Confused about Yosemite 'Donohue eligible' permits

[Lisina10]

We made a last minute change of itinerary due to Hilary and thought we were all ready to roll, when we got a confusing email from Yosemite. We put in for Mono/Parker Pass permit. We intend to do a loop from there that starts by going to Helen Lake and then over Kuna Crest Saddle at which point we'd hop on the trail to get over Donohue Pass and then hop off trail again near Thousand Island Lakes. The message we got says the following:

"Due to the increasing popularity of the John Muir Trail, a quota is in place for John Muir Trail hikers exiting Yosemite National Park over Donohue Pass. To exit Yosemite National Park over Donohue Pass, you will need to enter from one of the two Donohue Pass Eligible trailheads: Happy Isles->Past LYV (Donohue Pass Eligible) or Lyell Canyon (Donohue Pass Eligible). Please modify your entry point or use the comments section of your reservation to describe a new intended route."

I'm very confused. Are they saying we're not allowed to cross over Donohue if we start from Mono/Parker? That seems silly. Can anyone advise? Thank you!

[grampy]

… I'm very confused. Are they saying we're not allowed to cross over Donohue if we start from Mono/Parker? That seems silly. Can anyone advise? Thank you!

Yes, that is what they are saying.

[CAMERONM]

Yes, resubmit for new permit. If no luck, in the old days you could go to Tuolumne Meadows Ranger station and stand in line early to get a walk-in permit; they used to keep some quantity of them available. Very do-able, just may take an extra day. But call about this, a lot has been changed since pre-covid.

[wildhiker]

Or change your itinerary, as the park suggests. Go over Parker Pass and then Koip Peak Pass, down past Alger Lakes to Gem Lake, and then up Rush Creek to the JMT. That is a pretty spectacular area itself. Or, since you plan to cross Kuna Crest Pass (or Saddle, as you call it) into the Kuna Basin, don't contour all the way over to the JMT, but instead exit via Lost Lakes Pass, down past Lost Lakes, and then contour over to the JMT, which you hit above the Rush Creek crossing. Or try to grab one of the permit reservations for Lyell Canyon (Donohue Pass Eligible) that are released exactly 7 days in advance at 7 am Pacific time. Then you could just take the JMT directly up Lyell Canyon and over Donohue Pass.
-Phil

[rgliebe]

The reason the park did this was because there were backpackers taking away quota for other trails out of Tuolumne Meadows and then doing a loop or u-turn to head out of the park over Donahue Pass. When I crossed over it into Yosemite several years ago, I passed over 100 backpackers that morning that were heading the other direction. Other sections of the JMT between Tuolumne Meadows and Devil's Postpile were much less crowded. I hope that the change they did a few years to reduce the traffic over Donahue Pass has worked, since it looked more like the John Muir Freeway than a trail, reminding me of the popular section out of Happy Isles to Nevada Fall.

In Yosemite, day of departure permits are available if someone doesn't pick up their permit on the day of their trip before 11 am, but odds of that happening for a popular trailhead are pretty low. You will do better checking on recreation.gov for cancellations or one of the "walk-up" permits that become available at 7 am a week before the start date. There are usually a few spots available for a minute or less each day. You have to be logged in before 7 am and hit the refresh page button at the right time.

[JWreno]

I did the complete JMT out of Cottonwood pass in 2008 and 2011. We did it out of Happy Isles in 2014 just to change it up. I prefer the northern direction. It can be very hot hiking up out of Happy Isles. Cottonwood pass trailhead starts at 10,000 feet and it is usually mild temperatures even when it is very hot down at US395.

[FrankPS]

We made a last minute change of itinerary due to Hilary and thought we were all ready to roll, when we got a confusing email from Yosemite. We put in for Mono/Parker Pass permit. We intend to do a loop from there that starts by going to Helen Lake and then over Kuna Crest Saddle at which point we'd hop on the trail to get over Donohue Pass and then hop off trail again near Thousand Island Lakes. The message we got says the following:

"Due to the increasing popularity of the John Muir Trail, a quota is in place for John Muir Trail hikers exiting Yosemite National Park over Donohue Pass. To exit Yosemite National Park over Donohue Pass, you will need to enter from one of the two Donohue Pass Eligible trailheads: Happy Isles->Past LYV (Donohue Pass Eligible) or Lyell Canyon (Donohue Pass Eligible). Please modify your entry point or use the comments section of your reservation to describe a new intended route."

I'm very confused. Are they saying we're not allowed to cross over Donohue if we start from Mono/Parker? That seems silly. Can anyone advise? Thank you!

You only need the Donohue Pass-eligible permit if you are going over the pass in a southbound direction. You do not need any special permission to cross Donohue in a northbound direction. Entering from the Mono/Parker Pass trailhead and exiting Donohue (northbound) is allowed with a Mono/Parker permit.