June Lake Beach

Located near the town of June Lake, June Lake Beach is a beautiful and large lakefront beach with white sand and some rocky portions.  This beach is located along the northern shoreline of a 275-acre lake (which is also called June Lake) that is in the Eastern Sierra region.  The beach and the lake are surrounded by tall mountains.   Although June Lake Beach does not have lifeguards,  it has a couple of amenities including restrooms and nearby water sports equipment rental facilities (watersports equipment rentals are available during the peak tourist season in the summer).

June Lake Beach offers many fun activities including sunbathing, beachcombing, fishing, swimming, kayaking, canoeing, boating, hiking, snorkelling, windsurfing, paddleboarding, and diving.  The calm and clear water near this beach is ideal for all kinds of swimmers, kayakers, canoeists, and paddle boarders.  However, if you are planning to swim, kayak, canoe, scuba dive, or snorkel near June Lake Beach, we recommend being careful because the water here can be cold.  If you like boating, you can also rent a boat from the nearby June Lake Marina for a leisurely and fun boating and fishing trip across the lake.  However, if you are planning to operate a motor boat in June Lake, keep in mind that the maximum speed limit for motorboats in June Lake is ten miles per hour.  If you like fishing, you can also catch many kinds of trout fish in the water near June Lake including rainbow trout, brown trout, and alpers trout.  If you are planning to fish in the water near June Lake Beach, please follow the local fishing regulations that can be found on the offical website of Mono County and on the website of California Department of Fish and Wildlife.  In addition, it is important to note that the trout fishing season in Mono County is generally between the last Saturday in April through November 15. 

The water near June Lake Beach is a great diving site - June Lake’s clear water makes it ideal for divers who can explore the marine life here.  We recommend this site for divers with some experience because the water here can be deep in some areas.  There is an overlook near June Lake called the June Lake Overlook that offers fantastic views of this lake.  This overlook also has a historical marker detailing an interesting local legend - in the 1930s many gaming machines were installed in local bars and cafes to provide entertainment for employees working on the Mono Basin Project.  While these machines were illegal, their use was very popular until the 1940s, when the Mono Basin project was completed.  While most of the machines were voluntarily removed in the successive years, the last of these slot machines were hurriedly dumped in June Lake by their owners in a single night.  This was done to prevent their discovery during an imminent raid by the local authorities.  Over the years, many divers have attempted to locate these machines.  However, nothing has been found as of now.

Getting to June Lake Beach is easy - the beach is located at the end of June Lake Beach Road, which is easily accessible from United States Highway 395 through California State Route 158 (also known as the June Lake Loop).  There is a parking lot near this beach.  It is important to note that this beach is known to have constant and long-stretching cold weather and hence we recommend wearing layered clothing while visiting this beach.  We also recommend visiting this beach in summer because during winters large parts of the lake are often frozen.

There are many attractions near June Lake Beach.  If you like skiing and snowboarding, June Mountain Ski Area is a ski resort that offers a fun skiing and snowboarding experience.  In addition, this resort also has ski lifts, a gift shop, skiing and snowboarding equipment rental facilities, and a ski school.  Reversed Peak is a mountain peak that can be accessed by a hiking trail known as Reversed Peak Loop Trail.  This mountain peak offers magnificent Instagram-worthy views of the mountainous landscape of Mono County.  If you like firearms, there is a shooting range near June Lake named the June Lake Gun Range – you can use this shooting range to practise your marksmanship. However, please note that this range can get crowded during summer.  Obsidian Dome is a 600 years old mountain which is made up of volcanic glass named obsidian.  This mountain is located in the Inyo National Forest and is a part of a volcanic chain named the Mono-Inyo Craters.  While climbing this mountain can be difficult, there is a hiking trail around its base which offers a magnificent Instagram-worthy view of the surrounding Eastern Sierra landscape.  If you are looking for another attraction near June Lake Beach, Bodie State Historic Park, which is an hour away by car, is a state park that is an important regional historical landmark.  This state park has remnants of a Gold Rush-era ghost town named Bodie that was abandoned by the early 20th century.  Bodie State Historic Park offers an interesting insight into California's rich and vibrant history and you can also see many historical memorabilia and artifacts here which were left by Bodie’s residents when leaving town.  It is important to note that visitors are legally forbidden from removing or collecting any historical artifact from this state park.   

If you get hungry, there are many great restaurants near June Lake Beach.  Eagle’s Landing Restaurant serves delicious gourmet dishes including sandwiches, steaks, seafood, burgers, breakfast dishes, and pasta.  In addition, the restaurant offers excellent views of the rugged Mono County landscape.  Tiger Bar is a restaurant and bar that offers excellent breakfast dishes including eggs, pancakes, burritos, and hash browns.  In addition, this restaurant also serves amazing steaks, sandwiches, burgers, seafood, and Mexican dishes – in addition, the restaurant also has a game area.  If you are looking for another good and affordable restaurant near June Lake Beach, the modestly priced Ohanas 395 serves outstanding Hawaiian-inspired soul food.  Epic Cafe is another modestly priced restaurant that serves delicious sandwiches, salads, soups, and desserts – in addition, the restaurant also serves excellent lunch specials.

If you are looking for a hotel near June Lake Beach, there are many great nearby options.  If you are looking for an upscale hotel, the 4-Star The Westin Monache Resort, Mammoth is a 30-minute drive away and offers many amenities including a restaurant, a fitness center, a pool, a hot tub, a convenience store, complimentary coffee, a gift shop, laundry service, and dry cleaning service.  The 3-Star Double Eagle Resort and Spa offers many amenities including a restaurant, a spa, a gym, a gift shop, and an indoor pool.  A more affordable hotel is the 3-Star June Lake Pine Cottages that offers many amenities including communal patios (including one with a firepit), barbecue areas, a fish cleaning station, an ice machine, and guest laundry facilities.  If you are looking for another good and affordable hotel near June Lake Beach, the modestly priced 2-Star June Lake Motel offers many amenities including barbecue sites, ice machine, picnic tables,  a fish cleaning station, and coin operated laundry facilities.