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mamafish
08-23-2007, 03:16 PM
Hello ,
Finally got my pictures uploaded so here's our report. It's hard to look at them as it makes me want to ditch work, jump in the truck and head back up there! It’s long, so if you’d like, just enjoy the pictures and ignore my chatter!

Got a late start heading up the 395, but had clear (but hot...thank goodness for AC!) weather driving up and made good time. Only stopped to say a prayer at the site near Kramer’s Junction where my son lost his friends in an accident a few weeks ago. Drove especially careful after that with thoughts of those who lost their lives and their families on our mind. It was sad seeing all the fire damage in numerous places as we drove up the highway. The fire crews are definitely amazing saving so much when you can plainly see how bad the fires were! Arrived in Bridgeport about 7PM and started looking for a place to camp for the night. We had reservations booked for the 10th on at Robinson Creek Campground, so we decided to look there first. Luck was with us, the people who had reserved our spot for the 9th left early, so we could get set up right away and not have to worry about moving Friday. Didn't get our lines wet that night, wanted to get dinner done before the bears showed up. Our campsite neighbors informed us as we arrived that the bears were showing up anywhere between 9-2AM and didn't care who was around or what noise they were making...they just wanted to eat! We were happy to see that bear boxes had been installed since our last visit. Our giant ice chest plus a couple of rubbermaid bins and cases of water and soda fit in there with no problem. Hit the hay, didn't hear any bears that night, although apparently they visited.

Hubby and I got up bright and early the next morning and got our lines in the creek before breakfast. No luck there. We were surprised at how low the water level was. Talked to a couple of other guys who had been there a few days and they mentioned they had only caught two each since Monday. After our sleepy boys came hunting us down wanting breakfast we headed back up to camp to hear that the campsite two down from us had been destroyed in the night by a bear. Gee...wonder why...do you think it was because they put the cooler on TOP of the bear box rather than putting it in??? Guess there was quite a ruckus, but we slept right through it. Must have been the fresh air and serene sound of the gurgling creek running by our site! I always forget how good you sleep when you are camping!

We decided to cruise up the road to Twin Lakes Resort for ice and to check out the lake. Really low water levels there too and not as much ice on top of the peaks as there usually is. Stopped and talked to a couple of locals fishing the Lower Twin , who said that the creek had been stocked the previous Wednesday, so we headed back to camp hoping our luck would change. Oops...got so into the fishing conversation we forgot the ice had to send our oldest off to get some on the scooter...he didn't mind, he loves riding that thing!

http://fishingnetwork.net/images/tmp2/RC1.jpg

Went down below campsite #10, dropped my line and on my third cast pulled out a nice 13" stocker. Forgot the camera back at camp, so no pix of that one. It really put up quite the fight and I'm surprised it didn't get away as the hook was barely in it's lip. Looks like we may have fish for dinner tonite after all! Put him on the stringer and next cast in caught another...was just getting ready to net him when he pulled a Houdini and escaped. Hmmmph! The fish on the stringer seemed to splash out a cheer....boy that fish was still jumping around in protest. Kept seeing one jumping by a fallen tree so cast out there numerous times, no luck. Finally about 1/2 hr later, my rod went crazy. My other half yelled from the other side of the creek that it was a big one. I started to reel it in, then thought I had lost it as the line went slack. Turns out he must have been communicating with the fish on my stringer....next thing I know, he peels off like a rocket, jumping about 6" out of the water and over a rock sticking out of the stream. My line gets hung up, so I walk out in the water and try to get the line loose. In the meantime, this fish is going nuts, swimming every which way and I can tell he's probably the biggest I've ever caught. I get the line unhooked and walk back towards shore of course tripping and getting completely soaked in the process! Trying to look like I had planned the fall, I get back up and found to my surprise I'm still hanging onto the rod! A guy on the shore comes wading out with a net and just as we are about to get him in it, bam, he breaks the line and waves bye. Ok...now not only am I bedraggled, wet and wondering if my shirt is see thru, I'm disgusted! My little friend on the stringer is splashing around like a maniac ...laughing at me I'm sure! :shock: I decide he deserves to swim around since he's better at it than I am, so I release him. Of course the guy fishing next to me is cracking up although admirably, tries to hide it.
Fished another hour with nary a nibble, and hubby decides he better get me out of there before I go insane. We grabbed a late lunch at camp, then headed off to explore. The boys took their inner tubes and floated down the creek ahead of us. They fared much better in the water than I did!

