Little Alkali Lake Fishing near Mammoth Lakes, California

• Overview

  California holds Little Alkali Lake, in Mono County. The bank gives way to mixed woodland. It runs to roughly 140 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. On our Mono County list it sits near the top for size. Mammoth Lakes sits 9.9 miles from the bank. Then West Bishop, 28 miles, and Dixon Lane-Meadow Creek, 28 miles. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Little Alkali Lake

  A salt basin rather than a fishing lake: treat this page as orientation, not an invitation. Expect a pan of salt and mud most years; water arrives rarely and leaves fast. Anglers passing through do better on the neighbouring fresh waters listed on this page. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. The shape of Little Alkali Lake rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate normals give 65°F for July and 27°F for January. Ice comes and goes from one year to the next. It is not guaranteed from one year to the next. Late winter often fishes better here than midsummer does. It sets the rhythm of the year at Little Alkali Lake. Weed growth peaks in late summer and changes where you can fish.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. Parking is not close: half a mile from the bank, and no nearer option is mapped. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Big Alkali Lake, 0.9 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Ask locally about Little Alkali Lake if anything is unclear.