Getting There

The journey to Nelson Lake begins at the Elizabeth Lake Trailhead located at the Tuolumne Meadows Campground in Yosemite National Park.

The Hike

The trail to Nelson Lake starts with a moderate to easy hike to Elizabeth Lake. After two miles of hiking you will reach Elizabeth Lake on the right. Follow the trail along the inlet stream to the south until it ends. From here, pull out your topo map and start walking southward towards the saddle between peak 10294 on the right and peak 11105 on the left. This requires some steep, uphill bushwacking, but it is manageable. When you reach the saddle, follow it southward and down into the valley that holds Nelson Lake. The journey to Nelson Lake is an excellent hike that provides great views.

The Fishing

Nelson Lake offers excellent fishing for Brook Trout in the 9-11 inch range. The action is non-stop and the fish were hardy fighters. I began fishing Nelson Lake by working the north-western shores with terrestrials like grasshoppers. From this side of Nelson Lake I could cast my fly line out beyond the drop off under the water. I landed quite a few fish using grasshoppers with some breaking my line as they jumped out of the water to grab them. After a while, I switched over to a beaded Pheasant Tail Nymph and stripped my line fairly quickly which helped me hook up many more times.

While I worked the northwest shores, Steve worked the south and southeastern shores using spinners like Rooster Tails and Panther Martins. He landed quite a few fish at Nelson Lake using these lures. The overall aggressiveness of the fish at Nelson Lake makes the fishing even more exciting. We found the fishing at Nelson Lake to be better with larger fish and more action than nearby Reymann Lake and Matthes Lake.