Tioga Pass and Sierras Camping

Took about a ten day trip into the Sierras this October, went earlier than usual, the first and second week, so the leaves were only just turning; there weren't the hard oranges and yellows like in the third and fourth weeks of October, but it was picturesque none-the-less.

Lower Lee Vining Campground

 One of the many campgrounds I stay are located in the Tioga Pass before the Yosemite gates.  Some of these campgrounds I've visited for more than forty years.

Lower Lee Vining Campground

This is the Lower Lee Vining campground. The campground is accessible off of Tioga Pass before the pass gates, but camping is still not accessible year round. Typically camping ends in the middle of October.

There are a lot of great sites in this area which can accommodate large RV's.  Just inside, there is a large turn around area in case you don't believe you can get through the rest of the campground. With a tow vehicle, I would detach if you don't plan on staying within the immediate turn around area. It would then be wise to walk the many drive-able roads to choose the best location.

Lower Lee Vining

The fees this year for the campground were $14. The fees have not gone up for a couple years.

The site has a couple vault toilets just after you get into the campground. There are many sites throughout, a couple pull-through and many pull-in or back-in.

Most everywhere you are under rather large pine trees and if you're lucky, you're right next to the Lee Vining creek.

The area is beautiful with lots of Aspen and several Pines.

Depending on the season, if you're here during the Spring, just after opening, through the middle of September, you're likely to encounter plenty of mosquitoes, so bring plenty of bug spray.

Much of the areas along the creek are dense with growth. There are several paths to take and I advise carrying a rather long stick, because spider webs are everywhere. The webs are from offspring who take off into the air after birth and land wherever the wind blows them. On one of my videos, I'll provide links later, you can see hundreds floating through the air - by carrying a stick you can simply push them out of the way.

Picture above and right, one of the many spots where the logs jam up during torrential runoff during heavy rains and in the spring runoff.

For years and years, the water used to run in a flume, now filled in with the plastic pipe you see.  It was a gravity fed flume which ran all the way to the ranger station towards the town of Lee Vining.

The flume was always in somewhat rough shape and I'm sure those who maintained it had to continuously clean debris from it. If you follow it to the head, as shown in the picture on the right, you'll see how they manage water entry. Also, from the camping area, you can follow the flume for quite some time toward the ranger station. The original exposed flume has been dry for several years now and this plastic flume does not yet have water running inside.

The water runs ferociously downhill in many spots of this creek.

The Moraine Campground

The Moraine campground entrance is up the hill on Tioga Road just a bit and to the left.

This Google Map pinpoints the entrance in the upper-left corner and the coordinates are in the bottom of the picture.

As can be seen the creek flows just below the major entrance. There are many wide-open camping areas in the Moraine, suitable for very large rigs.

Immediately when you pull in the sign tells you which direction to take for the campground you're after. Later I'll discuss Aspen and Boulder.

 In the past few years the Moraine campground has suffered several overflow washouts of the creek running through the roads. Consequently many of the camping areas are now closed along with several of the roads running close to the creek.

It's rather interesting to take several walks through the area and follow the creek as it meanders through Moraine. The creek runs rather smoothly compared to many other parts of the creek as you move upward.

While much of Moraine is full of ruts and closures you can still hike around everywhere and there are still plenty of spots to camp. Additionally, because of the creek's meandering nature, in many spots it moves calmly and offers peaceful, tranquil places to relax.

Here are a couple of the larger parking areas. Just pull off into a nice grassy area, pull out your chairs, pitch a tent, or open your awning, and you're good to go. You may not be next to the creek, but it's beautiful and relaxing.

The Area Itself is Beautiful

Aspen Campground

The Aspen campground is a nice area and it's to the right as you pull in and decide to go to either Moraine, Aspen, or Boulder.

The Aspen and Boulder campground are like the Lower Lee Vining campground, but they're mostly close to the rushing waters and there are many camp spots. Several spots will accommodate any size RV, but as always, get out and walk it first.

This Google Map aerial shows the Aspena nd Big Bend campgrounds. They are both accessible via the same entrance.

Not going to post much here about the Aspen campground, they look reasonably the same as the Lower Lee Vining. What I want to get into next is the Big Bend campground.

Big Bend Campground

The Big Bend campground is one of the best campgrounds along Tioga Road. Others may disagree with this assessment for many reasons, but Big Bend is beautiful. The creek meanders through the spots, there are many well-groomed spots, there is running water and wonderfully clean and up-kept toilets. There is virtually no sun as trees provide a wonderful canopy over most every spot.

As you can see from the screen capture, the entrance is almost invisible among the dense tree cover. Once you pull in you will see how quite and serene this spot is. All spots are well maintained, there are several areas with potable water, and the toilets are clean and kept. The pull-in is a one-way road only with the exit at the other end of the camp area. This site can accommodate RV's up to about 30 feet and possibly larger, you will want to drive through to see if you fit. The drive through is a central road to the pull-out.

The Big Bend campground is not cheap. At $22 a night with only water and nice toilets, you're going to pay your fair share, but for the way the grounds are kept, for a short period of time, or longer if you don't mind the cost, it's a great site to stay.

I would say this site is a must for at least a night or two. There are also free camping areas around the Tioga Pass area which I'll cover in another post.