thanks!

shady rest rd looks like a residential street in the middle of town... is there another one i should be looking for?

and are you talking about owens gorge road? i see 5S101 on google maps on my computer but Gaia is showing it as 4S43.

just talked to the wife about it and she said we'll go as far as we can and stop when we have to, so i'm just trying to stock up on options. i found a spot off 3S59, hartley springs is another free option, and i'm going to hunt for some spots near mono lake. thanks for the recs. any others you may know of... send 'em my way!

Shady Rest Park is off of Sawmill Cuttoff road. Sorry about that. Go past the forest service building and it's the next road on the right.

There's not a lot up in Lee Vining that I know of. Most of my time up there is spent at a few "secret" bivies but they are well up towards Tioga Pass. There used to be some pretty good bandit camping on your way up to Virginia Lakes. About 2 miles up the road there's a dirt road that heads towards the creek. I used to use it a lot but haven't been in years.

Most rangers on the east side are pretty mellow. As long as you park off the road and keep your stuff close to your rig they'll leave you alone. That basically means any dirt road you find that looks good will most likely have a good camping spot.

It all really depends on how far off the road you want to go. It's a big area and the views really don't suck anywhere.

not looking to go too far from the 395. 15-20 minutes on dirt off the highway is good. shady rest/sawmill cutoff looks good because 3S08 will take us right back. we want to be able to jump back on and get to tahoe as early as we can. ever stayed near mono lake?

Definitely stay out of the valley as it will be hot!

One area I've been meaning to check out is Laurel Lakes Rd. It's between Bishop and Mammoth and from what I've seen has some amazing views. It's a dirt road and I'm pretty sure you can disperse camp by finding a spot off the road (need a wilderness permit to hike overnight past the lake, but car camping is fine below the lake). Google Earth shows quite a few turnoffs that get down to the creek for some great camping.

Between Mammoth and June are Upper and Lower Deadman Creek campgrounds. They are free to use. Have toilets.

You could also go up to Mono Lake and drive some the dirt roads around the lake to find a cool spot. Dispersed camping is allowed above exposed lake bed as it is a State Scenic Reserve.

Let us know where you end up going!

Edit: Check this out! https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ta...4d-118.9650464

mono lake is an option but would probably be too far. i think we'll end up somewhere between mammoth & june and the deadman campgrounds look perfect. 7800 feet, tables, fire rings, and no fees. perfect! thanks

edit: i'll add that TW spot to the map, too. thanks!

Bumping once again... we never ended up making it to Deadman last year. There were fires as we were driving up and as we passed Deadman Creek Road i looked down and it was brown with smoke. We powered through to Tahoe and were bummed.

Anyhow, we want to head up that way for a three night’r in August. Somewhere near water that we can take a dip in. A creek, stream, lake, swimmin’ hole, something. I think Laurel Lakes might be a bit rough for my pregnant wife. Has anyone here done that trail? Sounds perfect, but, like I said... might be uncomfortable for her.

Any swim spots near the Deadman campgrounds? Open to suggestions! Thanks again

Decided to stay at Deadman. We’ll probably head out to Layton Springs for a dip, any other pregnant lady / 18mo old-friendly hikes or fun spots?

How was Deadman camping area?

A cool spot to check out would be the Hot Creek Geological Site. Also has an area to swim in.

There's a small loop hike near Obsidian Dome

Another short one to Inyo Craters (Not in MY crater!! Thought you would appreciate the dad joke).

The Convict Lake area is gorgeous also.

We haven’t gone yet, we’ll be heading up this month. We can’t hit up any hot springs, unfortunately. My 7mo. pregnant wife can’t go in (plus it’s summer), which is why were heading to Layton Cold Spring. Obsidian Dome is on our list. I’ll research yo craters!

Why not take a dip in June Lake? Probably the easiest thing you can do.