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View Full Version : Trip planning.. Need suggestions.. Sierras??



slief
07-08-2008, 02:38 PM
Every year I take my Dad on a fishing trip which usually last a week. Last year is was Montana.. The year before, it was the Sierras and twin lakes where we stayed in my RV. We are planning the trip for late August with a goal of lake and river fishing.

I was thinking about doing another sierra trip this year. We would be taking my Motorhome along with a vehicle in tow. I would also bring my 12' Porta Bote (folding boat) and outboard for the lakes.

I am looking for suggestions on a possible destination and perhaps help with an itenerary. I have stayed at the RV park at the lake above June lake and that was nice as well. Since my Sierra experience is somewhat limited having only fished up there a few times in recent memory, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

My dad is not much of a hiker so most of the fishing will have to be relatively easy access. Not all though.

I am also not dead set on the eastern Sierras so if you have other suggestions of destinations that are not too far from LA, I am open.. Yosemite was one other thought but it seems like the Merced is the best that area has to offer coming in from the Fresno side.

Just looking for a killer week of fishing in a scenic area with some diversity as far as lakes and rivers are concerned. I will have trolling, spinning and fly gear along for the trip.

Thanks in advance!

sweetfish
07-08-2008, 03:04 PM
My suggestion is Owen's RIver campground of the 395. Camping is right along the banks of Owen's river and has full rv hookups (elctricity and water hookups w/ hot showers). If you want to hit a lake up, you can follow the Owen's south to where it flows into Crowley.

Trout-Tuna-For.Me
07-08-2008, 05:15 PM
Hey S
Like I've advised a few others here at FNN, the west side of the Sierras northeast of Fresno is the BOMB !
If you're an Automobile Club Of Southern California member, go to their office and get a Fresno County Map and it will show the 6 nearby lakes and streams around the Shaver Lake Area.
Shaver Lake is the central lake of nearby waters, and there is a great tent/rv campground there called Camp Edison, run by the Electric Company. They are usually booked full throughout the spring thru fall but if you call ASAP you might be able to get a reservation.
From there you can make day or half day trips to the other lakes and streams in the area. Southeast of Shaver is Wishon Res. and Courtright Res, both good fishing spots and great scenery. If you can't get a reservation at Camp Edison, try Wishon Village near Wishon Res. Wishon Village has their own site you can check out and even make a reservation online. www.wishonvillage.com The site has pics and a map of the campground which has both tent and rv sites with full hookups. They even have full bathrooms with showers and electrical outlets so you can look all pretty for the chipmonks, squirrals, and raccoons;) Another good point to staying at Wishon is that they've never had any problems with bears, and in my 40+ years of going there neither have I.
Northeast of Shaver there's Huntington Lake, Portal Forebay, Edison Lake, and Florence Lake. Shaver has browns, rainbows, and kokanee, maybe brook trout, small mouth bass, crappie, and some catfish. Huntington has rainbows, browns, kokanee, and maybe some brook, but the worst fish there are those suckers that some call squaw fish. Portal Forebay has rainbows, browns and brook, while both Edison and Florence Lakes have rainbows and big browns. Wishon and Courtright Res's. both have rainbows, browns, and some brook trout.
If you get the Western Outdoor News you can get up to date fishing reports of the area.
The best thing I like about the west side of the sierras is the weather. Daytime highs in the low 90s and night time temps in the high 40s to high 50s, not like the east side of the Sierras where the temps can get more extreme.
Whatever you decide, once you go to this area you'll be back for more next year !
Have a great trip :)

slief
07-09-2008, 07:54 AM
Sweetfish,
Owens River Campground was one of the places I was thinking about though from the pictures on their site, it looks pretty barron. I do like the idea of camping on a river though.

trout-tuna,
As a kid back in the 80's, I went to summer camp )Gold Arrow) on Huntington Lake and spent the whole summer there a few times. We would also spend one week out of each summer month camped on an island at Shaver lake while at camp. As I recall, both lakes are tough to fish though I did not spend anytime fishing from a boat on either lake. Shaver as I recall was pretty warm so I would imagine that trout fishing in Shaver would require either a down rigger or lead core during the summer.. Any thoughts? Huntington was big and windy as I recall. Most of the fish I caught there were out of a smaller river that dumped in near Sierra Summit Ski resort which was across the highway from the camp I went to. I dont know a thing about those other lakes you mentioned. Do you think these lakes are comparable to the eastern sierra lakes like those in the June Lake Loop, Crowley, Twin Lakes or Bridgeport Res?

Thanks for the suggestions and info.. Keep them coming!!

sweetfish
07-09-2008, 09:10 AM
You are correct on it (Brown's camprground - Owen's river) looking baron. There is not much there for supplies and groceries. They do have a little cafe and general store if I remember correctly. When we stayed there, we just use that as our base camp and venture off elsewhere for the during the day activities. When supplies are needed, we drove into town (Mammoth Lakes).

Side note: If you do stay there, the mosquitoes might be out during that month. Also the wind does pick up in the afternoons (10-25mph). On the plus side, I have not seen a bear in that valley ever (20+ years). They also used to stock the river once a week on Thursdays.

Wherever you decide to go have a fun and safe trip.

Trout-Tuna-For.Me
07-09-2008, 03:14 PM
Fishing is an overall experience of : scenery, having a line in the water, catching, weather, etc. At Wishon Res. you can get all that, without the bears bothering you. I've found that daily limits of trout can be easily obtained in the resevoir by either trolling or fishing where the river enters. Most lakes where the rivers/streams enter is always a good bet on catching fish. Big browns are there at Wishon and close by Courtright Res, a 20 min drive away.
Edison Lake is another body of water where you can catch plenty of fish, but you're definately in bear country. The scenery is awesome and the fish are bigger, another known lake for big browns. If going there check out the store at Vermillion Resort.
Like I typed before, camping at one campground and making day trips to other lakes/rivers is the way to go since it's up to a couple hour drive to other places to fish. Surprisingly, the small Portal Forebay along the side of the road to Edison on Kaiser Pass Rd is another place to catch limits. Rainbows, browns, and brook trout are available to catch if you use the right bait/lures/flies.
I've been to the east side of the Sierras many times, but for the whole Sierra experience I prefer the west side. The temperatures can get quite hot on the east side, but the west side it's more tolerable with more trees around and I've never been there with the temps going over 90. Then again I try to go there before July and after September to avoid the crowds.
I've frequented this area since the mid 1960s and it hasn't changed much at all, except the area around Shaver since it's a year-round town. CONDO-MANIA !
Check it out yourself.....you'll be glad you did :)

slief
07-09-2008, 06:03 PM
Hmmm. I am leaning towards the central sierras if we take the motorhome and don't fly to a destination. Having the folding boat will be a major bonus. Since I have not been up to that area in more than 25 years that might just be the ticket.

Funny thing is that I dont mind bears at all. I lived in Montana for a year (boarding school in '84) and bears were everywhere and never bothered us. Heck, I would sit on the chicken coop with a bear eating the chicken food within 5' of me and they would never blink an eye. Of course I'm not dumb enough to do that now but seeing one is a privilege epsecially when you live in a concrete jungle.

A friend of mine mentioned the Situk River in Yakutat Alaska which got my head spinning.. Again.. :ROFL: