Walk-in overnight wilderness permit availability

My best efforts to schedule an backpacking trip into the Ansel Adams Wilderness got blown out of the water. The flu screwed up my primary date and then other personal obligations blew up the backup reservation.

Does anyone have any advice on getting a permit for one of the popular trailheads Thursday through Sunday? If I show up on a Friday right when the office opens, do I have a very good chance of getting a permit for that day for one of the popular destinations? E.g. Dusy Basin, Ediza/1K Island Lake, Sabrina Basin, etc. I'd hate to drive 6 hours and then not get a decent permit. Oh and this would probably be for a single person. Any advice would be very helpful.

Are they all filled up with reservations? You can call and get a reservation up to a day before, if available - you might get lucky.

I believe walk in permits are handed out starting at 11am for the following day (ie. if you want to hike on saturday, you need to show up at 11am on friday), but I could be wrong. As to whether you have a good chance at one of those popular places, no idea.. but.. there's lots of great places that aren't as popular that you can very likely get a permit for if you are flexible.

You pretty much just kill a day or at least a morning getting a walk in permit the day before your hike or the day of and Thursday would be better. Can't remember either you should call them Mat. Most of the permits I have gotten have been walk in. The last permit I got for Bishop Pass was a walk the same day and the ranger said no but asked how many of you are there "Just me". He gave me a permit right then and there. Didn't really believe that I was going to camp on the summit of Agassiz and said I could camp anywhere near the last lake. If you're first in line it shouldn't be a problem. They recommend for popular spots you get there early and wait a few hours before 11am (Big Pine Canyon, Bishop Pass, and TI Lake). You are better off having a BACK UP SPOT you can go to and make it to in time when or if they say no. You'll have to get some topos and figure that part out. Keep in mind the angle of the sunrise or sunset light will it work for your backdrop? How high will the ridge be that blocks the first light? Will you have the option to shoot sunset and sunrise if there aren't any clouds? Good Luck Mat.

When solo I have virtually always walked in the day of (or the day before) and picked up my permit, no reservations and never had a problem. I always plan on a back-up trailhead, but only once many years ago with two people had to fall back to it. You can also make a reservation 48hrs in advance by phone...this way you can pick up your permit the eve before and hit the trail early (see the forest service page for more into).

Thanks guys. All very useful info. I'm planning to try to find an open reserveable spot, but this isn't the first time I've been in this sort of situation, and so I really wanted to see what other people do and how feasible the walk-in permits are. It sounds do-able, but I just can't count on my #1 trailhead, which is OK.

I've also had the experience where a trailhead quota has been full but they've given one to me anyway since I was solo. So while you may get lucky like that as well, keep backup options as others have said. I do believe, though, that you shouldn't have too much trouble getting a spot on a thursday. Saturday is tough, but for a thursday, I'd feel fairly confident.

You can make a reservation up to 48 hours before your hike, but these are usually unavailable at the popular trailheads. Floris and Steve are right - you should get to the office a few hours before 11 am if you want to secure a permit for the following day.

See more here: http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/inyo/recreation/wild/howto.shtml

As a single hiker, I think you stand a good chance of getting a permit. But you never know... Good luck!

I know this goes against the grain, but I've had such terrible experiences with the forest service regarding permits, that I don't bother with them any longer. I've backpacked most eastern passes, some many times, and did sections of the JM trail as well as cross country routes. I've never been asked for a permit, only a fishing license! Once I couldn't get a permit to go over Bishop pass because all the South Lake trailhead permits were used, and most all of them were for people going to Long Lake, and that ate up the quota, meaning very few folks could head over the pass into Dusy. I tried explaining the bad logic of this to the marmot-brained person at the office in Bishop, but it was a waste of time. I just hit the trail, and saw no one beyond Long Lake. It was a glorious trip.

I've only been asked for a permit once on the river trail not the high trail to TI lake. It was a really good looking ranger girl too, the kind that make you want to become a ranger yourself. Yes, miss her already. That was 3 years ago and haven't been there since. I was also asked for a permit at the trailhead twice in the Hoover wilderness. The fine is like $150 or 125. Less than a speeding ticket. I wonder if that goes on some kind of permit record?

I admit that I have considered doing the same, Jeffrey. It can be inconvenient at times, but I continue to play by the rules since I agree that limiting the number of people into the backcountry is a good idea. Overall, I think the forest service does a good job managing these areas, considering their limited resources.

A couple of weeks ago, I talked to a ranger in Yosemite about this topic - she said that violators are banned from the Park for a year if they are caught without a permit. Not sure how they enforce that, though. We got stopped three times between Yosemite and Mammoth, and then twice between Kearsarge and Whitney.

I hate to put a damper on the party, but...Just a caution, here, everyone. This is a public forum and posts regarding breaking the law are not in keeping with the 'Terms of Use'. If you would like to discuss such topics, please keep them private for the protection of NPN/CANP and yourselves.

I happen to agree with Jason: the permitting system does help spread people out in the back country; not only to limit damage to sensitve areas but also to help preserve the sense of solitude that we all seek when we go up there.

Way back in the early sixties, when permits were not required, some trails were virtual highways of people, trash, and horse turds. The current system is not perfect, but the result is a nicer experience.

All of the rangers I've met have been very nice. And yes, I've been asked to show my permit several times. I'd rather spend the time to get a permit, than be ticketed and forced to leave the area.

The suggestions of when and how to get a permit and having a backup trailhead are excellent.

Kind Regards,

-P

Well, imagine my embarrassment! For the record, the last time I packed in, I did get a permit. Things were not so easy a while ago. If the system is working and not unbearable, I will follow the law. I probably break enough laws already!