Sherwin Creek
1Heads up1 fire 41 mi away
- Right now
- Listed not openA database flag with no reason and no date
- A night
- $32From, per site
- Sites
- 85All of them booked ahead
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 14 notices
In the agency’s own words
Sherwin Creek Campground is located in the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains within 2 miles of the full-service community of Mammoth Lakes, California. Popular among anglers, hikers, off-road vehicle enthusiasts and photographers, the campground is near some of the most spectacular wilderness and outdoor recreation areas in the Sierras. Keep reading
Recreation
With a motocross track and trails, Sherwin Creek is a hot spot for off-road vehicle enthusiasts. The area's majestic scenery and challenging trails are also a draw for hikers. The Valentine Lake Trail and additional trailheads provide access to the John Muir Wilderness. The eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains are known for their exceptional trout fishing. Anglers can try for rainbow trout in the creek.
Facilities
This large campground has campsites organized into three loops, all within walking distance of the creek. Several tent-only, walk-to sites make up another loop in a secluded area on either side of the creek. Sites have a native surface and plenty of shade.
Natural Features
The campground is situated in a shady forest of Jeffery pine, bordered by aspen-lined Sherwin Creek. The elevation is 7,600 feet. Wild roses and other flowers bring color to the landscape in spring and early summer. Many species of wildlife call the mountains home, such as black bear, mountain lions, mule deer, pine marten, pika and numerous fish and birds.
Nearby Attractions
For campers interested in local events, the Mammoth Lakes Jazz Jubilee is hosted in Mammoth annually in mid-July. Several other events and amenities are available in town. Many great day trips for sightseers are available in the area, such as Yosemite National Park, Mono Basin and Devils Postpile National Monument.
Charges & Cancellations
As you make travel plans that include reservations on Recreation.gov , there are standard policies that apply to most locations of which you should be aware. Do keep in mind, however, that there are many exceptions, so it is best to review reservation information listed on individual facility pages for those policies and procedures that pertain to your specific locations. Any location or activity requiring a permit or lottery will have unique requirements and policies. Please check individual facility pages for pertinent information for those sites. Change and Cancellation Policies and Fees Overnight and Day Use Facilities: To ensure fairness, reservation arrival or departure dates may not be changed beyond the booking window until 18 days after booking the reservation. Camping / Day Use: A $10.00 service fee will apply if you change or cancel your reservation (including campsites, cabins, lookouts, group facilities, etc.). The $10.00 service fee will be deducted from the refund amount. You can cancel or change reservations through Recreation.gov or by calling 1-877-444-6777. Late Cancellations Overnight and Day Use Facilities: Late cancellations are those cancelled between 12:01 a.m. (Eastern) on the day before arrival and check out time on the day after arrival. Individual Campsites: If a customer cancels a reservation the day before or on the day of arrival they will be charged a $10.00 service fee and will also forfeit the first night's use fee (not to exceed the total paid for the original reservation). Cancellations for a single night's reservation will forfeit the entire use fee but no cancellation fee will apply. Cabins / Lookouts: Customers will be charged a $10.00 cancellation fee and forfeit the first night's use fee if a cabin or lookout reservation is cancelled within 14 days of the scheduled arrival date. Cancellations for a single night's use will not be assessed a service fee. Group Facility: If a customer cancels a group overnight facility reservation within 14 days of the scheduled arrival date they will be charged the $10.00 service fee and forfeit the first night's use fee. Cancellations for a single night's use will not be assessed a service fee. Group Day Use Area: If a customer cancels a group day use facility reservation within 14 days of the scheduled arrival date, they will forfeit the total day use fee with no service fee charge. No-Shows Camping / Day Use: A camping no-show customer is one who does not arrive at a campground and does not cancel the reservation by check-out time on the day after the scheduled arrival date. Reserved campsites and group overnight facilities will be held until check-out time on the day following your scheduled arrival. Group day-use facilities will be held until check-in time on your scheduled arrival date. If a customer does not arrive at the campground or group facility by check-out time the day after arrival or does not cancel the reservation by the times listed under "Late Cancellations" above, the customer may be assessed a $20.00 service fee and forfeit use fees. Tours: A tour or ticket no-show is one who does not cancel a ticket before arrival and does not