Big Bend Campground, near Lee Vining, California, is a fantastic spot for those looking to immerse themselves in nature while being close to the Eastern Sierra entrance of Yosemite National Park. With its serene setting alongside Lee Vining Creek, this campground offers a peaceful escape with 16 sites that provide easy access to fishing and stunning views of the surrounding tall pines and aspen trees.

Campers rave about the clean facilities, including well-maintained vault toilets and bear boxes for food storage, which are essential given the local wildlife. The camp host is a highlight for many visitors, known for sharing valuable insights about the area and its hiking trails. As one camper put it, “The campground was so quiet and peaceful,” making it a perfect retreat for relaxation.

For those eager to explore, the nearby creek is great for fishing, and the campground's location allows for easy access to hiking trails and other outdoor activities. Just a short drive from Lee Vining, you can grab supplies or enjoy a meal in town. Whether you're tent camping or bringing an RV, Big Bend Campground is a solid choice for a memorable outdoor experience.

Elevation 7800 feet. 17 campsites on Lee Vining Creek. Near the Tuolumne Meadows entrance of Yosemite National Park. Campsites can accommodate a 30 foot vehicle. Drinking water is available. Vault toilets are available. 14 day stay limit. Each campsite has a bear locker for food storage. This is Bear Country. Please store food properly and don't feed the bears.

Big Bend Campground

The Dyrt is here to help plan your best camping near Lee Vining. Lee Vining is an adventure-filled destination for those who love the outdoorsy camper lifestyle. But it's also great for those who prefer to spend time near the city, exploring and sightseeing. Find the best campgrounds near Lee Vining, CA. Read reviews from campers like you and find your perfect campsite.

Lee Vining

The Best Camping Near Lee Vining, California

Beautiful and serene campground with a good size creek running through it. Bear boxes and toilets available. Great spot with lots of privacy.

Really nice group of campgrounds

Beautiful, clean place to camp.  Great trout fishing all around you!

Beautiful!

The Eastern Sierra entrance to Yosemite National Park is short and sweet. From Hwy 395 it is only 12 miles. The turn off to drive to the front gate begins at a little town called Lee Vining. About 4-5 miles in you come to a campground sign and a road called Poole Power Plant just past the Inyo National Forest sign. You can only turn left. In front of you sits the name of two campsites. Moraine to the left and Big Bend to the right. Take a right and the campground sits about two miles up on a partially paved/dirt road. The road takes you past a beautiful meadow where deer come out at early morning and evening. You will pass another campground called Aspen Campground. This is a wonderful place with over 40 sites. However, Big Bend offers the same amenities with only 17 FC/FS sites. As you reached the unpaved section of road, you drive along Lee Vining Creek. It’s wonderful and full of trout. You can fish along the road there any time. You’ll reach Big Bend when you come to a small waterfall. I say small because I visited Yosemite this time, but it is a pretty good size. As you turn left into the campground you will find that 16 of the 17 sites are next to it within 50 ft of the creek. Fishing is so easy from the campground itself. The campground host was one of the nicest people I have ever met. Try to get to know him and he will tell you if the many things located close to the campground, like Beaver Pond within 20 minutes from the CG and a mountain spring creek with some of the best tasting water you’ll ever find within a 1/4 mile from Big Bend. With only 17 sites, the host is able to keep the bathrooms very clean and constantly check for any problems. He resides across to street from BB and checks at least 4 times a day to make sure all is well. If you drive a mile farther up the dirt road, at the end you will find a working power plant owned by SCE. It’s an old building and is in wonderful condition. Along the way you will find more spots to cast your line in. The campground isn’t that big and if it’s full it can feel crowded. However, the sites are well marked out and most are big enough for a 30’ trailer. For tent camping, it’s perfect! With only a few sites that are all FC/FS, you might find it hard to get in. We got there on a Monday and had about half the sites to choose from. When we left 7 days later, we had a line of 3 campers ready for sites to open up. All in all, this is one of the best CG to stay if you’re planning on going to Yosemite, being only 9 miles from the entrance and 6 miles to a place to get coffee and gas. Lee Vining town is a half mile farther. Along the way, there are so many other places to visit. 

A Secret Place 

Great spot, Spacious between sites, clean toilets, nice places near to walk through.

Great isolated spot near Yosemite 

Next to a nice flowing river/creek with fishing available, tall pine trees with aspen trees hidden in between them are a gem. There are bear boxes which I suggest you use since there are bears around and we seen a couple of them in the campsite while camping, nice spot for you tents, picnic tables, fire pit  and a clean and non smelly vault toilets. You are a lil close to your neighbors but it didn’t bother us non they were all nice. 

Stunning views

By far the nicest of the campsites up Poole Power Plant 


Road. Lovely setting. No cell signal. Closed in October.

Glorious

We stayed here 4 nights in June 2024 and loved it. The campground is the last of the ones along Poole Power Plant Rd and is the best. There are about 16 sites. We arrived on a Sunday afternoon and had the pick of the campground. We stayed in site 3, which is right on Lee Vining Creek. There’s a fire ring, table, and bear locker. Bears are active there and one camp through the campground late on one of the nights we were there. The camp host, Cary, is the best camp host ever. He knows so much about the area, its history, great hikes and things to see, etc., and he’s a pleasure to chat with. The campground was so quiet and peaceful. We will definitely be going back. 

Photos of Big Bend Campground

Real photos from real campers