Q: Overnight parking in Yosemite w/ Inyo permit

[wynnemat]

Hello,
I have a trip coming up from Agnew meadows to Tuolumne, and I've been having difficulty finding info on rules for parking in Tuolumne meadows with an Inyo permit. I would expect there would be no issues with a starting trailhead permit in Yosemite itself, and was wondering if people have experience leaving their car there with a permit starting in Inyo?

Secondly, any info on how busy/competitive the parking is on the Lyell canyon/Dog lake lot? Debating early morning arrival vs later.

Thanks for your time!
Matt

[LMBSGV]

Yosemite does not check the cars parked in the Dog Lake parking area. Also, it's a huge parking lot so there's no problem finding a parking space.

[rgliebe]

This year (since Feb) there are no reservations needed to get into Yosemite, so rangers aren't checking for window tags in cars like the last few years. However, last summer the number of parking spaces in Tuolumne Meadows was halved due to the construction on the septic system and the road. I haven't been there this summer yet, but the project is still ongoing, so I expect the amount of overnight parking to again be insufficient and shared with day visitors. I recommend you come very early in the morning to try to get a space near your trailhead unless you come on a Tuesday or Wednesday. Also there have been very long lines to get into the park this summer that start pretty early in the morning, so if you aren't in the park by 7 am, you may get stuck waiting for a long time to get to the entrance station. I recall when I left the park on the holiday weekend in June, I saw a 5 mile backup from the west 120 entrance waiting to get in around 3 pm. It was only about a 50 car line that morning at 8 am. The east 120 entrance moves even slower due to only one lane/booth, so 50 cars in line at that station would be about a half hour wait, which I have done in years past around 11 am when fewer visitors were coming to the park than this year.

[David_Caruso]

Was just there yesterday and finished a similar hike from Devil's Postpile with some side trips off the JMT. The Wilderness Permit parking lot is huge and had plenty of parking. Might want to park there anyway because of the construction they force you that direction.