By Paul LebowitzBRIDGEPORT TWIN LAKES - The Twin Lakes canyon up the hill a piece from the pleasant Eastern Sierra town of Bridgeport is rightly famous for hungry trout, clear skies, and the granite pinnacles that soar over the modest-sized lakes’ shimmery surfaces. Those blue waters are cold too up at 7,000 ft – a point a certain outdoor writer’s brother Mark Lebowitz could attest to as he sputtered and spit in surprise. He hadn’t planned on an afternoon swim. The day before our family had set down stakes at the Robinson Creek Forest Service campground just down-canyon of Lower Twin Lake. The spacious two-tent site, like many in the series of public camps that trace the course of the creek, sat at the water’s edge draped in piney shade. It was such a scenic spot, we didn’t stray far. The youngest of the clan scrambled over rocks and splashed about heedless of fish, while his father flung spinners into creases and along the heads and tails of pools a ways upstream, barely denting the creek’s miles-long potential. The Twin Lakes area is one of those camping destinations where it’s possible, likely even, for the day to slide easily away. There’s a whole lot of nothing to do here except relax, unless you count favorite family pastimes such as hunting rainbows, browns and the odd brookie in the lakes and streams. The California state record brown, a huge 26 lbs and then some, came out of Upper Twin 21 years back. The hiking is terrific too. Trails climb from the glacial canyon, past a series of walk-to lakes and up into the Hoover Wilderness and eventually the remote eastern bounds of Yosemite National Park. And let’s not forget waterborne pursuits, like gliding across liquid alpine serenity on a kayak. That’s where we rejoin Mark Lebowitz in his last dry moments of that July afternoon. As he contentedly drank in a view of mountain majesty, his 10-year old nephew, floating nearby on his own kayak, took aim and then took down his unsuspecting uncle with a bumper-boat crash. Fortunately the summer sun is warm and the well-stocked general store at Twin Lakes Resort carries dry socks. And in addition to managing Lower Twin’s launch ramp and renting housekeeping cabins and full-hook-up RV sites, they also offer hot showers for campers. Clean, dry and warm, the entire family made the short drive back to Upper Twin Lake and Mono Village for that rustic institution’s famous Friday night barbecue. During the summer months the restaurant at the full-service resort puts on a tasty spread of savory meats, cowboy beans, veggies for the health-conscious plus fresh-baked desert cakes – and its light on the wallet. All are welcome at the outdoor feasts, not just Mono’s tent and RV campers and motel guests. The hearty food was plenty to fuel the next morning’s fishing. In deference to the season – the trout slow down a bit in mid-summer – we trolled up our Upper Twin Lake trout on Needlefish spoons a couple of leadcore colors down. Had we been up early, a tough feat on a family outing, we might have done as well on Rapala Countdown minnows. The little hardbaits are a favorite at Ken’s Sporting Goods down in Bridgeport, the region’s de facto fishing HQ. The shop’s Rick Gieser sketched out a strategy familiar for Sierra waters. Pitch dough baits and ‘crawlers from shore hot spots. On Lower Twin, examples include the marina area, the backside of the spillway, or the flat known to locals as Cheese Beach. For those who prefer to fling ‘Sierra iron,’ Gieser said red and gold Thomas Buoyants are a top choice. When seeking out a shore spot, look for drop-offs like the nice shelf off Cheese Beach. “Bigger fish often cruise there,” Gieser added, thirty years of local experience his guide. Speaking of big fish, the Twin Lakes produce a few prodigious browns each spring and fall. Bishop’s Jerry Rago tallied a 16-lb beauty last October according to staff at Twin Lakes Resort, a fish likely to have started as a fingerling planted in a supplemental stocking financed by local businesses. Last year they put in 7,500 lbs. There are also hard-fighting Alpers in the basin, courtesy of Mono County. Despite the tantalizing potential for hooking a monster, Gieser feels the lakes are better appreciated for quantity than overall fish size. That was our experience, quick hook-ups on tasty pan-sized morsels, although a one-day sample isn’t much to go on. Our summer trip nearly at an end, one last evening’s fading sun found the family back at our appealing creek-side camp. Mule deer browsed unconcerned and content through the neighboring campsites – their picnic tables, fire grates, and bear boxes unused, awaiting slow to arrive weekend visitors. The stars emerged, the fire crackled, and the creek added its soothing music to the night air. That’s entertainment unavailable at sea level, but in plentiful supply around Bridgeport’s Twin Lakes.
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BRIDGEPORT’S BEAUTIFUL TWIN LAKES offer more than great fishing. Up at 7,000 ft the scenery is wide open, overnight options abound, and there’s enjoyable kayaking. Bracing Eastern Sierra style swimming too, if a young nephew manages to deliver a cold water surprise. Little does the author’s brother expect what’ll happen next.
BROWN TOWN – The Twin Lakes are justly famous for brown trout. The state record came out of these waters some 20 years back. Although most of the trout action is centered on pan sized rainbows and hard-charging Alpers, big browns make their presence known every spring and fall. PHOTO COURTESY TWIN LAKES RESORT
DIRECTIONS TO EASTERN SIERRA HEAVEN – The beautiful Twin Lakes valley is an easy 11 mile drive southwest from the pleasant Highway 395 town of Bridgeport. There are two lake-side resorts. Mono Village is at the head of the valley adjacent to Upper Twin Lake. Twin Lakes Resort sits astride Lower Twin. USFS campgrounds follow the course of Robinson Creek along the highway.
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