No visit to Bishop or Mammoth Lakes would be complete for a canine or human with out a hike in the Rock Creek Lakes Basin. The exit to Rock Creek is 24 miles north of Bishop or 16 miles south of Mammoth Lakes, from highway 395. The exit is marked Tom's Place, Rock Creek. (Do not mistakenly take the exit to Lower Rock Creek if you are coming from the south, since you'll take about a 20 mile detour through a little town called Paradise and will end up just before the ascent to Sherwin summit, back on 395.) You then follow a nine-mile paved road past nearly a dozen campgrounds and two lodges before reaching Rock Creek Lake, a spectacular lake for fishing and camping around.

Nearby is Rock Creek Lake Resort (on your right), which serves the best homemade pies I have ever had. Rock Creek Lake Resort unfortunately does not allow pets in any of its cabins, although there are two Golden Retrievers on the premises, a pleasant general store, and public showers ($2 minimum) that are very welcome after hiking. Rock Creek Lodge, off to the left before you get to the lake, is open year-round and does allow dogs with a $10 charge per night in the cabins. I met some hikers with a Golden Retriever and Black Lab who took this picture of Genevieve and me near the Upper Pine Creek campground.

While there are many excellent hikes from various points, the one with which I am familiar begins at Mosquito Flat, a mile further on a one-lane road. Parking fills up quickly at the trailhead, so unless you get there early in the summer months you may need to backtrack 4 tenths of a mile and park in one of the overflow parking areas. Under no circumstance try to park in an area not designated for parking. The extraordinary beauty of this hike is that there are many small lakes quite close together and very easily accessible from the well-marked and graded trail. Also, depending upon the season you will be close to a rushing stream at the beginning of the hike and in several other locations. I have taken this walk with Genevieve both in early July when there was still an abundance of snow and most recently in late August. The drive up the Rock Creek road is framed by Aspen trees, which I'm looking forward to hiking among in October, when they turn a blazing gold color, and the crowds are gone.

While this is a popular hike, the people you meet are delightful and many have dogs with them. Dogs may be off-lead if they are voice controllable. I met Leslie Roby with her two Shiba Inus early in the hike, before coming to a lake. Rusty, the male on the left just turned one, and Sadie, his black and tan cousin on the right, turned one in April. Leslie's dogs were not used to the wilderness, so she wisely kept them on-lead. She says the most noticeable and interesting trait about her dogs is how catlike they are, i.e., very aloof, independent, and clean. I met groups of people backpacking, mostly on the way to Morgan Pass, although Mono Pass is also accessible from an early fork to the right off this trail. One or more parties were accompanied by dogs with packs. As usual Genevieve carried her saddlebags containing some treats, extra water and her Kool Kong. We had our lunch by Heart Lake which is surrounded by tall grasses, as are a number of these smaller lakes. On this particular trip clouds were drifting in and out, signaling that a rain storm was imminent. Afternoon rains were becoming prevalent in this area, and just two days earlier it had rained heavily here. Fortunately I had chosen not to camp at Rock Creek Lake that day. In fact I was thankful to have my Gortex jacket and hood handy during a light shower on this afternoon.

Just after the shower I met Jean Flannigan with her black Standard Poodle. She was delighted that I offered to photograph them, since the location had a secret and special significance to her. While on this trip I didn't proceed further because of the impending weather, I couldn't resist including some images from a trip in early July of 1997, a year of extremely heavy snowfall in the Sierra Nevada. On this hike we walked through snow fields to access the Chickenfoot Lakes and also Gem Lakes. Icy as the water must have been, Genevieve could not be deterred from swimming in each of the lakes.

Mount Whitney (view from road just above campsite in Whitney Portal Campground).	Duck Pass (looking down over Skelton Lake on the return from Duck Pass hike).
Crystal Lake. (Overlooking Lake George and Crystal Crag on hike to Crystal Lake)	Saddlebag Lake Loop. (Shamrock Lake)

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