When Silver Lake Campground is full, this parking area a few miles down the road is open for camping. It's just parking and a few [picnic tables, but it's quite scenic.
Tub 1 seems to always be booked. Tubs 2 and 3 are the lower priced tubs most likely to be open. I did T2 because it looked cozier in the picture. I like it better I think, but in T3 you can kick back and look at the hills which is cool.
In the style of Inyo Forest campgrounds(*), this one is hard to find(**) and kind of shabby and rough, but it's in a really beautiful location. This one is on Lee Vining Creek, in the aspen/pine forest on top of the glacial till. It's the first campground on CA 120 west of Mono Lake heading up to spectacular Tioga Pass. It's pretty cool. It's very popular with fishermen. (*) Except the Inyo campgrounds around June Lake/Mammoth. They are run by a concessionare. They are a little nicer, cost twice as much, and have three times as many rules. (**) There is an arrow for "camping", but you must turn off the road to see the "Lower Lee Vining" sign.
A nice free campground on the side of the glacial slope about ten miles north of Bishop. Pretty rough gravel spots running for some distance along lovely Horton Creek
Finally I am staying here! I have camped across the road at Reverse Creek Campground a couple of times, Gull Lake has always been full. The lake is beautiful and the campground is right next to it. Half the sites are right on the lake. A few hundred yard walk through the trees brings you to the town of June Lake and the main Gull Lake marina. Snacks, library with wifi, brewery up the hill - awesome! The campground itself is kind of shabby and run-down and gives the impression that the concessionaires are just milking it for revenue ... surprise!
Nestled between too-busy US 395 and the West Walker River. Everybody is either a fishermen or folks bombing down 395. The first nice federal campground coming south from Reno. This place should be open more days of the year - closes too early in the fall, opens too late in the summer.
Except for a couple of "view lots" - sites 1 and 2 - the rest of the sites are in a compact bunch, nestled in a little canyon. Right across the road from Gull Lake.
Close to Lone Pine, really excellent view of Owens Valley south over dry Owens Lake, The last 2 miles have many brutal diagonal speed bumps, beware!
Right next to the movie museum at the south end of Lone Pine. Can walk to the pizza place.
steep, slippery hike down to the springs, which are a couple of hot streams falling into pools by the river
just a parking lot, but they left me alone. Turns out where I parked was the employee parking area, so about 7AM I was surrounded by groggy 20-somethings on all three sides, going to work at the lodge.
Elevation: 9,700 ft The first campground after leaving Yosemite at Tioga Pass. You see the lake pretty much when you leave the park, and the campground is near where the lake level used to be before climate change and the LA Water Authority stole all the water. There is a spectacular view up the valley and some way down the valley. It was full at 5:30 on a September Monday, Most of the sites are paired up, their two parking places together then separate paths to the picnic table and tent area for each. Not the greatest for van living, although the parking spot net to #2 is good.
Real good find! I thought these county parks were spendy, but $10 seems like a pretty good deal to me right now! On one of those little "creeks" LADWP sculpted out to constrain "their" water. Wide open sagebrush on one side, a column of willows and cottonwoods following the creek on the other. Very quiet and pretty today.
At 9,300', so a short season. A dusty, cramped, low-amenity national park campground that's in a REALLY cool place.
There is an actual Forest Service campground right down the road, but it's closed half the year, and these dispersed spots are so nice I usually stay here anyway. Coming from 395 on Buckeye Road, you first encounter the pull-off for the hot springs. 300 yards later at the bend in the road is the real campground, then another 300 yards up the hill on the left is the dispersed area. It's really nice. you can see out over the wide valley through the pine trees. It is sometimes crowded.
at the end of beautiful Silver Lake. Probably has great lake swimming/kayaking in the summer. Sites 16-27-ish have best lake access. Spectacular fall color spot. All the June Loop campgrounds no longer allow checking yourself in at the kiosk. A stressed-out concession employee must come and personally check you in. A step backwards, IMO.
Large campground at the foot of Convict Lake. Really cool place, mountains on three sides, nice little bite-sized hike around the perimeter of the lake (2.6 miles). Quite popular, but it's a big campground so there are usually open sites. Downtown Mammoth is fifteen minutes away.
Campground is less than a mile off 395 on a good gravel road. It's free and the campsites are quite spacious.
Another Inyo County campground along one of those "Creeks" controlled by LA Water Authority. Dusty and low tech, but very pretty. If you come on a summer weekend you run the risk of real asshole neighbors.
In the good part of downtown Bishop. The funky little Bishop AAA office is right across the street, restaurants and coffee shops a block away.