We decided to take a trip up to Highland Lakes up over highway 4. If you have not driven highway 4, I recommend a very slow speed. When driving west from the Wolf Creek area, the road is extremely windy and has several blind corners. After you start to climb up to Ebbetts Pass, the first thing you will notice is, the center line disappears and you have a narrower road. Within  a few miles you will gain 2000 feet of elevation. When you reach the top you will be at 8730 ft. A grand viem on both sides of the mountain. Approx 2 miles over the top will be a left turn to Highland Lakes. You can sometimes miss the turn if you're not paying attention. CalTrans now has it marked with a sign that was put up higher on the roadway. The other sign kept getting hit by the snow plows I guess. Now that you're on Highland Lakes road, the road is paved for the first mil and a half, then turns to dirt. Four wheel drive is not necessary if you take it slow. As you venture in, you will pass a couple small camping areas along a small stream. On this road are eight overflow streams that were dry except for one which only had a splash of water in it. Just enough to get your tires wet. Approx 5 miles in you will come to a ranch, please slow down from 20mph to 5 when crossing the property. You will also see free ranged cows all through the area. Or you can just listen for all the bells that are ringing in the forest. Another mile or so past the ranch you will come up to Lower Highland lake. The lake is approx 1/4 of a mile long and is sometimes good fishing for small brook trout. Now one thing I did not say in the beginning. When we left The Carson resort, the temperature was in the low 90's. When we reached Highland Lakes, the temperature was in the low 60's. Make sure to bring a sweatshirt if you're a little sensitive to climate change. There is a small campground area between the lower and upper lake with a permanent structure for bathroom needs. It is a primitive campground and it is highly recommended to bring some rope to put your food stuff up in a tree overnight. The bear population is abundant in the area at certain times of the year. We fished for a couple hours when the thunder clouds started to roll in.

With the bite being slow to nil, we ventured back out. On one steep downhill area, we came upon a truck with an 8 horse trailer coming up. I backed up the hill and gave him the lead way he needed to proceed.  We drove back to our base camp to unwind and venture out to fish the Carson River that evening. Hitting various spots with no luck, we ventured back to camp.