New Melones Lake, Reservoir in Sierra Nevada foothills, California, US

New Melones Lake is a reservoir on the Stanislaus River in the Sierra Nevada foothills, west of Jamestown and Sonora and south of Angels Camp. It covers 12,500 acres with a capacity of 2,400,000 acre-feet, and its shoreline runs more than 100 miles when full. The Archie Stevenot Bridge carries Highway 49 across the water and marks the Calaveras–Tuolumne county line.

The dam was completed in the late 1970s and submerged the old mining settlement of Melones, which had grown during the California Gold Rush. This dam replaced an earlier, smaller facility built in 1926.

The name Melones comes from the Gold Rush era, when miners discovered large gold nuggets that resembled melons. Today, families and anglers use the shoreline for picnicking, while boats cross the water.

Two recreation areas offer over three hundred campsites with fire rings, picnic tables, and shared water taps. You can reach the entry points from Highway 49 or narrow side roads that branch off the main route.

The Archie Stevenot Bridge, completed in 1976, spans the lake and connects Calaveras County with Tuolumne County via Highway 49. When water levels drop, foundations of old Gold Rush-era bridges sometimes reappear.