The Stage 1 launch ramp at Folsom Lake's Granite Bay entrance has been out of the water since October 19. State Parks closed it that day, when the lake fell to 402 feet. On Halloween night, NOAA's California Nevada River Forecast Center recorded Folsom Lake at 399.00 feet, which is 372,751 acre-feet and 38% of total capacity. That reading also put the lake below the 400-foot line, and that line now controls how fast any motorboat on the lake can go.
This is what the Granite Bay entrance looks like for Wedgewood residents heading down to the water this week. For motorized boats it's about as restricted as it gets all year. For a hand-launched kayak, canoe or paddleboard, the rules are as simple as they get. Each restriction below hits motorized boats and leaves paddlers alone.
The elevation lines that set the rules
Most of what changes at the Granite Bay entrance in November follows from a few lake elevations. Here they are in order, using State Parks' own thresholds and the latest reading.
| Lake elevation | What it means at Granite Bay |
|---|---|
| 402 feet | Stage 1 launch ramp closed on October 19 |
| Above 400 feet | Normal speed rules; the 5-mph order lifts once the lake rises back above this line |
| 399.00 feet | NOAA reading at 8 p.m. on October 31, 2026 |
| About 395 feet | Low Water Ramp becomes usable |
From the 402 feet State Parks cited at the October 19 closure to NOAA's October 31 reading, the lake dropped about three feet. The Low Water Ramp needs about four more feet of drop. In its October 20 update, State Parks projected that the Low Water Ramp would open during the week of November 9, based on current water releases, and said that releases and precipitation could move the date either way. As of this Thursday, that projection is still a projection. One early storm could push the date back, because a rising lake keeps the Low Water Ramp underwater longer.
Five miles per hour, everywhere on the lake
Since October 27, the speed limit for every motorized vessel on Folsom Lake has been 5 miles per hour. State Parks cites dropping lake levels and more hazards to navigation, and the order stays in place until the lake rises above 400 feet. The lake is already below 400 and still dropping, and the order lifts only once the water comes back up. That puts the end of the slow-speed period on the far side of winter rain, not anywhere on the November calendar.
With every motorboat held to 5 mph, there's less wake and less speed on the water around a kayak or paddleboard. The rule was written for navigation hazards, not for paddlers, but paddlers get the benefit.
What launching at Granite Bay involves right now
The State Parks boat launch status page lists Granite Bay as closed to motorized or trailered vessels. It says launching there should be limited to personal watercraft and smaller craft, at your own risk. The only Folsom Lake site listed as open to motorized or trailered vessels is Browns Ravine, at Hobie Cove.
The October 20 ramp notice spells out the shoreline option plainly:
"Until the Low Water Ramp is available, vessels may launch from the shoreline in Granite Bay, however this is not recommended for larger and heavier vessels. Personal watercraft and small vessels may launch at their own risk. State Parks will not tow out stuck vehicles."
The notice adds that the Hobie Cove Launch Ramp at Browns Ravine stays open for larger vessels. If you own a trailered boat and live near Granite Bay, that means launching at Browns Ravine until the Low Water Ramp opens.
The seal on the bow eye
The second layer for motorized boats is the Golden Mussel Prevention Program, and it runs whether the lake is high or low. State Parks says golden mussels threaten the ecosystem and food web, fisheries, water quality, water conveyance and municipal water systems, power generation at Folsom Dam, and boats and engines themselves. The first known North American detection was in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta on October 17, 2024, on a float near the Port of Stockton, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Vessel inspections at Granite Bay started March 22, 2025, and the broader Folsom Lake and Lake Clementine program took effect April 14, 2025. State Parks' program page was last updated August 28, 2026. That update says the program had prevented an infestation up to then, in part by finding mussels on a vessel that otherwise could have launched. It also says no changes to the protocols at Folsom Lake were planned.
A motorized or trailered boat qualifies in one of two ways. Here's how each works, in order:
- The 30-day quarantine. After the boat passes inspection, State Parks or an authorized vendor runs a serialized, tamper-evident red cable seal through the bow eye and trailer. Inspection day counts as day 1, the boat can launch on day 31, and authorized staff remove the seal.
- Hot-water decontamination. Decontamination at an authorized station gets a green seal and allows an immediate launch, as long as the boat doesn't visit another body of water before launching at Folsom Lake or Lake Clementine.
- The outbound green seal. When a boat leaves the lake, staff check it for debris and standing water, confirm ballast and live wells are empty, and apply a green seal. A boat that leaves without that seal needs another quarantine or decontamination before its next launch.
A seal issued somewhere else counts only if the issuer uses the WID database, the seal has been on for at least 30 days, and the operator has the matching receipt. State Parks' own inspections are free and don't require an appointment. Authorized businesses set their own prices for inspections and decontamination.
All of this is general information about posted park rules, not legal advice. Check the State Parks pages linked here, or ask kiosk staff, before you rely on any of it for your own boat.
The clock changed on November 1
Winter hours took effect Sunday, November 1, and they matter most for anyone who needs that outbound seal. From November 1 through March 31, the State Parks hours page lists the Granite Bay entrance and the Granite Bay Vessel Inspection Station as open from 7 a.m. until 30 minutes after sunset. During summer hours the opening time was 6 a.m. Inspection stations close at park closing or 30 minutes after sunset, whichever is earlier. With November sunsets coming early, a late-afternoon outing can run into that cutoff quickly.
The Granite Bay Vessel Quarantine Inspection Station runs on its own schedule. As of October 19, it's open daily from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and closed on holidays and rainy days. Thanksgiving falls on Thursday, November 26. With rain also closing the station, starting a 30-day quarantine in November depends on the weather.
Why a kayak skips all of it
None of the restrictions above applies to a paddler. Hand-launched, non-motorized kayaks, canoes, paddleboards, rowing shells and rowboats are exempt from inspection, quarantine and seals. So are hand-launched craft with electric trolling motors, and eFoils. They do have to arrive clean, drained and dry.
A paddler at the Granite Bay entrance this week:
- needs no ramp, because the craft is carried to the water
- needs no red or green seal and no inspection
- shares the water only with motorized boats held to 5 mph
- needs to arrive after the 7 a.m. opening and be out by 30 minutes after sunset
Meanwhile, a trailered boat owner in Granite Bay is waiting on a ramp that won't open until about four more feet of water drains out. Its opening date also depends on how much water is released and how much rain falls.
What to watch between now and Thanksgiving
The next posted change will probably be the Low Water Ramp. The Granite Bay ramp status notice and the launch status page are where State Parks posts updates. The 5-mph order shows up at the top of the Folsom Lake SRA page, and the lake has to climb back above 400 feet before it lifts. NOAA's Folsom Lake gauge posts the latest lake elevation, so you can check the lake against the 395-foot mark yourself before loading the trailer.
At Stephen Golden Real Estate, we follow the details of living near Wedgewood, including the lake's November ramp schedule, as closely as we follow home values. If you're curious where your home stands this season, request your free home valuation and we'll walk you through it.
