High Sierra Topix

Hi!
I posted this topic yesterday but unfortunately it was deleted together with the two really helpful replies.

Long story short, I'm planning a backpacking trip from Cathedral Lake to Yosemite Valley (3 days / 2 nights) starting August 8th. I don't have a permit so I'll try to get a first come first serve the same day I'm starting my trip. However, considering that it may be hard to obtain, I'm considering some other options as a plan B. Can you please suggest a few alternatives in case I don't get the permit?

Thanks!

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dvenier wrote:I posted this topic yesterday but unfortunately it was deleted together with the two really helpful replies.

Yes, what became of those posts?

mrphil wrote:Yes, what became of those posts?

See http://www.highsierratopix.com/communit ... =2&t=18646

Your original post:

Hi,
This is my first post in this forum and I’d really appreciate your help.
I’m planning a 3 days (2 nights) backpacking trip to Yosemite in two weeks (starting August 8th most probably). My first choice was Cathedral Lakes to Yosemite Little Valley but I think I’ve been a little beat naive thinking that I was going to be able to secure a permit two week before the trip. Having said that, I have two questions: Is it possible to get a permit for the same day of arrival for Cathedral Lake? Can I obtain a permit for any other trail on the same day and which one would you recomend? (That was actually three questions <!-- s:^o --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/eusa_liar.gif" alt=":^o" title="Liar" /><!-- s:^o --> )

Thanks for your help!

And the original replies are posted below

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You'll definitely want to keep track of the fire and smoke status for awhile still.

The way Yosemite's wilderness permit quota system works is, 60% of them are reserved, and 40% of them are issued on a walk-up basis. For Cathedral Lakes specifically, that translates into 15 reserved, 10 walk-up. These numbers are total people, not permits.

If you show up early in the morning, say 5am, at the Tuolumne Meadows wilderness office and get in line, the office opens at 8am for same day permits. Depending on how long the line is, and your place in it, you might be able to secure the permit you want. Then, at 10am, the cancelled or unclaimed permits for that same day are offered. Finally, at 11am, they then begin issuing permits for the following day, which also comes with the privilege of spending one night prior to, and one night immediately after your trip at any of the backpackers camps. In fact, all permits issued allow you to do this. In your case, you'll likely want to use the one at the Tuolumne Meadows campground for convenience.

If your first choice of entry trailheads at Cathedral Lakes is unavailable, but you still want to access the trail system in that area and exit in the valley, there's also Rafferty Creek/Vogelsang, Sunrise, and then also Lyell Canyon/Vogelsang. These will be different sets of trails along most of the way, but ending up in the same place eventually.

For your clarification, LYV isn't an overall end destination, but a rather crowded campground stop (the last one) along the way to an ultimate destination of Yosemite Valley. In this case, you'll want to state your exit as Happy Isles when applying for whichever permit you end up getting. All those I mentioned come with varying degrees of difficulty in some sections, but they should all still keep you within the same 2 night/3 day trip time.

Thanks for the heads up on the smog issue. I definitely keep that in mind. Also I really appreciate your suggestions on alternative trails I’ll put them on my list in case I need a plan B

Thanks everyone for your answers! and thanks for recovering the deleted thread!

I will definitively take a look to those other trails. BTW, I don't necessary need to finish at Yosemite Valley (but I do need to get back to my starting point somehow to get my car), so any other trail suggestion that involves loop, out and back, etcetera, will be very welcome.

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