Yosemite Valley backpackers campground to shrink drastically

[wildhiker]

Looks like there will be very little space this summer in the Yosemite Valley backpackers campground:

https://www.sfgate.com/california-parks ... 287026.php

[balzaccom]

Yep. This is a major problem for a lot of backpackers, who won't be able to get an early start on the trail, won't be able to stay overnight to catch a shuttle on the way out. And remember that you cannot camp within four miles of the roads in Yosemite--that's where your permit starts. Add in the fact that both Tuolumne Meadows and Porcupine Flat campgrounds are closed until at least August, and White Wolf is closed indefinitely, and you have a real lack of camping facilities in the park--especially for Tioga Pass Road.

[bald tires]

It's been a long time since I stayed in the backpackers' campgrounds in the Valley and Tuolumne Meadows. So things could be different now. In my previous experience they never had 100 people in them. The most I ever recall was 20 to 30 people. I think SFgate is just fearmongering. I don't trust much of anything I read in any media these days.

As part of my trip planning for this summer I contacted Yosemite if the store, post office and backpackers campground in Tuolumne Meadows would be open in August. Got a response that they would be open.

So what if you are required to camp 4 miles from Tuolumne Meadows. That's just a hop, skip and a jump to Tuolumne Meadows. A casual walk in the park. Make your camp, walk in to get what you need and walk back to your camp. If you are thru hiking the JMT or the PCT, plan you stops so that Tuolumne Meadows is your lunch stop. No big deal.

A lot of this could be eliminated if you could print your permits out rather than having to pick them up. Depending on your transportation you might not need to stay in the backpackers' campground the night before or the night after your trip ends.

This is not the end of the world.

[Lenier]

It's been a long time since I stayed in the backpackers' campgrounds in the Valley and Tuolumne Meadows. So things could be different now. In my previous experience they never had 100 people in them. The most I ever recall was 20 to 30 people. I think SFgate is just fearmongering. I don't trust much of anything I read in any media these days.

As part of my trip planning for this summer I contacted Yosemite if the store, post office and backpackers campground in Tuolumne Meadows would be open in August. Got a response that they would be open.

So what if you are required to camp 4 miles from Tuolumne Meadows. That's just a hop, skip and a jump to Tuolumne Meadows. A casual walk in the park. Make your camp, walk in to get what you need and walk back to your camp. If you are thru hiking the JMT or the PCT, plan you stops so that Tuolumne Meadows is your lunch stop. No big deal.

A lot of this could be eliminated if you could print your permits out rather than having to pick them up. Depending on your transportation you might not need to stay in the backpackers' campground the night before or the night after your trip ends.

This is not the end of the world.

That's a lot of words to share an opinion that is not only irrelevant (haven't used them in years), but awfully narrow minded - with a touch of gaslighting for dessert!

[Schleppy]

Didn't see a reason listed for the closure. Maintenance?

Yep. This is a major problem for a lot of backpackers, who won't be able to get an early start on the trail...

Yes. As a person with time constraints, a trip out of the valley is best done by rolling up the night before and cowboy camping at the hiker sites.

I bet the closure will encourage stealth camping. That's what I've seen with the Tuolumne camp either being closed or opening late in the season. People sleeping in cars or in the woods nearby the wilderness center waiting for it to open.

In my previous experience they never had 100 people in them. The most I ever recall was 20 to 30 people.

I've not seen them reach capacity, but for sure more than 30 people at them in the summer.

Additionally, Camp 4 is always crowded. The 36 spots allotted to temporarily accommodate backpackers will probably not be enough for peak season. Though rangers are active there, would doubt enforcement will be enough to keep non-backpackers out of those sites when the rest of Camp 4 is packed. Expect people to lay out in them as soon as rangers finish their rounds.

So what if you are required to camp 4 miles from Tuolumne Meadows. That's just a hop, skip and a jump to Tuolumne Meadows.

Perhaps for PCT/JMT hikers, but not a terribly good option for those of us on shorter trips.

