USFS · California, Nevada

Inyo National Forest

Inyo National Forest is a United States National Forest covering parts of the eastern Sierra Nevada of California and the White Mountains of California and Nevada. The forest hosts several superlatives, including Mount Whitney, the highest point in the contiguous United States; Boundary Peak, the highest point in Nevada; and the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, which protects the oldest living trees in the world. The forest, encompassing much of the Owens Valley, was established by Theodore Roosevelt as a way of sectioning off land to accommodate the Los Angeles Aqueduct project in 1907, making the Inyo National Forest one of the least wooded forests in the U.S. National Forest system.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest2.1 million acresUSFSCANV77 campgrounds within 10 mi132 Forest Service sites407 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StatesCalifornia, Nevada
Size2.1 million acres
Forest Service code0504, region 05
Center point37.43° N, 118.16° W
Night skyVery dark ground, a faint glow at most (Black Marble reading 23)

Boundary map

2 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Inyo National Forest30°40°50°60°70°80°January: 1.14 inches of precipitationFebruary: 0.89 inches of precipitationMarch: 0.55 inches of precipitationApril: 0.22 inches of precipitationMay: 0.23 inches of precipitationJune: 0.13 inches of precipitationJuly: 0.18 inches of precipitationAugust: 0.07 inches of precipitationSeptember: 0.11 inches of precipitationOctober: 0.35 inches of precipitationNovember: 0.31 inches of precipitationDecember: 0.66 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 39.9°F averageFebruary: 42.9°F averageMarch: 49.2°F averageApril: 55.2°F averageMay: 63.5°F averageJune: 72.5°F averageJuly: 78.2°F averageAugust: 76.0°F averageSeptember: 68.6°F averageOctober: 57.5°F averageNovember: 45.6°F averageDecember: 38.3°F average0 in0.5 in1 in1.5 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Bishop AP, 12 miles from the center point at 4,102 feet, station USW00023157 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 5 inches a year. The station sits about 5,100 feet lower than the center point, so temperatures on the ground run cooler.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

62 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 15 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Aerie Crag Picnic Area and Campground
First-come10 sites
FS · Inside
Agnew Horse Camp
Reservable14 sites
FS · Inside
Agnew Meadows Group Camp
Reservable4 sites
FS · Inside
Aspen Campground
First-come45 sites
FS · Inside
Aspen Group (Inyo)
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Big Bend Campground
First-come17 sites
FS · Inside
Big Pine Canyon
Reservable2 sites
FS · Inside
Big Pine Creek Campground
Reservable30 sites
Show 4 more

65 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 132

The Forest Service lists 132 recreation sites in this forest, among them 65 campgrounds, 14 day hikings, 11 group camps, 9 picnic areas. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 60

The 60 closest to the center point are listed; 72 more are on the Forest Service site.

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 407 named trails in this forest, 1,241 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
PCT - Pacific Crest Trail ↗66.9
Cottonwood Stock ↗19.9
Sawabu Flat Trail ↗18
John Muir ↗14
G-Mammoth/June SM ↗13.5
A-Sawmill Cutoff SM ↗13.3
Coyote Flats to Piper Peak ↗13.2
I-June Lake to Bald Mtn SM ↗12.9
Baker Summit ↗12.3
D-Deadman Summit to Bald Mtn ↗11.2

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas. This trail list was copied from Trailhead Atlas on November 1, 2026 and is copied again on each weekly run. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 407 trails in Inyo National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Monument · Adjacent
Devils Postpile National Monument
National Historic Site · 5 mi
Manzanar National Historic Site
National Parks · 12 mi
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks
National Park · 15 mi
Yosemite National Park
National Register listings within 15 miles · 22 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Guidebooks for Inyo National Forest and California

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Inyo National Forest, California
    United States Forest Service, 2010
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Walkabout Northern California
    Tom Courtney, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Backpacking California
    Wilderness Press, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Inyo National Forest?

2.1 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Inyo National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Inyo National Forest in?

The boundary crosses California and Nevada.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Inyo National Forest?

Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites. Check the forest page for closures. The federal campgrounds within ten miles are listed under Where to camp.

Source: Where to camp

How do I get to Inyo National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 37.434° N, 118.159° W. Devils Postpile National Monument is adjacent. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

Which national parks are near Inyo National Forest?

Devils Postpile National Monument (adjacent), Manzanar National Historic Site (5 mi) and Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (12 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Inyo National Forest?

The National Register has 22 listings within 15 miles, including Wagon Shed and Stable and Tioga Pass Entrance Station.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • Description: Inyo National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.