Camping at Volcanic Tablelands Near Bishop CA

California’s Highway 395 has to be among the most adventurous roads of all times. There are so many opportunities to see unique and stunning natural beauty both from the road and from a quick side trip. There are also a fair share of amazing places to camp along the way. Eventually, as you’re travelling along the 395 you’ll come to the town of Bishop California. This is a great home base for the never ending recreation opportunities in the surrounding area. And luckily, there are several options for camping in Bishop. Camping at Volcanic Tablelands is a great option if you’re looking for the perfect mix of peace and quiet, beautiful scenery and adventure!

Quick Info:

Cost: Free

Ownership: BLM (with LA County owned land as well)

Camping Limit: 14 days

Directions: Heading north on US-395, follow US-395/Main Street through Bishop. When you see the fairgrounds on the left, veer left onto US-6 E at that intersection. After 1.4 miles turn left on Five Bridges Road. This paved road will turn into a dirt road and you’ve arrived. There are numerous dispersed camp sites here. Or continue about 1.4 miles before turning left onto another dirt road for several (free) designated sites.

Road Conditions: The dirt road is bumpy with washboard conditions. There are some other rocky spots but four wheel drive and high clearance are not necessary.

Miles from Town: Bishop is about 6.5 miles away

Cell Service: T-Mobile- yes, but spotty

Solar: Very good

Where to Get Water: Bishop Chamber of Commerce, Public Land Information Center

Dump Station: Free at the ARCO in Bishop

Our Experience Camping at Volcanic Tablelands

We enjoyed our time camping at Volcanic Tablelands so much that we called it home for the full 14 days. Our spot was roomy, comfortable and had incredible views of the surrounding mountains!

We enjoyed watching the clouds come and go over the snow capped mountains and the play of colors changing during sunset. In the other direction we could do the same with the White Mountains, knowing that the oldest living trees in the world were right up there! Looking at the snow covered peaks and sometimes watching it snow on the mountains while experiencing 80 degree weather was fantastic.

dispersed camping at volcanic tablelands

Right behind our spot we had a wall of great bouldering rocks to play on whenever we wanted. It was definitely a perk having some so near. But there are also many other places throughout Volcanic Tablelands that are full of boulders, hallways and cave like areas to climb around too! There was one trail that we ventured to from our camp spot that was so geologically awesome that even someone who didn’t climb would enjoy it.

bouldering in our backyard at volcanic tablelands

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One complaint, though I wish I didn’t have to mention one, is that there was a lot of glass and nails all over the ground at this particular spot. Not only that but there are broken pieces of glass on many of the boulders so when finding a finger hold we had to be extra cautious. We assumed people were shooting at glass bottles set up on the rocks?

rock climbing while camping at volcanic tablelands

With that one negative out of the way, I’d also like to mention that this area was very quiet during out stay and there wasn’t too much traffic. On weekends the spots nearby did fill up and traffic did pick up – but on weekdays we saw maybe 1 or 2 vehicles. Also, almost every morning a BLM Ranger would make rounds which probably kept the area as nice as it was.

While we were camping at Volcanic Tablelands there were so many caterpillars everywhere! And by the end of our stay, you guessed it, there were so many butterflies! By so many, I mean really an unusually excessive amount. Pretty memorable. We also saw one deer, kangaroo rats, desert wood rats, rabbits, lots of birds, numerous other bugs and mosquitoes at dusk. Some nights we heard coyotes in the distance. And did I mention the stars here? They were awesome.

beautiful sunset while camping at volcanic tablelands

As you can see, we really enjoyed our spot! We spoke with a BLM Ranger about fires and at the time of our stay they were allowed. He informed us that in recent years there was a fire that caused an evacuation of the Tablelands so there is a lot of concern about the safety of fires in the area. During our stay we chose not to have one.

Camping at Volcanic Tablelands was a success!

Camping at Volcanic Tablelands surpassed our expectations and allowed us to explore an awesome area that we’d never even heard of. This spot is conveniently located to clean and friendly Bishop as well as to tons of outdoor adventures in the area. There’s hiking, climbing, fishing, backpacking, hot springs, bakeries, a skatepark, and other camping opportunities in the area. It has to be next to impossible to get bored here!

Our spot and our overall experience camping at Volcanic Tablelands were super enjoyable. And we did manage to check out some other places in the area too. Stay tuned for those articles!

In the meantime, here are some other notable California experiences we’ve enjoyed on the road:

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