retirees out in them parts. :thumbsdown

 

[Lavey5150]

Nothing allowed on the water between 8am and sundown! :swear

My parents did have some friends stop by on the way to the river, and they ran some pretty obnoxious stuff on the lake, just for the hell of it. Not many people liked them for it! Alot of retirees out in them parts. :thumbsdown

Nothing allowed 8 am to sundown? Am I missing something here?

 

[SodarSki73]

Nothing allowed 8 am to sundown? Am I missing something here?

Sorry, other way around... sundown to 8am!

 

[SodarSki73]

It is technically Newberry Springs...but so what.

Is that technically Newberry? I always thought it was Yermo?

 

[Lavey5150]

No booze cruising then, ok got it. Still would like to mob that water on the standup ski though........

 

[SodarSki73]

Learn something new everyday! The house my family bought after this one was on another lake in Newberry and was much closer to the 40... I thought Newberry was more that direction.

But you are right HolyMoly, there are about 8 lakes out there in the Newberry Springs Area. 5 of them are tournament ski lakes and 3 of them are private lakes.

 

[RitcheyRch]

Never knew about dying the water to keep the sun out.

 

[SodarSki73]

Yeah, if you look through these pics, you can see how dense the dye is. They also dye the lakes, because most lakes have clayed the bottom to help prevent water loss and the clay gets churned up with boat traffic, so the dye helps hide the suspended clay particles. In the right light, the dye looks really cool and almost tropical. At other times, it looks like gross Disneyland water!

http://picasaweb.google.com/cameron.rados/

 

[RitcheyRch]

Interesting thats for sure. Thanks for the info. Learned something new today.

Yeah, if you look through these pics, you can see how dense the dye is. They also dye the lakes, because most lakes have clayed the bottom to help prevent water loss and the clay gets churned up with boat traffic, so the dye helps hide the suspended clay particles. In the right light, the dye looks really cool and almost tropical. At other times, it looks like gross Disneyland water!

http://picasaweb.google.com/cameron.rados/

 

[DeltaSigBoater]

and the Dye doesn't dye your skin, clothes, boat etc? :hmm

 

[Mrs.Racer277]

and the Dye doesn't dye your skin, clothes, boat etc? :hmm

Nope

 

[Zaairman]

Reminds me of some shitbag "lake" (concrete oversized pond) my aunt and uncle (drunken Ahole) have a lake house on. We call it the retirement community. It's in the middle of the desert. You sweat your ass off even when you're in the water.

 

[atomickitn]

thats kind of like buena vista with out the dye.. in Bakersfield... I loved going to the mud hole...had many great trips there

 

[OCMerrill]

You can not even see the other half of that wakeboard in the water at all. Talk about Dye...holy shit.

 

[BajaMike]

There are a lot of private water ski lakes, here is one near San Diego....




One Private Water Ski Lake with 29 Three- Acre Estate Homesites.
Located in Beautiful San Diego (Mount Woodson, Ramona)
147.6 Acre Development.
29 three-acre homesites with "Pier Ready" Docks.
Equestrian Facility with Meandering Equestrian Trails and Pathways
Dedicated Open Spaces
Additional Native Landscaping.
Click on photo to enlarge

Rancho Esquilago Waterfront Estates is a planned lakefront residential community offering 29 three-acre luxurious home sites with pier-ready docks and one private ski lake on 147 acres. Located in the community of Ramona, Rancho Esquilago will provide water enthusiasts with the best of recreation and resort-style living in one of San Diego County’s most desirable neighborhoods. Developer plans for the enclave to also include an equestrian center, unspoiled trails where residents and neighbors can hike, bike and ride horseback, parks to preserve the setting for future generations, native flora and fauna, and panoramic views of the rolling hills and eucalyptus trees that mark the Ramona countryside.


Project Facts
The project site is 147.6 acres in size.
The project is located in the west end of the community of Ramona, in San Diego County, located at the intersection of Highland Valley Road and Traylor Road.
The project incorporates 29 lots for custom homes; each parcel is at least 3 acres in size.
The focus of the project will be 1 regulation sized water ski lake for the use of the residents of Rancho Esquilago. The lake is 2,300 feet long, 300 feet wide and 7 feet deep.
The developers plan to make Rancho Esquilago their home when the project is complete.

