may 12 to 16 trip advice

[pittsburghborn]

My buddy & I are heading up from San Diego next week. We want to fish mostly streams & rivers. What campgrounds are the best where you can walk from the camp to the stream? We are tent camping. From what I can read the upper owens and Rock Creek seem to be doing pretty well. I also noticed they have camp sites.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[fish'n fool]

Try Bishop Creek drainage. The middle and south forks of Bishop Creek are packed with fish. North Lk, South Lk, Sabrina and Intake II are convenient if you want to lake fish. There are numerous campgrounds throughout the canyon, all with the creek running through them. I fish all over the drainage and there are still areas that I haven't fished. My wife's family has a cabin Aspendell, so I am up there as much as I can. I want to explore more of the area but there is just so much territory to cover.

[Badfish2]

Rock Creek drainage is quickly becoming a favorite of mine over Bishop Creek mainly because Bishop Creek area is getting mighty crowded. It's still awesome though, but finding a good spot to yourself is hard to find. Lake sabrina with a boat is still pretty sweet and the staff that run the boat house could not be nicer. Prices are reasonable too. www.lakesabrinaboatlanding.com
Just remember at Sabrina to fish the "rock piles" and you'll find the big ones. The deepest part of the lake if you're facing the lake with your back to the dam .. it's the back right side of the lake. 200ft+ deep back there.

Rock creek has been great though, lots of nice sized fish and plenty of room to move around. If you are feelin' frisky, hike up from Rock Creek lake to Mesquito flats for some awesome backwoods fishing. At riock creek fish the side of the lake where there is a giant rock wall/face. You'll see what I'm talkign about when you get there. When you pull up to the lake, drive to the left and park near the campgrounds farthest side of the lake. Walk across the bridge that rock creek flows under and find a spot along the edge there...last year they were tearing up Thomas Bouyants there in Gold Red pattern or Salmon Egg PB.

My favorite is still June Lake loop, great balance of stream and lake fishing with the shot at a 15lb+ trout on every cast. If you stay at Rock Creek you'll be just a short drive to the june lake loop and convict. I'd avoid Mammoth Lakes area like crazy... crazy busy there this time of year.

If you want more advice send a pm and i'll hook you up

[troutdog]

Like FishNFool I would opt for the Bishop Creek drainage area, having S. Lake and Sabrina within 20 minutes of most campgrounds is the clincher for me. I have done really well in the creek area adjacent to the Four Jeffry Campground area in particular...salmon eggs and crickets are a slam dunk. Badfish2 has a point regarding the crowds, but if you are going Mon-Fri that should not be an issue this time of year. Good luck to you!


TD

[Badfish2]

Yeah, during the week it's dead up there...not quite as many fishermen in the bishop creek drainage or anywhere else.. weekends this time of year are a mess though. Good luck, post up pics

[pittsburghborn]

Thanks for the advice. We'll be leaving here in about 8 hours. We'll start at the upper owens then hit both rock creek and bishop creek. We have 5 days and as long as it's not too crowded we should be able to hit several places.

Thanks again for the advice.