Having never fished either lake, we jumped in the truck one recent day to check ’em out. Driving west on Highway 120 toward Yosemite, we went past Tioga Lake before the park entrance and made it to Tenaya Lake, traveling through Tuolumne Meadows along the way. Oops! Upon arrival, along with Mango the dog, we saw signs everywhere, including a big electric roadwork-type sign flashing, “No Paws Off Pavement,” warning that no dogs are allowed on the trails and beaches. To avoid what could potentially be a federal offense, we headed back to Tioga Lake.

While shore fishing there, we caught a couple of rainbows using Kastmasters and Panther Martins. We then switched to scented floating baits like we use at Gull and June Lakes and started getting rainbows one after another, up to 16 inches. We kept a couple and released the rest.