Gardiner Entrance: Mammoth to Norris to Madison Junction
Mammoth
to Norris: 21 miles
Norris to Madison Campground: 14 miles
Gardner River
From the Gardiner Entrance to Mammoth, the road parallels the Gardner River and offers a number of pull-outs, but this section is swift water and not for neophytes. The Gardner River may also be accessed at the mouth from Park Street in Gardiner. Take the trail past the pump house down to the river.
Boiling River
If you want to take a break from fishing and soak in a hot-pool on the Gardiner River, follow the Boiling River Trail one mile to this popular swimming hole. Look for the trailhead 2.6 miles from the Gardiner Entrance.
Mammoth Campground and visitor center
The
Mammoth Campground is just below Mammoth. The campground is popular.
Joffe Lake
More aptly described as a one and a half-acre pond, Joffe Lake is an old reservoir a couple of miles south of Mammoth. Take the Mammoth-Norris Grand Loop Road. At 1.3 miles south of Mammoth, turn south onto a dirt road. The lake is great fishing for youngsters, who will be thrilled catching 6- to 8-inch brook trout.
Swan Lake:
Indian Creek
Sitting on a small rise eight miles south of Mammoth, Indian Creek Campground is surrounded by verdurous meadows and winding streams. Indian Creek joins the Gardner River near the campground and offers special bait fishing opportunities for children fishing for small brookies. Obsidian Creek joins the Gardner River in the vicinity of the campground and also offers good fishing for brookies with special regulations for children. By following the Bighorn Pass Trail near the campground, families may also fish Panther Creek, a small tributary of the Gardner River. For children and novice anglers, this campground offers wonderful fishing opportunities and good wildlife viewing prospects.
Gardner River, Sheepeater Canyon
After the Gardner River picks up the tributary creeks, the river takes a sweeping turn and heads back north, where it is crossed by the Mammoth-Tower Road and then joined by Lava Creek. Leaving the meadow section by the Indian Creek Campground, the river plunges down Sheepeater Canyon and drops over the 100-foot Osprey Falls. Access is difficult above and below the falls, and the fishing is considered to be not really worth the effort or the risk. One such access, however, is from the Sheepeater Picnic site.
Grizzly Lake and Straight Creek
The trailhead to Grizzly Lake is reached 15 miles from Mammoth or 6.5 miles north of the Norris Junction. Look for the pullout and a trail sign for the Grizzly Lake Trail. It is easy to miss. Grizzly Lake is a 1.8-mile hike up a series of switchbacks to the lake. The 136-acre lake offers good fishing for 7- to 10-inch brook trout. Straight Creek both feeds and empties the lake. An alternate route to the lake is to fish up Straight Creek from the meadow section next to the road. Look for the parking area for the Mount Holmes Trail, which is three miles south of Indian Creek Campground. The trail follows Obsidian Creek for a mile, but do not waste your time fishing it. From Straight Creek the trail gradually climbs another three miles up the canyon to meet the lake.
Straight Creek provides excellent fishing for small brook trout. However, for every 8-inch brook trout that you land, you will have to release 10 dinks from 4 to 6-inches. The canyon was burned badly in the 1988 fire, and the gray husks of mature trees litter the creek bed and hillside. I do not disdain fishing small creeks for small fish, but this creek seems to promise more than it de-livers. This is another great creek for kids, as it provides lots of action from hungry little brook trout that will hit any fly thrown their way.
Beaver Lake, Lake of the Woods
Beaver Lake is located just over seven miles south of Mammoth. It is basically fishless, as is Lake of the Woods.
Twin Lakes
Although you will see people fishing these two shallow lakes, they are considered to be almost barren.
Norris Campground, Solfatara Creek
Entering
the Gibbon River at Norris Junction and the campground, Solfatara offers fair
to good fishing for smaller trout.