http://fishingnetwork.net/images/tmp2/RC2.jpg
http://fishingnetwork.net/images/tmp2/rc33.jpg

Back at camp later that night we enjoyed carne asada and the beautiful evening. Temp probably topped out about 87 that day, but it was getting cool fast. The campfire warmed us up and the boys pulled out the makings for smores. YUM! Went off to bed just before eleven and must have fallen right to sleep because at 11:30 we woke hearing car alarms and yelling. Yep...Mr. Bear decided to come visit. We zipped open the windows in the tent and sure enough, our neighbors 2 sites down invited him to dinner again! No matter how many pots and pans they banged, he just sat there and enjoyed his meal. Wow...they were kind enough to restock the cooler for him before leaving it on top of the bear box again! :roll: He sat there for 45 minutes, then meandered over to the tent only sites. Gee...looky here...people decided to set one tent up as a PANTRY! Needless to say, the tent was soon in shreds and Mr. Bear sat on the edge of the firepit and tore thru a Costco tub of licorice! Dessert! We finally got back to sleep around 2:30.

Next day we slept in and after a late breakfast decided to drive up to Buckeye and find the hot springs we had never been to. The campground was deserted except for one family that was there to see the meteor shower predicted for that night. Hiked around a bit, then headed to find the hot springs. The boys headed down the hill ahead of us and we were on the side of the hill overlooking the pool when my 15 year old got to it. You should have seen the look on his face when "naked guy" got out! Wish I'd had the camera...no...not for "naked guy", for the look on my son's face!!! Well "naked guy" continued parading around like a peacock or something, posing on various boulders like an idiot, so we left. Apparently he forgot his towel was wrapped around his head! We cruised around the area enjoying the more desirable natural scenery
http://fishingnetwork.net/images/tmp2/rc5.jpg
http://fishingnetwork.net/images/tmp2/rc4.jpg

Headed back to camp and all four of us fished for 2 hours...NOTTA :cry:
Headed up to Mono Village for dinner at the cafe and headed back to find the bears were already visiting. Luckily we put our stuff away before we left! Boys kept telling me to get the camera and take a picture...no way! I was going to play ostrich...If I was in the tent and couldn't see it, it wouldn't see me and come eat me! LOL!
Saw quite a few shooting stars that night from the meteor shower…we all wished for fish!

Sunday morning dawned a bright, beautiful 40 degrees at 7AM. Thank goodness for the tent heater we bought! Made sure the boys were toasty warm and watched as my crazy hubby walked down to the creek and jumped in. We ate breakfast and after an hour of fishing with no luck, decide to rent a pontoon on Upper Twin. Drag the boys out of bed and discover my youngest is running a fever and miserable. We send J off on the scooter in search of Dayquil. So much for the pontoon. Hung around camp most of the day watching the blue jays and chipmunks. It’s amazing how something so simple can be so enjoyable! Hubby fished nearby, but I didn’t get my line in till after dinner. Still no luck no matter what we used. No one we talked to was getting anything either. Cole still miserable, so now we head off looking for Nyquil. When we get back, a guy from the Netherlands is walking up the road with a 15" trout! I wanted to take a picture, but he wouldn't let me because he said it was bad luck. He wouldn't tell what he was using for bait either....just smiled and went on his way! Noticed the campsite 2 down from us had their cooler out on top of the bear box again. Wonder if they restocked it! Walked over to talk with them and make sure they really knew what the bear box was for. Guy said that they knew, but would rather have their chairs and stove in it so they didn't get torn up. Hmmm....they had really nice chairs, but I don't think they were the style Mr. Bear would want. :? We suggested he put the cooler in the back of his SUV, but he was afraid that he would get the SUV trashed. It was much better he said to just leave the cooler out. Ends up some people in the campground had been camping up at Mono Village and the bear broke their truck window to get to the cooler and told him about it. No worries though...they just had beer in it now so he wouldn't bother that. Yeah right...about 1AM we had a now drunk bear wandering thru the campground! He annihilated two 12 packs of Miller Lite! We had big old dirty paw prints on the truck's window in the morning.

