Eastern Sierra

Eastern Sierra attractions

The Sierra Nevada mountain range is the highest in the USA and Canada outside of Alaska. The road to visit this area is Highway 395.

Pictures of Eastern California

Attractions along 395 include

  • Bodie ghost town
  • Mono Lake
  • Devils Postpile
  • Mammoth Lakes short hikes:
    • Twin Falls trail at the Twin Lakes Vista (viewpoint on the upper Lakes Basin Path, above where Twin Lakes Falls comes down from Lake Mamie).
    • Crystal Lake, 5 kms roundtrip (panorama of the lakes below). The trailhead is at the Lake George day-use area.
    • Rainbow Falls. This is inside Devils Postpile which in the summer requires taking a shuttle. To hike to Rainbow Falls get off at stop #9 or 10.
  • June Lake hike: Parker Lake Trail, 6.5 kms (spectacular if you go during peak fall color). Take the north entrance of the June Lake Loop (hwy 158) from highway 395 and approximately 3 kms west of 395 turn onto a dirt road (look for the sign) to Parker Lake. The trailhead is at end of this dirt road.
  • June Lake hike: Horsetail Falls, the largest waterfall in the area, which comes down from Agnew Lake. It can be seen from the road. To hike to the top, use the Rush Creek trailhead at Silver Lake.
  • Stone Columns of Crowley Lake, a 4 km hike each way (visible only when lake level is low). Take the Owens Gorge Road off 395 (opposite the Tom's Place exit) and drive to the dam. After the dam the road curves to the right. After about 300 meters, take a sharp left into an unmarked and unpaved steep road. After 200 meters you'll find the parking lot on the left. If the road through the dam is closed, you need to take a different road that will take you to the same parking lot: take 120 East (aka Benton Crossing) and drive 20 kms to Owens Gorge Rd (don't miss it: it's the first meaningful road on the right), which is alas unpaved, and drive about 5 kms to the unmarked steep road on your right. Park and start walking. You'll hike through the worst section right away but then the dirt road becomes a pretty uneventful (and unshaded) walk. Follow the dirt road and ignore all the side roads. The road dead ends at a cliff. To the right there is a steep sandy trail (actually, more than one) and the beach with the columns is already visible. (37.6095491,-118.7206865) Photo tip: the columns face west, so late afternoon is best for pictures.
  • Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest (with the oldest trees in North America
  • Laws Museum in Bishop
  • Petroglyphs: take highway 6 from Mishop, turn left after 2 ms into Five Bridges Road and 4 kms later turn right into Fish Slough Road (unpaved) and you'll find the Bishop Petroglyphs on your left (after about 10 kms), the Chalfant Petroglyphs on your right (after a further 5-6 kms) and the Chidago Canyon Petroglyphs on the left side (shortly afterwards, at the junction with an unpaved road that connects back to highway 6)
  • Keough's Hot Springs in Bishop: drive south from Bishop on highway 395 and turn right into Keough Hot Springs Rd and park by the second road on your right, the one marked "Wilkerson" (these are the free ones, open to everybody, not the tourist resort further up the road)
  • Alabama Hills
  • Manzanar concentration camp
  • Eastern California Museum in Independence
  • Mt Whitney Fish Hatchery (1 Golden Trout Circle, Independence)
  • Eureka Sand Dunes
  • Trona Pinnacles (3 kms east of Ridgecrest on an 8-km dirt road RM143 off highway 178)
  • Fossil Falls (at the end of the unpaved Cinder Road, north of Little Lake on the east side of highway 395 near Owens Lake and Ridgecrest)
  • Coso petroglyphs (The Maturango museum in Ridgecrest organizes tours or contact the China Lake Public Affairs office 760-939-1683 for free visits but you must be a US citizen because this area is on a military base, it takes the whole day and requires a military escort - click here for details)
  • Some of highest mountains in the continent: Mt Whitney, Mt Williamson, White Mountain, the Palisades, etc.
  • Lake Tahoe and Desolation Wilderness
  • The Union Pacific Tunnels at Donner Summit (1870)

