Yosemite's "Peak Hours Plus" Pilot Program

[maverick]

YNP:

We are announcing a pilot “Peak Hours Plus” 2024 vehicle reservation system for park entry on select days between April 13 and October 27, 2024, for those driving into or through Yosemite National Park between 5 am and 4 pm. Reservations will be required as follows:

• April 13 through June 30: A reservation is required from 5 am to 4 pm on Saturdays, Sundays, and on holidays (May 27 and June 19).
• July 1 through August 16: A reservation is required from 5 am to 4 pm daily.
• August 17 through October 27: A reservation is required from 5 am to 4 pm on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays (September 2 and October 14).

Visitors will pick from two types of reservations: Reservations valid for a full day (5 am to 4 pm), or reservations valid for park entry any time after 12 pm. Both reservation types (full day and afternoon entry) are valid for up to three consecutive days, including the arrival date. Visitors with in-park lodging or campground reservations, wilderness or Half Dome permits, or visitors entering the park via YARTS buses and on permitted commercial tours do not need a vehicle reservation.

Reservations will be released beginning at 8 am (PST) on January 5, 2024, for all arrival dates (April 13 to October 27) at https://www.recreation.gov/timed-entry/10086745. Reservations will be available until they sell out. Afternoon entry reservations and additional full day reservations will be released one week in advance (e.g., reservations for a July 30 arrival date will be released on July 23). Learn more: go.nps.gov/reserve.

Driving through the park will require a reservation if entering between 5 am and 4 pm. If you are planning to visit after peak hours, please do not arrive before 4 pm; vehicles blocking roads will be cited.
T
his temporary reservation system will help manage congestion and provide a quality visitor experience. This system will be similar to the 2022 “Peak Hours” system, with the addition of more reservations for afternoon entries. We are experimenting with a few different ideas for this summer as we work on the Visitor Access Management Plan (go.nps.gov/vamp).

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[SNOOOOW]

Thanks for the info Mav. This is such BS. So basically anyone that lives near the park, and decides they wanna visit the park for the day between July 1 - Aug 16, needs to have a reservation 6+ months in advance.

[Blastomatic]

I already see the perverse incentive - people booking trailheads they won't be entering or campsites at which they won't be staying, just so they can get into the park. A finite resource now made even less so.

But this is something I struggle with, our impact there as people. As much as I love Yosemite, I am acutely aware when I'm there that I am part of the problem. No matter the degree to which I LNT or use best practices overall, my presence is still additive to the sum of impact - lessened, but non-zero.

[Iriscaddis]

I'm surprised there aren't more posts about this topic. Perhaps it's too early, and people haven't realized that their summer road trips will be disrupted. It's a dilemma for me – I attribute it to the overwhelming presence of the internet and Facebook narcissists. On the other hand, California's overpopulation and the impact of COVID play a role too. In 2020, travel was restricted, leading people to discover the “outdoors."

Putting jokes aside, there's a part of me that sees potential benefits, but I also despise the situation (what about the valley only). I used to enjoy driving to Toulumne for a day, hiking up the Dana or Lyell fork, indulging in fly fishing, and returning home. Now, it seems nearly impossible. I have a cabin near Yosemite, just an hour away. This influx of people might also divert them to previously untouched areas outside the park; hark - I can see the LA enthusiasts in their $200k Sprinters and Tesla’s parking on the shoulders to whip out their iPhones and vlog (snarky comments, but you get my frustration.) Ugh!

[Wandering Daisy]

Is this a vehicle reservation, not a person reservation requirement? One reservation per vehicle regardless of number of occupants? Is that correct? Does each person have to carry a day-permit with them or is it just a parking permit? Does that mean a person can walk through the entry station without a permit? What about bicycles? If a PCT hiker hitches a ride to the valley from Tuolumne, does he need a day-permit? I am not clear on the details.

Something has to be done about traffic jams in Yosemite Valley, so this may be one experiment. However, why apply it to all park roads? Does it also apply to driving in just to Hetch-Hetchy? Or if you just go in to have lunch at the Wawona Hotel?

Using backpack permits for day-use is a really difficult issue. I am not sure how you could enforce that backpack permits MUST be use for backpacking. Backpackers, myself included, often book and take a short overnight backpack, and then maximize their time to just walk around the Valley. It is totally legal to be walking around the Valley with a backpack permit. But if it is actually easier to get a day-use permit than a backpack permit, then this may not be a big problem.

The campground permit issue is easier - just require physically occupying the site by a set time and let first-come for unoccupied sites. You can drive into the valley after 5PM without a day-permit and try for a first-come campsite. Campsite permits are probably harder to get than day-use, so this also may be a non-issue.

It would be good if someone or organization does a detailed daily count of unoccupied campsites this summer to see if gaming the system is really being done. It really may not be a problem.

[Iriscaddis]

It's one car reservation regardless of the number of people in the vehicle.
As cited above, here's the direct link as well: https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/reservations.htm

[Wandering Daisy]

I am still curious if I were to show up at the entrance, on foot, if I would need a day-use permit? If I were to show up on a bicycle, would I need a day-use permit? Which brings up another question, is hitch-hiking illegal in Yosemite?

[druid]

is hitch-hiking illegal in Yosemite?

According to page 44 (36 CFR §4.31) of https://www.nps.gov/yose/learn/manageme ... endium.pdf, hitchhiking is permitted in most areas of the park.