Cole was feeling much better in the morning, and insisted we all head down to the creek to fish. DFG showed up an hour later and stocked. Yeah...maybe now we'll catch something! The guys were really nice, informative and even let some of the little kids help them put the fish in the creek. Went back to camp for a quick lunch and got distracted by an army of ATVs flying thru the campground with the forest service on their tail. Minutes later a fire truck came zooming in. Guess a dumpster somehow caught fire. Not good with the breeze picking up the way it was! They got it out before we even knew what was up. Definitely on the ball! Major kudos to them! Went to the tent to check on my son who wasn’t feeling well again and ended up falling asleep so hubby and I didn’t head back to fish till about 4PM. Caught my limit pretty quick! Finally! In our hurry to get down there we forgot the camera though, so I’ve just got a picture of the stringer. http://fishingnetwork.net/images/tmp2/rc6.jpg
Joe kept fishing while I got the honor of cleaning the fish. How come I always get stuck cleaning the fish??!! Couldn't get him away from the creek for dinner, http://fishingnetwork.net/images/tmp2/rc8.jpgso we decided to just BBQ burgers and save the trout for dinner when we got home. No bears our last night...probably cuz the people with the cooler gave up and went home!
Hit the creek early Tuesday but only caught one each. Did catch this last shot of our boys. http://fishingnetwork.net/images/tmp2/rc11.jpg Went up to see about renting a pontoon, but found out they are booked way in advance. Have to remember that for next time. The boys wanted to tube the creek once more time, so we headed back to enjoy a couple of hours of fun. We sure didn't want to leave! Packed up camp and headed out just as the wind really picked up and the thunder clouds rolled in. Hit a little rain on the way out, but it stopped by the time we hit Bishop. Big Pine was 104 at 4PM! Geez! Regardless...can't wait to get back up there!

Fisher-of-Men
08-23-2007, 04:03 PM
HA! HA! HA!

Funny report :!: Some people will never learn. People like that give the bears reason to keep coming back for more. Why not? I would if I were a bear and the pickings were that easy. :lol:

Too bad you didn't get video footage and post it on U Tube of you tumbling in the creek. :rofl: That would have been classic!

Something else people should be aware of; is that bears will watch the fishermen with their stringers in the water and meander down and steal their catch before their very eyes. They've learned all the tricks and have adapted well!

I always carry this :

http://fishingnetwork.net/images/tmp2/s7_225959_imageset_01.jpg

This is Bear Pepper Spray
You can blast a bear up to 30 feet with this. The propellants will linger in the air for hours. This Pepper Spray really works!! I have two cans of it.

Read this review: 5 out of 5 stars

This product saved my life. No Joke!, July 22, 2007
By attacksurvivor from Rockies


"I'll admit that I was skeptical at first glance, but I'm now a devoted lifetime patron of UAPD Pepper Power. This exact product literally saved my life when I unexpectedly encountered 3 large grizzly bears while bowhunting solo in the US Rockies.

I had only two weeks prior bought my first ever can of bear deterrent spray, which just happened to be the UDAP Magnum, 260 grams of the hottest formula on the market.

As I rounded a bend on the well-established game trail, I startled a large female grizzly and her two sub-adult cubs at close range, near 40 yards. The mother immediately drove her head down, ears back, and charged toward me at lightning speed, determined to attack me and neutralize the perceived threat to her two cubs and self.

How could I blame her? After all, I was the one invading their home, not the other way around.

It was a windy morning near tree-line and my first blast toward her at about 10-15 yards out drifted sideways as an oily veil of orange. She slowed slightly, pawing at the ground and shaking her head, but by this time she was less than 5 yards away and still aggressively bounding toward me. This was NO bluff charge! Another rapid and well-aimed blast hit her square in the face at less than 6 feet away!

This very frightened and therefore highly aggressive mother might as well have hit a brick wall as she screeched to a grinding halt, gasping and confused. Unwilling to penetrate the fiery cloud, she immediately turned tail and bolted over the rise from where they had just approached. The two cubs wasted no time in chasing after their mom.

The entire incident occurred in under 10 seconds!

Note: Almost three weeks to the day following my close encounter, I once again crossed paths with these same three bears. This time they didn't see or smell me. I was downwind and well hidden as they broke into an open glade. I watched with fascination and new-found respect for these truly great creatures. It would be a lesser world without them. I was OK. They were OK, a win-win situation for all.

Protect yourself, respect your playground...and all who live there!

5 Stars? How 'bout the whole night sky?

Thank you UDAP! You truly saved my life."

You can find this on the Cabellas Website.

http://www.cabelas.com/ssubcat-1/cat20136.shtml

Thanks for your report with the awesome pics!


Fisher-of-Men

Troutman65
08-23-2007, 05:01 PM
Your report was nice to read. Thanks for the post.

