There are several excellent campsites at the first lake in the bowl (I think it is called Lake Helen of Troy on some maps), with an awesome front row seat to Tyndall's east (southeast?) face. I have camped there twice, and while I brought a bear canister, I feel at that elevation they are more helpful for keeping marmots out of your food and giving you a nice stool to sit on. I am sure bears pass through that area on occasion, but you are much less likely to encounter one there as opposed to Anvil Camp. I'd say it is lower risk, but your call. No defined trails once you leave SP, just a number of use trails that seem to fade in and out across sandy slopes to the bowl. I have found some good routes into the bowl towards the center of the ridge which lines the northern side of the bowl. Once in the bowl, I would recommend following the ridge that runs through the center of it as best you can. I have only done the west chute on Williamson with roughly 90% snow cover, so I cannot speak to the existence of any use trails there, but given the slope and substrate, I doubt there is anything with much definition. I saw a kid in Lone Pine this weekend wearing a t-shirt which said "Mt. Williamson, The K2 of the Sierra" and while that may be some slight hyperbole, it still puts every other 14er I have climbed in CA to shame with the exception of a dayhike of the Southwest Ridge of White Mountain Peak. Good luck with your attempt!