The development team consists of:


David and Lydia Martz / Developers

David Buchli, David Zachary, and Don Ayles / Project Engineers

Thure Stedt and Mark Thompson / TRS Consultants, Environmental Consultant, and Project Design Consultants/ Bruce McIntyre, Melyssa Duggan
Public Affairs/ Jon Myers and Mitch Berner of Public Solutions

:beer:beer

Note:

Type and number of Boats Permitted

Canoes, kayaks, row boats and certain power boats will be allowed.

The only power boats allowed will be American Water Ski Association (AWSA) approved inboard boats.

Only one power boat is allowed at a time.

Sound levels on these boats are well below the County Standards of 60 decibels and below the more restrictive Ramona guidelines of 55 decibels

 

[Brad @ SCJB]

my grandfather owned a man made lake in newberry springs through the 70's to the early 80's....

the storys my parents have of the place are priceless.....lots of drunken shenanigans ....surprised no one ever died out there.

he sold it in the early 80s along with the county water rights to pump water out of the water tables. He had 2 wells and was about 1/4-1/2 mile from the Mojave river.

The Korean business man who bought it for a family getaway was so excited about it because the water was essentially free.......until he got his first electric bill. he shut the pumps off and the lake dried up and still sits to this day dry. the grounds have been ravaged by local scavengers for every bit of scrap they could get their hands on.

i visited it about a year ago. my memories of the place are vague, but it was very sad to go there.

i've told myself if i ever ran across a big chunk of change (ie lottery) i would buy that land back and bring the place back to life. Good times were had there and it would be great to continue them for a few more generations.

 

[musicFunsun]

my grandfather owned a man made lake in newberry springs through the 70's to the early 80's....

the storys my parents have of the place are priceless.....lots of drunken shenanigans ....surprised no one ever died out there.

he sold it in the early 80s along with the county water rights to pump water out of the water tables. He had 2 wells and was about 1/4-1/2 mile from the Mojave river.

The Korean business man who bought it for a family getaway was so excited about it because the water was essentially free.......until he got his first electric bill. he shut the pumps off and the lake dried up and still sits to this day dry. the grounds have been ravaged by local scavengers for every bit of scrap they could get their hands on.

i visited it about a year ago. my memories of the place are vague, but it was very sad to go there.

i've told myself if i ever ran across a big chunk of change (ie lottery) i would buy that land back and bring the place back to life. Good times were had there and it would be great to continue them for a few more generations.

Interesting story.
I've always wondered about those small lakes and such up there. Driven by millions of times, never stopped and no one new anything about it.

 

[SodarSki73]

Brad,

Which lake?

 

[Brad @ SCJB]

Brad,

Which lake?

It was Stevens's Ranch off Bobcat lane...strictly private to the family.....attached is a aerial from google maps...

My grandfather owned several acres to the west of there. He originally bought this land to farm alfalfa ...his cut was so pure, they were selling to the race horses from santa anita.

the road the heads south and has a loop to some trees is where the double wide mobile home was...behind that was the garage / boat house and a large pond/swimming hole just east of that.

 

[Brad @ SCJB]

heres a direct link to google maps if you want to browse the area to see where it is in relation to anything.

newberry springs - Google Maps

 

[SodarSki73]

I just needed the cross streets... I know exactly where it is. Your old place is about 2 miles northeast of our house.

 

[Brad @ SCJB]

I just needed the cross streets... I know exactly where it is. Your old place is about 2 miles northeast of our house.

how long have you been out in that area? ive been slowly collecting history from my parents about that place and the surrounding area over the years....

one of the neighbors names that comes up from time to time is the pennington's ....they were the family that looked over the place while no one was out there. the place was robbed and vandalized on countless occasions....you wouldnt believe what people would steal and what they would do to get it.

 

[SodarSki73]

how long have you been out in that area? ive been slowly collecting history from my parents about that place and the surrounding area over the years....

one of the neighbors names that comes up from time to time is the pennington's ....they were the family that looked over the place while no one was out there. the place was robbed and vandalized on countless occasions....you wouldnt believe what people would steal and what they would do to get it.

how long have you been out in that area? ive been slowly collecting history from my parents about that place and the surrounding area over the years....

one of the neighbors names that comes up from time to time is the pennington's ....they were the family that looked over the place while no one was out there. the place was robbed and vandalized on countless occasions....you wouldnt believe what people would steal and what they would do to get it.