arrive for the tour. Tour no-shows are not entitled to a refund. Refunds Customers must request refunds no later than 14 days after the scheduled departure date. Recreation.gov will not grant refund requests after 14 days of departure. Reservation Fee: For some facilities, tours or permits an additional reservation fee is charged. For some overnight and day-use facilities, an additional non-refundable reservation fee may apply. The non-refundable reservation fee for tours and tickets is $1.00. The non-refundable reservation fee for permits varies by location. Refunds for Bankcard Purchases: Refunds for bank card payments will be issued as a credit to the original bank card. Refunds for Check or Cash Purchases: Refunds for Recreation.gov payments made by check or money order, and cash payments at selected campgrounds will be issued a check refund. A refund will be processed within 30 days of receipt and approval. Please Note: Refund requests made during or after departure can only be processed when approved by the facility management staff based upon local policy. Refunds for Emergency Closures: In the event of an emergency closure, the Recreation.gov team will attempt to notify users and offer alternate dates (as appropriate). If this is not possible, reservations will be cancelled and all fees paid will be refunded. Reservation fees for free tickets are non-refundable in the event of an emergency closure. Recreation.gov Billing Information Reservation transaction will appear on customer's credit card statements as " Recreation.gov 877-444-6777." Changes to Policies and Procedures Recreation.gov reserves the right, when necessary, to modify reservation policies. These policies were last updated July
What the agency tells you
Access is via 1.5 miles on a two-lane gravel road
Campground usually not clear of snow until late May or early June
Campers bringing off-road vehicles must see the campground host regarding rules
Everything else this campground posts · 11
This is a high elevation facility; please use caution when traveling from lower elevations
Be bear aware; keep all food out of sight in approved containers or locked inside your vehicle and remove all food from area after eating; always keep a clean camp and do not feed any wild animals
No electric hookups and no showers
Only 2 pets per site allowed.
Fire Restrictions: Fire restrictions may be imposed at any time due to hot, dry weather conditions, at which time campfires and charcoal fires may not be allowed. For current fire conditions or weather closures contact the Mammoth Lakes Visitor Center, (760) 924-5500, or the Mono Lakes Visitor Center, (760) 647-3044.
Please Note: One RV with tow per single site or one vehicle per tent site. Most sites can accommodate 1 extra vehicle that is not included with the reservation fee. In accordance with standard industry practices, Inyo Recreation will assess an additional $10.00 extra vehicle fee per day for the second vehicle in each single family campsite, and on the third and fourth vehicle in any double family campsite, provided these vehicles are not joined to the first vehicle by a hitch and towed onto the site. In the case of motorcycles, the first two are considered one vehicle, and the third and fourth motorcycle are also considered one vehicle. No additional vehicle fees are collected for bicycles. Extra vehicles must fit on the parking spur.
Reserved Sites will be held until checkout time (NOON) the day following your arrival date. Sites must be occupied by the checkout time of the second day to hold a reservation or the site will be forfeited and released to other guests. Please call the office at 760-934-5795 if you need to inform the campground of an arrival time greater than 24 hours after your arrival date, or if you will not use your reservation whatsoever.
Once your reservation start date has begun, neither the Recreation.gov Contact Center nor the campground manager will be able to modify your reservation.
Don't Move Firewood: Protect California's forests from tree-killing pests by buying your firewood locally and burning it on-site. For more information visit firewood.ca.gov.
Click here for more information about the Inyo National Forest
PASS DISCOUNTS: You must provide your pass and photo identification upon check in. If you received a pass discount for which you were not eligible, you must pay the difference in price upon arrival.
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 85 · 15 walk-in
- Hookups
- None
- Longest rig
- 60 ft
- Accessible sites
- None listed
- Pets
- Allowed
- Campfires
- Allowed, barring fire bans
- Shade
- Every site
Facilities
- Stay limit
- 14 nights
- recreation.gov facility rule maxStay
Around the campground
- On the water
- Lake, Creek
- Biking
- Boating
- Fishing
- Hiking
- Horseback riding
- Hunting
- Visitor center
- Night sky · 783rd darkest of 1,201 in CA
- Bortle 3
- Fall color · reported 14 days ago, 5.1 km away
- Patchy color
No reading yet, book on recreation.gov
Every site here is reservable, and the record lists none held back for anyone who drives up.
No availability snapshot inside the last 36 hours, so this page draws nothing rather than ageing a reading into fiction.
Watch for a cancellation
Full? Watch it.