Hiking the Eastern Sierra

  • Sierra Nevada peaks
  • For details on the hikes, see Hiking in California
  • Pictures
    		• Links:
    Recommended restaurants (please boycott restaurants that use single-use plastic)
    • Nicely's in Lee Vining, especially for pies (in town, but closes early evening)
    • Jenny's Cafe in Independence (one block north of the Courthouse, pricey but big portions and tasty) CLOSED
    • Village Cafe in Bishop for breakfast CLOSED
    • Astorgas in Bishop for Mexican food (also breakfast with nopales, chilaquiles, etc)
    • Imperial Gourmet in Bishop for Chinese food
    • Upper Crust Pizza in Bishop for Italian and pizza
    • Froyo in Bishop for sandwiches
    • The Bakkery in Bishop is wildly popular for bread and dessert but a bit overrated
    • The Two Brothers in Big Pine for Italian
    • After the High Sierra Cafe closed in Lone Pine, i can't really recommend any restaurant there: they tend to be overpriced.
    Showers (2021)
    • North of Lee Vining on the left-hand side is a campground (Mono Vista RV Park) that has showers for $2.50 (2012) but closes early
    • The store/cafe at Whitney Portal (the Mt Whitney trailhead) has showers for $3 (2012)
    • The Whitney Portal Hostel in Lone Pine has showers for $5 that include towel and soap (2020)
    • The California Hostel in Bishop has showers for $5 that include towel and soap (2020)
    • The Bishop Creek Lodge on the South Lake road has (expensive and brief) showers for $7 (2012)
    • The gas station and motel in Big Pine at the corner with Glacier Lodge Rd has showers for $3.50 (2012)
    Internet (2021)
    • Most libraries in Inyo county offer free wi-fi except Bishop where for mysterious reasons Internet access is rationed (only one hour per person per day in 2021).
    • Best library in the region is the one in Mammoth, followed by the tiny one in Lee Vining.
    Gasoline (2023)
    • Bishop is a good place for gasoline, especially the casino north of town and the gas station on 168 west going towards Lake Sabrina
    • The gas station just north of Independence is even cheaper
    • One place to avoid is Lee Vining: most expensive gasoline in the region
    Camping
    • There are many campgrounds in the Eastern Sierra. Most tourists tend to get stuck in the widely advertised campgrounds near the towns but the best, quietest and cheapest campgrounds are to be found along the roads that go west from highway 395. Visitor centers and ranger stations have brochures with the full list. I don't list my favorites because i don't really want hundreds of people to congest them! It is also legal to pitch a tent at many trailheads (if they are inside the national forest). The biggest concentration of campgrounds is in Mammoth Lakes.
    • Mammoth Lakes is not the best place for dispersed camping. It is a concentration camp divided into 20+ expensive campgrounds. Contrary to what it advertises, dispersed camping is non-existent. The nearest place for easy to reach and easy to find dispersed camping is probably Owens River Road, a few kms north. That paved road has many side unpaved roads where you can pitch tent. There is also an official campground, way cheaper than the ones in Mammoth Lakes. A popular area for dispersed camping is the Mammoth Scenic Loop (not scenic at all), which has open BLM land in all the forest roads on either side of the paved road. There is also BLM land on Benton Crossing Road and Whitmore Tubs Road on the opposite side of the 395 highway. Needless to say, these BLM lands near Mammoth are crowded. If you need cell phone coverage, the best bets are New & Old Shady Rest campgrounds, located just a few blocks away from downtown, but these are either full (summer) or closed (other seasons). Most Mammoth campgrounds close in September. In October 2023, only Old Shady Rest Campground and Twin Lakes Campground were still open.
    Back to California | Pictures of California | Hiking in California | Main travel page