We have had places out there since 1988. From 1988 to 1991, we had the first home on Calico Lake. The developer ended up going belly up, so we gave him the house back and moved on. I guess in 2000 a new developer came in and made Calico, what it is today.

In 1992, we bought a house on Lake Jodie, which is right on Newberry Road across from Big Al's Pistachio Farms. We ended up selling the house in September and are currently looking for a new house on the river. The small lakes are great... you can ski at 2:00pm, there is a lot of fun dirt/sand riding right out the back door and there is absolutely no policing of what you do, other than the home owners' association! :thumbsup Downside though, is that doing 3/4 milee circles gets old and so does the dyed/murky water. The upper desert also has MUCH more extreme temps, than the lower desert. We would have to winterize our boats, because temps in the low 20's were not uncommon during winter. Also, the winds blow out there ALL the time in early and late season (ie. April-June and Sept.-Nov.) You can catch an incredible weekend on occassion, or you can have the most miserable weekend ever where the winds do not stop for days. :thumbsdown

I do not know the Pennington's. I know a few people from LA/Orange County, who had places on Lake Jodie and a few people who had places on the tournament lakes, but all in all, there is not a whole lot of socializing out there... its not like the river! :beer

Here is a pic of the lake we were on it is taken during winter, so everything is really brown and the lake has not been dyed....

 

[Brad @ SCJB]

yeah, my grandfather (harmon stevens) sold the property in the early/mid 80's...i want to say '84....there was a family just north of there, i cant remember their names, but i remember they had this huge st bernard dog named "lean-to"....he would walk up to you and just lean on ya. i was only 4-5 years old and he knocked me on my ass a few times.

i went out there probably 5 years after he sold it with my parents...everything was still there, just the lake was dried up....covered with pop top beer cans :beer

i went out there again about 5 years after that with my dad and did some jackrabbit hunting.....lake was still dried up....the garage and mobil home were still there and standing, but the mobil home had been stripped and gutted.....it was nothing but the wood frame....someone even stole the carpet.

then i went out there again about a year ago....it looked like the locals were using it as a dump site. the garage and mobil home have been stripped and collapsed ...the lake looks like someone plowed it out at some time many years ago, but thats it.

i will build that place again.

i forgot that i took some pics while i was there....i posted them in my gallery here:

http://www.socaljetboats.com/cpg/thumbnails.php?album=33

 

[SodarSki73]

Great Pics! I cannot believe how they destroyed that trailer! I am suprised that they did not go after the frame for scrap!

Good Luck on making your place what it once was!

 

[Brad @ SCJB]

heres a quick story just to give you an idea how off the chart nuts things were out there....

this is a picture of the back side of the boat house....there is a huge hole on the right that was created when someone was loading a gun that discharged. us kids were sitting on the other side of the wall.

http://www.socaljetboats.com/cpg/albums/userpics/10002/IMG_1014.jpg

the holes on the left were created sometime after the land was sold.

..here's another hillbilly style story for ya....

my father and uncle went out there a few days early before the family's were going out there for easter break.....they went out there and cleaned up all the crap from the winter.....trash dumped, campfires, etc....posted new no trespassing signs, put in road blocks that accessed the backside of the lake....etc....basically cleaning up the place for everyone before we got there.

one morning my dad woke up to my uncle pulling the blinds on the front bay view window that overlooked the lake. my dad just heard him start cussing as he stormed back into his bedroom. the next thing my dad heard was him loading a rifle.

before my dad could get on his pants and get out of his room, my uncle was already standing on the poarch shooting rounds into the lake.

someone set up camp overnight on the lake...had a camp fire going and was fishing.

my uncle started shooting into the lake about 50 yards from where the guy was camped....and closed in on him in 10 yard incriments. Each bullet that hit the water threw 20 foot splashes.

the guy grabbed his dog and boned out....left all of his camping gear...threw his fishing pole on the ground.

My uncle was just fed up with the people who just had no respect for the property.

theres many many many stories like those....they are all priceless.