One email when a night opens, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We read recreation.gov once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time a site in your window is free for the nights you asked for.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
Tell me when the season opens
Watch for the season to open
One email when the season goes on sale, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We check once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time the agency has that season on sale.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 13
What you actually pay
“In accordance with standard industry practices, Inyo Recreation will assess an additional $10.00 extra vehicle fee per day for the second vehicle in each single family campsite, and on the third and fourth vehicle in…” · the U.S. Forest Service’s own agency notice
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rate for this season, $32 a night, plus one $8 recreation.gov reservation fee for the booking. A weekend here means Friday and Saturday night, booked once. Optional charges (an extra vehicle, a second tent, a dump-station fee) are listed separately and aren’t in this total.
“Camping / Day Use: A $10.00 service fee will apply if you change or cancel your reservation (including campsites, cabins, lookouts, group facilities, etc.). The $10.00 service fee will be deducted from the refund amount.” · this campground’s own no-show terms
Who keeps the booking fee
The agency’s own policy text says the reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee are “retained by the reservation service contractor”, and that a campground concessionaire will decline to refund them because “they did not receive these fees”. Recreation.gov is run under contract by Booz Allen Hamilton. What share of your booking fee the contractor keeps isn’t published in any federal dataset we can read, so we print no number for it. Our reporting on the contract →
How we know this receipt · 7
rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Oct 1, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
85 sites · which ones have room · the site map
The sites, ranked
from 85 mapped sitesAll 85 sites
Toilet distances are OpenStreetMap’s, measured for 85 of the 85 sites listed. A site with no reading is unknown, never far.
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 85 of the 85 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
Measured shade is NLCD Tree Canopy Cover 2024 (USDA Forest Service / MRLC) read at the site’s own coordinate, 27% canopy or more, and only for the sites the agency gave no Shade value. It never changes the agency’s own shaded count beside it.
| SHER | 017 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 70 ft | 1,029 ft | 608 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 018 | standard nonelectric | 34 ft | 70 ft | 1,071 ft | 596 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 019 | standard nonelectric | 50 ft | 88 ft | 1,111 ft | 559 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 020 | standard nonelectric | 27 ft | 85 ft | 1,082 ft | 449 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 021 | standard nonelectric | 47 ft | 103 ft | 1,060 ft | 398 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 022 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 150 ft | 1,174 ft | 543 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 023 | standard nonelectric | 32 ft | 116 ft | 1,052 ft | 486 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 024 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 116 ft | 953 ft | 372 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 025 | standard nonelectric | 41 ft | 63 ft | 963 ft | 300 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 026 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 63 ft | 950 ft | 294 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 027 | standard nonelectric | 54 ft | 78 ft | 976 ft | 350 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 028 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 78 ft | 1,022 ft | 421 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 029 | standard nonelectric | 50 ft | 84 ft | 1,026 ft | 482 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 030 | standard nonelectric | 27 ft | 96 ft | 973 ft | 511 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 031 | standard nonelectric | 33 ft | 91 ft | 893 ft | 510 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 032 | standard nonelectric | 48 ft | 91 ft | 833 ft | 541 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 033 | standard nonelectric | 37 ft | 106 ft | 831 ft | 639 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 034 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 85 ft | 840 ft | 737 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 035 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 41 ft | 534 ft | 216 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 036 | standard nonelectric | 46 ft | 76 ft | 534 ft | 273 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 037 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 41 ft | 574 ft | 197 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 038 | standard nonelectric | 29 ft | 92 ft | 704 ft | 197 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 039 | standard nonelectric | 28 ft | 100 ft | 744 ft | 292 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 040 | standard nonelectric | 44 ft | 102 ft | 825 ft | 260 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 041 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 100 ft | 817 ft | 164 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 042 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 92 ft | 739 ft | 137 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 043 | standard nonelectric | 34 ft | 83 ft | 646 ft | 18 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 044 | standard nonelectric | 31 ft | 83 ft | 687 ft | 74 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 045 | standard nonelectric | 37 ft | 92 ft | 595 ft | 123 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 046 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 101 ft | 634 ft | 185 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 047 | standard nonelectric | 38 ft | 86 ft | 531 ft | 221 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 048 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 86 ft | 554 ft | 274 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 049 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 104 ft | 449 ft | 355 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 050 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 104 ft | 407 ft | 328 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 051 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 95 ft | 325 