What to See and Do
Hiking and Biking
Crystal Lake Trail
In the nearby Inyo National Forest, you can hike the out-and-back Crystal Lake Trail for a stunning view of Mammoth Lakes Basin. The trail is open throughout the year, but June to November are the best months to take this hike.
Length: 3.1 miles
Intensity: Moderate
Convict Lake Loop Trail
This loop trail is an easy hike around Convict Lake in the Inyo National Forest. It's open year-round with June to November being the best months to take the hike.
Length: 2.5 miles
Intensity: Easy
McLeod Lake Trail
McLeod Lake Trail is an easy loop trail that travels through a forest and around McLeod Lake. June to November are the ideal months for hiking this trail, but it's open all year.
Length: 1.8 miles
Intensity: Easy
Mount Whitney Portal to Lone Pine Lake
Those who are up for a challenging hike will want to take Mount Whitney Portal to Lone Pine Lake. You'll be rewarded with beautiful views of Mount Whitney, a waterfall, and Lone Pine Lake. If you visit during winter, you might see the waterfall frozen.
Length: 6.5 miles
Intensity: Difficult
Fishing & Boating
In the nearby Mammoth Lakes, you can catch rainbow trout, Alpers trout, and brown trout. You can also go boating, water skiing, tubing, and wakeboarding on Mammoth Lakes. There are plenty of fishing and boating opportunities at Inyo National Forest, too. It features 1,000 miles of rivers and streams and 400 lakes. Golden trout, rainbow trout, brown trout, and brook trout are some of the common species caught here.
Climbing
You can go climbing in the Mammoth Lakes and Bishop areas in the Inyo National Forest. Popular mountains to climb include Emerson, Agassiz, Ritter, and Crystal Crag.
Wildlife Viewing
You'll have a chance to see bighorn sheep, mule deer, bobcats, mountain lions, and black bears in the Inyo National Forest. In the winter, you might see a bald eagle. Other birds that you could spot in the national forest include cliff swallows, water dippers, and great horned owls.
Picnicking
Areas to have a picnic include Reds Meadow, the Minaret Vista, the Mono County Park, Rock Creek Lake, and the Whitney Portal Area in the Inyo National Forest. Reds Meadow Campground has bear-proof lockers and flush toilets. Access to this campground is only possible during summer. You'll love the views at the Minaret Vista, an overlook of the Minarets, Reds Meadow Valley, and the Ansel Adams Wilderness.
Winter Sports
Skiing, snowshoeing, backcountry snowboarding, snowmobiling, mushing, sledding, and tubing are the winter sports you can engage in at the Inyo National Forest. Mammoth Lakes, Mammoth Mountain, and June Mountain are popular skiing areas.
Hunting
Hunting is allowed in certain areas during designated seasons in the Inyo National Forest. Game you could hunt includes mule deer, grouse, dove, quail, waterfowl, and chukar.
