Getting There

The journey to Ruwau Lake begins at the South Lake Trailhead located at South Lake, outside of Bishop, California. Take Highway 168 west from Bishop and follow the signs to South Lake.

The Hike

The trail to Ruwau Lake starts at the South Lake Trailhead and the hiking was moderate uphill all the way to long lake. The trail runs along the western shore of Long Lake until you reach the inlet creek from Ruwau Lake. At this point, you can follow the outlet creek of Ruwau Lake up to the lake itself. The incline increases at this last section up to Ruwau. I chose to make camp at Long Lake, on the eastern side where many campsites are available. This appeared to be a popular destination for many backpackers who were apparently willing to brave the storm. The weather faired better at Long Lake than Ruwau Lake.

The Fishing

The fishing was great at Ruwau Lake for brookies in 12-14 inch range. They were hardy fighters and I landed 6+ fish within one hour before the massive storm finally forced me to return to my camp at Long Lake. Using the Panther Martin lure with the Yellow Body, the Panther Martin with the Black body and a brass Mepps spinner, many fish were landed and released.

The only location I fished was the outlet as the storm was limiting my fishing time. However, this proved to be the right place to fish as the fishing at Ruwau Lake was outstanding!