ft | 437 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 052 | standard nonelectric | 39 ft | 95 ft | 243 ft | 413 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 053 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 104 ft | 180 ft | 340 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 054 | standard nonelectric | 50 ft | 104 ft | 284 ft | 290 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 055 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 114 ft | 293 ft | 183 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 056 | standard nonelectric | 60 ft | 100 ft | 368 ft | 65 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 057 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 75 ft | 442 ft | 202 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 058 | standard nonelectric | 37 ft | 75 ft | 413 ft | 256 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 059 | standard nonelectric | 37 ft | 63 ft | 365 ft | 421 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 060 | standard nonelectric | 38 ft | 73 ft | 348 ft | 482 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 061 | standard nonelectric | 29 ft | 70 ft | 230 ft | 463 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 063 | standard nonelectric | 49 ft | 78 ft | 289 ft | 191 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 064 | standard nonelectric | 31 ft | 78 ft | 307 ft | 114 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 065 | standard nonelectric | 27 ft | 70 ft | 261 ft | 61 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 066 | standard nonelectric | 32 ft | 53 ft | 204 ft | 117 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 067 | standard nonelectric | 38 ft | 53 ft | 169 ft | 152 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 068 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 63 ft | 163 ft | 187 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 069 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 82 ft | 179 ft | 227 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 070 | standard nonelectric | 38 ft | 82 ft | 210 ft | 266 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 071 | standard nonelectric | 26 ft | 76 ft | 178 ft | 358 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 072 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 70 ft | 167 ft | 434 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 073 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 35 ft | 173 ft | 547 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 074 | standard nonelectric | 20 ft | 35 ft | 168 ft | 512 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 075 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 75 ft | 200 ft | 618 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 076 | standard nonelectric | 37 ft | 66 ft | 302 ft | 671 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 077 | standard nonelectric | 42 ft | 66 ft | 350 ft | 651 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 078 | standard nonelectric | 46 ft | 77 ft | 368 ft | 587 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 079 | standard nonelectric | 42 ft | 63 ft | 414 ft | 478 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 080 | standard nonelectric | 48 ft | 92 ft | 463 ft | 431 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 081 | standard nonelectric | 38 ft | 66 ft | 535 ft | 523 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 082 | standard nonelectric | 50 ft | 62 ft | 577 ft | 589 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 083 | standard nonelectric | 27 ft | 62 ft | 616 ft | 651 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 084 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 55 ft | 674 ft | 702 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 085 | standard nonelectric | 35 ft | 55 ft | 720 ft | 744 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 086 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 53 ft | 788 ft | 779 ft | $32 |
| SHER | 087 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 53 ft | 836 ft | 818 ft | $32 |
| WALK | 001 | walk to | 62 ft | 919 ft | 962 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 002 | walk to | 39 ft | 854 ft | 918 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 003 | walk to | 39 ft | 814 ft | 900 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 004 | walk to | 62 ft | 753 ft | 863 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 005 | walk to | 75 ft | 682 ft | 830 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 006 | walk to | 56 ft | 849 ft | 975 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 007 | walk to | 56 ft | 905 ft | 1,004 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 008 | walk to | 107 ft | 1,030 ft | 1,389 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 009 | walk to | 107 ft | 1,014 ft | 1,484 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 010 | walk to | 192 ft | 870 ft | 1,248 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 011 | walk to | 117 ft | 855 ft | 1,438 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 012 | walk to | 117 ft | 899 ft | 1,554 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 013 | walk to | 126 ft | 1,073 ft | 1,610 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 014 | walk to | 83 ft | 1,323 ft | 1,289 ft | $32 | |
| WALK | 015 | walk to | 83 ft | 1,323 ft | 1,342 ft | $32 |
25 of 85 listed
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions
Where it is
Pine GlenInyo National Forest · 1.8 mi
New Shady Rest CampgroundInyo National Forest · 1.9 mi
Old Shady Rest CampgroundInyo National Forest · 2.0 mi
Coldwater Campground - Inyo NF (CA)Inyo National Forest · 3.8 mi
Twin Lakes CampgroundInyo National Forest · 3.9 mi
Lake Mary CampgroundInyo National Forest · 4.0 miTake U.S. Highway 395 to State Highway 203 to Mammoth Lakes. Take a left at the first traffic light in town onto Old Mammoth Road. Drive south 0.9 miles to Sherwin Creek Road. Turn left and proceed 1.5 miles to the campground.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Mammoth Lakes, CA
Typical weather
Typical October night 36°F, day 65°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical January night 21°F, below freezing. Bring a bag rated colder than that, and expect ice in the water bottle.
Daily high and lowDays with 0.10 in or more
A normal is the 1991-2020 average for the month, not a forecast: about half of all Julys are colder than the July line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.
The land, and who answers for it
what threatens it · who answers for it
Roadless country, and what’s coming for it
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Sherwin Creek is in California’s 3rd congressional district. Its representative, Kevin Kiley (I), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →