Lundy Lake

Lundy Lake fills the mouth of Lundy Canyon at about 7,800 feet, at the end of a five-mile spur off US-395 north of Lee Vining. It is a natural glacial lake that a low rockfill dam raised about 37 feet in 1911, and Southern California Edison still runs it for power. The lake is narrow, about a mile long and 120 or so acres, with aspen and talus on both walls and Mill Creek coming in at the west end. Most of what you catch are planted rainbows, and the ones that hold over reach 16 to 18 inches. The browns are why a fly angler makes the drive. They are wild, a big one comes out most springs, and the lake record is a 14 lb 2 oz brown from May 2018.

This is a canyon lake, not a weedy flat, so the fishing is about edges and depth. The shallow water is at the west end, where Mill Creek has built a silt delta beside the ramp. Fish it from a float tube: hang a chironomid under an indicator off the edge of the delta, or strip a small leech along it. The east half toward the dam is deeper, so count a black or olive leech or a size 8 Woolly Bugger down on an intermediate or sinking line along the drop-offs. For the browns, come soon after ice-out and fish a Clouser or a Matuka slowly near the inlet, and come back in October when they get aggressive before the spawn. Caddis and small mayflies come off in summer evenings near the inlet. Wind blows down the canyon most afternoons, so plan on mornings and bring a 6-weight.

Know how the water is managed before you plan a spring trip. Edison draws the lake down every winter to catch the snowmelt, so at the late-April opener the water can sit below the end of the ramp, with wide mud at the inlet. The paved road reaches the dam and the ramp early, but the dirt road on to Lundy Lake Resort can stay snowed in until mid-May, so fish the dam end until then. The resort runs from mid-May to mid-October with a store, cabins, campsites and rental boats with small outboards. It is a no-wake lake and much quieter than the June Lake Loop, but CDFW planted it only twice in 2026, so do not expect a fresh load every week. Edison is relicensing the project ahead of its 2029 license expiry, and the new terms could change how full the lake runs in spring. Above the lake, the beaver ponds on Mill Creek hold small brookies and browns for an evening with a dry fly, and in early October the canyon's aspens bring nearly as many photographers as anglers.