I just got off the phone with The Yosemite Conservancy and I'm a bit perplexed by what they told me. My daughter and I are planning a Red Peak Pass loop, starting from Glacier Point. Our itinerary had us at Bunnell Cascade the first night. I was told we must camp in Little Yosemite Valley, the first night, because the area is so heavily impacted. We are free to camp at Bunnell Cascade after the first night.
Although I respect The Park Service's mandate to manage the park, I don't understand why they would concentrate more campers into a highly-impacted area like LYV. I would understand if Bunnell Cascade was off-limits to camping because of the need to preserve it, but that is not the case.
Apparently, the only way to camp at Bunnell the first night is to start from Happy Isles. I'd rather not do that as I don't want to deal with the crowds in the Valley and because I've never been in the Illilouette area.
Any thoughts?