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Brannan Island State Recreation Area - Site # 5054
Brannan Island State Recreation Area is a maze of waterways through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. This park northeast of San Francisco Bay, has countless islands and marshes with many wildlife habitats and many opportunities for recreation, including boating and swimming. One of the outstanding water-oriented recreation areas in the world, the area offers great fishing, including striped bass, sturgeon, catfish, bluegill, perch and bullhead. Franks Tract, a protected wetland marsh, is home to beaver, muskrat, river otter, mink and 76 species of birds.
	Regional - worth visiting if you are already in the area. They may be located farther from populated areas or with more limited wildlife species.
Background:	In 1921, on the southern tip of Brannan Island, was a swampy area of approximately 335 acres. The property was part of the Peter Cook holdings. The land was acquired by the Sacramento San Joaquin Drainage District for the State Reclamation Board for use by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. The area, was pumped full of sand and silt from the river during the dredging and widening of the Sacramento River channel between 1926 and 1929. The dredging operation filled the area with spoils to a level between twenty to forty feet above water level. After the operations were over the land sat idle, except for sales of sand by the State to private contractors. In 1950 the Rio Vista Chamber of Commerce spearheaded a drive to have the area become a State Park. A transfer of the title to the property to the State Division of Beaches and Parks, set the stage for the creation of the park. Between 1952 and 1954, the area again sat idle. The Division of Beaches and Parks granted permission to Travis Air Force Base to establish a boat harbor on Seven Mile Slough for Air Force Personnel. Over the years improvements and additions to park facilities have made Brannan Island State Recreation Area an important recreational facility strategically located between the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers. The dredging that created the area for the park also made it the highest spot east of the Sacramento River for a radius of 10 to 25 miles.
	Identification of the Delta’s prehistoric residents is challenging. Archaeologists speculate that agricultural activity, dredging, levee construction and reclamation efforts may have altered the locations of—or even destroyed—any identifiable Native American artifacts.
The Habitat:	The area offers fishing, including striped bass, sturgeon, catfish, bluegill, perch and bullhead. Southeast, accessed by the San Joaquin River, Frank’s Tract, a protected wetland marsh, is home to beaver, muskrat, river otter, mink and 76 species of birds.
The Experience:	The climate in the Delta is mild, with winter temperatures usually ranging between 45 and 55 degrees and summer temperatures between 75 and 95. An occasional heat wave will push the temperatures in summer to 100 degrees or more but the Delta breeze is never far away.
Viewing Tips:	The area offers fishing, including striped bass, sturgeon, catfish, bluegill, perch and bullhead. Southeast, accessed by the San Joaquin River, Frank’s Tract, a protected wetland marsh, is home to beaver, muskrat, river otter, mink and 76 species of birds. HABITATS AND WILDLIFE • A diversity of birds—including Swainson’s hawks and sandhill cranes—overwinter and migrate or breed in the Delta. • In marshes, herons, river otters and turtles live among tules, sedges and cattails. • Riparian scrub supports several dozen bird species. Various fish and mammals live among willows and cottonwoods. • The riparian habitat hosts many species of rare plants—such as Mason’s lilaeopsis and Suisun marsh aster—at or below the high tide zone.
Site Notes:	The park has a ten lane launch ramp, over 140 campsites and areas for picnicking and swimming. Trailer Lengths Sites vary from 20 feet to 36 feet in length. While booking your site Please check SITE length and width under amenities to be sure your unit and vehicle will fit properly. Day Use Areas Day use areas include the group picnic area located at the Ramadas, and Seven Mile Slough picnic area. The group picnic facility and Seven Mile Slough day use area close at sunset. Windy Cove closes at the hour posted at the entrance road to Windy Cove. Seven Mile Slough picnic area includes picnic tables, barbecues and drinking water. The restroom facilities were completed late in 1997 and include flush toilets and outdoor cold showers. A Life Jacket Lending Board will be available, however no Lifeguarding Services are currently provided. Ample parking is close to the beach. The Ramadas have shaded picnic structures with large barbecues, picnic tables, water and trash receptacles. A large open grassy area is adjacent to the site for games. The closest restroom to the Ramadas is located north of the swim beach along Seven Mile Slough. Campsites $36 in-season; $31 off-season RV Hookup $49 all year Group sites $121 The park is a high use recreation area which receives heavy use from May through October. The late fall, winter and early spring months are much slower paced at the park and offer some of the best fishing opportunities of the year.
Nearby Viewing Sites:	Cosumnes River Preserve Rush Ranch Open Space Grizzly Island Wildlife Area
Festivals & Events:	Rush Ranch Open House Lodi Sandhill Crane Festival
Visitor Information:	California Delta Chamber - (916) 777-4041 - https://californiadelta.org/
Viewing Site Hours of Operation are:
Staff On-site:	Yes
Open:	Sun-up to sundown
Hours:
Year Round:	Yes
Road Information:	Paved.  Gravel.
	Road Hazards:
	Number of Parking Spaces: 0
	Parking Fee: Yes
	Proximity to viewing area:
	Pull-Through Parking: No
	Parking Notes: Day use $10 per car
How to Get There:	The park is on Highway 160 a few miles south of the city of Rio Vista in Sacramento County. The park is located on the lower peninsular extension of Brannan Island, and is surrounded by the Sacramento River on the west, Three Mile Slough on the southeast, and Seven Mile Slough on the northeast.
Contact Information
Managing Agency:	California State Parks
Agency Site URL:	https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=487
Physical Address:	17645 CA-160 Rio Vista, CA 94571	Agency 2:	922 West Brannan Island Road Isleton, CA 95641
Manager Phone:	(916) 777-5588
Site Phone:	(916) 777-4004
County:	Sacramento
Addition Website:	https://deltabay.org