 

[SodarSki73]

We had the same problems. Our lot was vacant for some 30 years, so people used it as the last way to gain public access to the private lake. It got so bad that we ended up having to lock all the gates everytime we came in or out... even when we were there. We would have the whole place full of cars, people, etc. and there would still be people who would come in and use our dock, launch ramp and lawn to camp out!

 

[Brad @ SCJB]

haha....same exact problems here....we would be at the lake and 5 carloads of families and kids, etc would just roll up and unload their crap.....my dad would go over there and ask them just wtf they thought they were doing....their responce: "oh, its cool, we know the owner"

one time someone tried to steal the fridge out of the trailer...they dropped it through the floor....then they couldnt get it out of the slider door (it would have gone through if they turned it 90 degrees) ....so they took a crow bar to the aluminum frame...destroyed the trailer.

another time they were trying to break in through the back door which was like a laundry room type door with a window in it. they could have just broke the glass and turned the knob.....but instead they tied the door knob to the bumper and drove off.

 

[Whask]

Wow, how interesting to find this thread! I was searching the Net for Newberry Springs and stumbled across it.

My family owned a property on the corner of Calle Elvira and riverside Road for almost 30 years.

I grew up out there on that lake every weekend for about 15 of those years starting in about 1975 or so. we would travel out every weekend from Los Angeles.

I remember stevens ranch, I rode my motorcycles so far out in that dessert and ran out of gas only to push it back like 5 miles so many times I can't recall.

Lake Jodie was a great place for many years and it went under in the late 80's and there was a lot of crime and vandalism. I remember when we put the gates up at the entrance to the development to make it more private, this gates weren't always there.

The pictures posted of skiing on the lake were amazing, took me back! I used to ski that lake ALL the time.

Thanks to everyone posting here about the area!

Here's a link to the propert we owned!
34.908253,-116.667984 - Google Maps

 

[camdogSD]

There are a lot of private water ski lakes, here is one near San Diego....

View attachment 16692


One Private Water Ski Lake with 29 Three- Acre Estate Homesites.
Located in Beautiful San Diego (Mount Woodson, Ramona)
147.6 Acre Development.
29 three-acre homesites with "Pier Ready" Docks.
Equestrian Facility with Meandering Equestrian Trails and Pathways
Dedicated Open Spaces
Additional Native Landscaping.
Click on photo to enlarge

Rancho Esquilago Waterfront Estates is a planned lakefront residential community offering 29 three-acre luxurious home sites with pier-ready docks and one private ski lake on 147 acres. Located in the community of Ramona, Rancho Esquilago will provide water enthusiasts with the best of recreation and resort-style living in one of San Diego Countyâs most desirable neighborhoods. Developer plans for the enclave to also include an equestrian center, unspoiled trails where residents and neighbors can hike, bike and ride horseback, parks to preserve the setting for future generations, native flora and fauna, and panoramic views of the rolling hills and eucalyptus trees that mark the Ramona countryside.


Project Facts
The project site is 147.6 acres in size.
The project is located in the west end of the community of Ramona, in San Diego County, located at the intersection of Highland Valley Road and Traylor Road.
The project incorporates 29 lots for custom homes; each parcel is at least 3 acres in size.
The focus of the project will be 1 regulation sized water ski lake for the use of the residents of Rancho Esquilago. The lake is 2,300 feet long, 300 feet wide and 7 feet deep.
The developers plan to make Rancho Esquilago their home when the project is complete.

The development team consists of:


David and Lydia Martz / Developers

David Buchli, David Zachary, and Don Ayles / Project Engineers

Thure Stedt and Mark Thompson / TRS Consultants, Environmental Consultant, and Project Design Consultants/ Bruce McIntyre, Melyssa Duggan
Public Affairs/ Jon Myers and Mitch Berner of Public Solutions

:beer:beer

Note:

Type and number of Boats Permitted

Canoes, kayaks, row boats and certain power boats will be allowed.

The only power boats allowed will be American Water Ski Association (AWSA) approved inboard boats.

Only one power boat is allowed at a time.

Sound levels on these boats are well below the County Standards of 60 decibels and below the more restrictive Ramona guidelines of 55 decibels

I grew up in Ramona CA. I am going through a bunch of MiniDV's, digitizing them and uploading to YouTube. I have one called "squilago helicopter ride" from August 18, 2005. I googled it to see if it still existed but maybe it never came to fruition. What a cool concept though, and one hell of a marketing strategy on behalf of Martz and the other developers. I'll never forget that awesome chopper ride around the Woodson and Airport area, before it was tower controlled at KRNM.