A lot of this could be eliminated if you could print your permits out rather than having to pick them up.

The in person pick-ups are a way for YNP to open up slots for walkups. Permits which are not picked up by mid morning become open game. It's also a way for the rangers to ensure novices get some kind of primer on wilderness practices and ethics. With printed permits, there's none of that.

It's not a perfect system, but I appreciate anything that gives walk ups more opportunity to snag a permit.

If I were to change one thing, it would be for them to open the offices a few hours earlier and/or keep them open a few hours later (5am and/or 8pm). Perhaps with a limited crew, though this is not at all likely to happen given the personnel shortage. As is, one can expect a queue at 8am and a group "orientation" as late as 9am. If busy it can wind up being impossible to hit trail before 10am.

[bald tires]

I agree that anything that gives walk ups more opportunity to get a permit is a good thing. SEKI still uses the true walk up permit system. Walk ups are issued on a first come first served basis starting at 1 pm the day before. I plan to do most of my backpacking in the SNF and SEKI in the future. Permits are easier to obtain. Though no backpacker campgrounds in SEKI, you can camp anywhere in the adjacent SNF. Even just by the side of the road in some places. As for stealth camping, been there done that in the past.

I only have one hike left that I want to do in Yosemite. Not a popular trailhead and permits seem to be readily available. Probably do that late August of 2026.

[wildhiker]

It's been a long time since I stayed in the backpackers' campgrounds in the Valley and Tuolumne Meadows. So things could be different now. In my previous experience they never had 100 people in them. The most I ever recall was 20 to 30 people.

I stayed in the Tuolumne Meadows backpackers campground the night before an August trip in 2021. It was jammed! There were well over 100 people there. It's been about two decades since I stayed in the one in Yosemite Valley, but I recall it being pretty crowded even then.

This relocation of the Valley backpackers campground to a much smaller space will be very inconvenient to many people. The key question is why? Why did they decide to do this?

-Phil

[creekfeet]

I agree that anything that gives walk ups more opportunity to get a permit is a good thing. SEKI still uses the true walk up permit system. Walk ups are issued on a first come first served basis starting at 1 pm the day before. I plan to do most of my backpacking in the SNF and SEKI in the future. Permits are easier to obtain. Though no backpacker campgrounds in SEKI, you can camp anywhere in the adjacent SNF. Even just by the side of the road in some places. As for stealth camping, been there done that in the past.

I only have one hike left that I want to do in Yosemite. Not a popular trailhead and permits seem to be readily available. Probably do that late August of 2026.

This is why SEKI will always be the People's Park. The quality of some of the dispersed camping options in the national forest is simply unparalleled, and other than Rae Lakes, permits are never an issue on weekdays for any west side trailhead. While I can't deny it's beauty, I've always found visiting Yosemite with its permits, reservations, lack of good stealth camping options, and crowds to be too stressful. To me it's the sacrificial lamb of the Sierra; we had to ruin it so that Sierra enthusiasts could enjoy all the other wilderness areas undisturbed.

[bald tires]

As I grow older, now 75, and after a 10 year pause to care for my mother in the last years of her life, I have to scale back where I backpack to. Crossing high passes is going to be a thing of my past after this summer. As are heavy pack loads. My base pack without food and water is now down to 20 lbs. Do I really need a spare change of clothes. And what about that snake bite kit my daughter demands that I haul around.

Two more trips into Yosemite. This August and then August of 2026. Then I will be done with Yosemite. Good bye to an old friend that I will probably never see again except in my memories

SEKI and the SNF seem to have lots of less strenuous trails to explore. I shall find out in the years to come.

[jôhorn]

A few days ago I got an email from Yosemite Conservancy Wilderness Operations Staff - Wilderness@yosemite.org - indicating the the backpackers camp was moving to Camp 4.

Today they sent me this:

Update from previous email: We are happy to inform you that Yosemite Valley Backpackers Campground, located behind North Pines, will be open for the season on Friday April 25.