You would think the campers with the bear problem would figure it out. They wanted to keep there chairs in the bear box? Unreal. I was wondering about if someone had left beer in there cooler and you answered that thought for me . LOL. Nothing worse than a bear with a tast for beer. LOL.

Thanks for sharing your trip on FNN.

Congrats on getting your limit !

Troutman65

Wingnut
08-23-2007, 05:15 PM
Excellent report, exciting & fun trip! Great pics, thanks for taking the time to post & share. :thumb:

IK13
08-23-2007, 05:18 PM
Nice report!

the article for the bear spray does sound a lot like a comercial...

Fisher-of-Men
08-23-2007, 05:24 PM
Nice report!

the article for the bear spray does sound a lot like a comercial...

Just documenting my sources. :wink:


Fisher-of-Men

Native 2
08-24-2007, 05:43 AM
Truely loved your report.fresh fish with a sprinkle of danger, a dash of remembered tragedy, lots of laughs, and a loving family to enjoy makes good reading.

Tks
Nat

mamafish
08-24-2007, 08:33 AM
Talked to numerous people up there that recommended pepper spray and heard 2 first hand stories of how well it works. Guess it stuns them enough to allow you time to high tail it out of there. I know NOTHING was scaring them off this time, they even ignored the air horns and flashing headlights. Last time we were up there 3 yrs ago, all you had to do was bang a couple of pans together and they left. We told the people that were leaving their cooler out that they were contributing to the problem when they complained about it. It really amazes me that people don't get it, even after being told. The campground hosts told us they even had people asking for reimbursement money after losing their supplies more than once because the campground was "letting them in". Unfortunately I guess some people don't learn until it's too late and they are injured or worse. I was really surprised no one had had their stringers taken as much bear activity as there was, because I've heard of that happening up there before.
BTW...salmon eggs was what worked when we caught anything. Nothing on PB
As for the UTube idea for my fall....I have relived it in my nightmares and have no desire to see it on video! LOL...my hubby is still teasing me about it! :oops:

IK13
08-24-2007, 10:56 AM
Once a bear learns that there's easy meal waiting there every night and starts doing that frequently - the only way to stop it is to kill it.

If I had followed the rules and I have no food exposed, but a bear comes down to the camground, doesn't find anything easy where she is already used to and starts trashing cars and tents in search for food....I sure will be pissed too and I can see if someone might want compensation for bear damage in this case. The usual assumption is that if you pay, the whoever takes your money must accept some liability as well...

The sad part is that I think there will be more bears shot before the season is over. Unfortunately the people who don't bother to use the bear boxes will probably continue to do so...

retired96
08-24-2007, 11:38 AM
It would be nice if the Forest Service Law Enforcment would drive thru and start writing some very expensive tickets to idiot campers that are the cause of the bear problem.

I have camped in the Sierras for 49 years, I spend over 60 days each season camping and I have only seen 3 bears in all those years. As some of the signs in campgrounds state. " we dont have a bear problem, we have a people problem"

gwjones00
08-24-2007, 11:44 AM
Thanks for the great report!

Regarding the bears, the problem is worse this year becuase of the dry winter. They are coming down lower becuase of lack of food up high. Thanks to the phi beta kappa more worried about his chairs than the impact his food has on the bears, there will be no getting rid of them this year at least. In fact, one was shot in Mammoth, and another shot at Whiteny Portal this year. The bears are having a field day all along the eastern sierra - Whitney Portal, Onion Valley, Mammoth, June Lake, etc. In fact, there is even one story (trying to determine whether it is true or not) of a bear tearing apart a biodiesel car in Onion Valley near Independence.

If you are going to camp up there this summer, for everyone's sake, use the bear boxes to store your food and toiletries. And - do not leave *anything* in your car - not even a food wrapper. About midway down in this post http://fishingnetwork.net/forum1/viewtopic.php?t=6769 are pics from Upper Twin Lakes Bridgeport earlier this month....

mamafish
08-24-2007, 11:48 AM
I agree on the ticketing idea, especailly when they have the bear boxes available. As much info that the campgrounds have posted, not to mention word of mouth, no one should be leaving their food out. I know they ticket for unattended campfires up there, have they ever actually ticketed for leaving food out?

gwjones00
08-25-2007, 05:30 PM
They write them all the time at Whitney Portal. I have seen cars with the crap torn out of them with a ticket on the windshield.....

steve092
09-09-2007, 12:29 PM
Well, when I go up there, I'll need a smaller test and some pepper spray.