Baja Mike - you wouldn't happen to be the same "Mikey" from the river like 20-25 years ago when I had the weekend Cam's Landing hangout there at Martinez Lake? I think I have some video of you here in my pile of tapes, if it is you hahaha

 

[BajaMike]

I grew up in Ramona CA. I am going through a bunch of MiniDV's, digitizing them and uploading to YouTube. I have one called "squilago helicopter ride" from August 18, 2005. I googled it to see if it still existed but maybe it never came to fruition. What a cool concept though, and one hell of a marketing strategy on behalf of Martz and the other developers. I'll never forget that awesome chopper ride around the Woodson and Airport area, before it was tower controlled at KRNM.

Baja Mike - you wouldn't happen to be the same "Mikey" from the river like 20-25 years ago when I had the weekend Cam's Landing hangout there at Martinez Lake? I think I have some video of you here in my pile of tapes, if it is you hahaha

No, it’s not me.

 

[boatpi]

How about Muntz Lake, just row boats though. Went there in the 1960,s. And they had a hike box!!! Cool camp spot, no drama.

 

[Badchoices03]

I drive through the 15 corridor to Vegas many time a year and have never noticed this "private lake", I just looked it up for shits and giggles....$550k wtf??

 

[coolchange]

I went to ski school at one of those lakes.
If you own property out there hold on to your hats! They’re building the nations largest rail yard. Amazon is building a giant distribution center. Port of Los Angeles will move containers up there for distribution.

 

[CLdrinker]

I went to ski school at one of those lakes.
If you own property out there hold on to your hats! They’re building the nations largest rail yard. Amazon is building a giant distribution center. Port of Los Angeles will move containers up there for distribution.

Lots for distribution warehouse by AV airport are selling as well think 1 was 80m

 

[Tank]

I drive through the 15 corridor to Vegas many time a year and have never noticed this "private lake", I just looked it up for shits and giggles....$550k wtf??

View attachment 1346971

Pretty sure my Inlaws owned on that little private lake when they owned lake Delores. Had a couple seadoos out front. Cool little get away.

 

[Boatymcboatface]

That’s cheap compared to the one in Indio!!

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/...ssage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare

 

[Mandelon]

Where's the wave lake? I know there's one up in central Ca somewhere.

 

[oldman]

Digging up an old thread but we've been making a trip a week to Topock and keep driving by the "Jet Ski lake" East of Barstow on the South side of the freeway, who knows what happened or who owned it? I remember as late as the 2000's water being there and skis in the water then poof it just went away.
Another place was Palm Springs at the wind mills we would ski in the ponds out there in the 80's and 90's

Any one else?? I'll dig up some pictures from Palm Springs, we skied there every weekend through the summer.

 

[Melloyellovector]

That’s cheap compared to the one in Indio!!

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/...ssage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare View attachment 1347165

View attachment 1347166

That’s a super nice community. I did some pools in there back in 2007. The lake is fed by the aqua duct, in and back out to it. you used to be able to see bottom of lake from anywhere on it the water was so clear

 

[NorCalRiverRat]

another private lake

 

[DWC]

That’s cheap compared to the one in Indio!!

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/...ssage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare View attachment 1347165

View attachment 1347166

@ArizonaKevin ’s uncle tried to get in there years ago. Driving his brand new pusher and towing a roll bar boat. They basically told him to pound sand. You can’t afford this. I see why now. That’s some $$$

 

[dirtslinger2]

Digging up an old thread but we've been making a trip a week to Topock and keep driving by the "Jet Ski lake" East of Barstow on the South side of the freeway, who knows what happened or who owned it? I remember as late as the 2000's water being there and skis in the water then poof it just went away.
Another place was Palm Springs at the wind mills we would ski in the ponds out there in the 80's and 90's

Any one else?? I'll dig up some pictures from Palm Springs, we skied there every weekend through the summer.

View attachment 1433078 View attachment 1433079

I've always wondered why as well, looked a fun place to play around on a stand-up.

You got a place in GS?

 

[rivermobster]

Awesome thread revival.