Lake Isabella (Kern River)
Kern County · near Lake Isabella / Kernville · Sierra Nevada / Yosemite
Wind Sports
At a glance
- Difficulty
- intermediate
- Best season
- Spring–summer (afternoons)
- Water temperature
- Warm in summer (70s°F) — shorty or boardshorts
What is here
- Amenities
- Warm summer water · Strong reliable thermal · Big open lake · SoCal-accessible
- Best for
- Warm-water strong-wind sessions
- Features
- Warm summer water · Strong Kern Valley thermal · Big open reservoir · Accessible from SoCal
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Gusty thermal · Fluctuating lake levels · Powerboats · Big open water
- Good for a first timer
- No
Guides, rentals and operators
- Lessons
- No
Wind Sports detail
- Discipline
- windsurf · kite · wing
- Conditions
- chop
- Venue
- lake
- Wind kt
- 20
- Wind
- Strong afternoon thermal, 15–28 kt — Kern River Valley wind funnel
- Intl tip
- Strong afternoon thermal (15–28 kt) funneled down the Kern River Valley, with WARM summer water (70s — shorty/boardshorts!). Big open reservoir, accessible from Bakersfield/LA. Gusty thermal, fluctuating levels, powerboats. Intermediate+. Combine with the Kern River whitewater and fishing (fishing guide). Warm-water strong wind for SoCal-area riders.
The guide
Lake Isabella, a large reservoir in the Kern River Valley of the southern Sierra, is a strong-wind destination with a rare bonu…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Lake Isabella (Kern River) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 35.64, -118.48