Whiskeytown features crystal-clear lake water, but water-based recreation is only part of what the forty-two thousand-acre Whiskeytown National Recreation Area has to offer. Visitors can see waterfalls, hike through rugged mountains, explore California Gold Rush history, and observe post-fire ecology in action. The area has a Mediterranean climate, with hot, dry summers followed by cool, wet winters. Summer temperatures often reach the upper 90's to lower 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and there is the occasional thunderstorm. Winter brings snow to the upper elevations, only occasionally down to the lake level of 1,200 feet, along with rain and ice.