Info on backpackers camp please. Also Echo Valley.

[nancykarr]

We have a wilderness permit for Glacier to Illilouette on July 10-12. We will need to camp in the backpackers camp in the valley on July 9th, and find our way to the Lodge for the bus to Glacier early morning July 10th. Couple of questions I hope someone will be able to help with.
1. When I look at a map, I do not see where the backpacker camp is. When I called on the phone, the answer was, "I did not know we had one." How close or far away is this from the Yosemite Lodge, where we will pick up the bus? How long will it take to get to the lodge from the campground?
2. We will have two 18 year old boys who will be on their first backpack trip. Will need LOTS of snacks for before and after trip as well as during. I noted that we cannot store any food overnight in our car due to bears. Will we be able to store food in the campground food storage lockers during our hike, or do we need to carry, give or throw away all food before we head up to Glacier?
3. We are thinking of extending the permit one more day to allow flexibility for weather, and whether these teenagers are having a blast or not. We plan on camping the second night at Little Yosemite, and hike halfdome the third morning. Someone mentioned another hike, Echo Valley, in the same area, but I was not able to see it on the map. Where is Echo Valley? It looked like the hike was going up the Merced River Valley on their map.

We are so excited. Took a similar trip in 1982, with my then newlywed husband, and camped up on the top of halfdome then for a few days, and looking forward to sharing this with our son and nephew, hoping to make it a trip they will remember and trigger a lifelong interest in backpacking.

[balzaccom]

The backpackers camp is Camp IV, and yes, it is near Yosemite Lodge--a ten minute walk or so?

And there will be bear boxes at the campground. You should put all of your food, and anything else that might possibly smell like food, into that bear box. Everyone else will be doing the same thing.

If you look at your map, there is a creek that heads north along the banks of Echo Creek, and eventually leads to Catherdral Lakes. That's the trail they are suggesting. Lovely area. Far fewer people than Little Yosemite Valley !

[AlmostThere]

No, it is NOT camp 4. It is the old group camp off the loop in North Pines. You drive out toward Curry, turn left toward the Pines campgrounds, and drive across the river. Turn left into North Pines campground and drive back on the loop. There is a fifteen minute parking to get your gear and hike it on the well-used trail back to the campsites, across the river on a small footbridge. Then you move your vehicle to trailhead parking and store anything extra in the lockers there when you start hiking.

[nancykarr]

So, what I think I am hearing is, treat this camp like the first day of our wilderness trip. Start camp, and take only the food we will be using. Then park the car at a trailhead ( actually where we will exit) that day, storing extra food, etc, in lockers at the trailhead. Then we can go exploring in the valley for the rest of the day. In the morning, pack up our campsite and head on out to Yosemite lodge, with our pack on, ready to go. We plan on getting to the Lodge about 45-60 minutes early to pick up our tickets and eat a last meal near the lodge, before the wilderness camp rations will start.

I am hoping to rent the bearproof cannisters that first day, to have it all packed up by the time we get to Glacier. I think we do need to pick the permit up at Glacier however. Will our wilderness permit reservation letter be sufficient to use the backpacker camp, or do we need to have the actual permit on the 9th also?

[AlmostThere]

You pick up a reserved permit at any wilderness office - the valley office in your case. There's no office at glacier point. There is text on their confirmation letter that indicates it will be sufficient if you are unable to get to the office before the close.

They won't issue a permit until you have the canister. The rentals are available at the wilderness office.

[nancykarr]

Thank you so much for info, will be a lot easier to use the Wilderness Center in the Valley. That will be our first major stop on the way in, except for all the eye gawking and neck craning as we enter the valley for the first time (kids) or first time in 35 years for us.

[bill-e-g]

What I do is park at the Village Store and then walk over to the Wilderness Center to get a permit.
Once at Wilderness Center they will rent you a cannister and also give you a map and explain
where the TH parking is and where the BP campground is and all the other stuff you need to
know about backpacking in Yosemite.
On a map... the BP Campground is Where it Says "Group Camp"
Click here for map
From there walk to the Ahwahnee and catch the bus to Yosemite Lodge.

With your permit you have to camp in the Illiouette Basin on day 1... day 2. LYV as you said.
Echo Valley is here

Echo Valley is gonna be approx 4.5 miles one way from LYV.
If you can add an extra day... do it... and then one day just dayhike towards Echo Valley...
and the other day dayhike up Half Dome.

On your way down... take the JMT

And Have fun

[nancykarr]

Great info. Love thatmap system, will need to have my son play with that for the hike, give him something tekkieto do. I would think. The boys would want to experience the mistt trail, crwded or not.

[Alex]

FYI, in number 3 you mentioned that you might extend your trip one day and hike Half Dome. As far as I know, you need a different Wilderness Permit for Half Dome (Glacier Point one is no good, you need the one for John Muir Trail or Mist Trail and they are not easy to get this time of year). Furthermore, if you try to do Half Dome with your current permit chances are you will be stopped by the rangers at the base of the subdome and asked to present a Half Dome permit (you will need one for the cables). If you don't have it they won't let you through. Just remember, the wilderness permit that you currently hold is no good for hiking Half Dome and you cannot extend it, you have to get a new one!

[bill-e-g]

Alex, where did you get that information? That's not correct in the least.
ANY wilderness permit that routes you near Half Dome on your trip can be
valid for Half Dome.

Looking at the nps website... here it is:
"Backpackers will receive a Half Dome permit with their wilderness permit if their wilderness itinerary
reasonably includes Half Dome. While no additional reservations are necessary, there is now a $5/person fee."

For the original poster... I simply said take the JMT down b/c you are carrying a backpack
and you are going when it is VERY busy. The Mist Trail can get VERY VERY crowded.
I almost always carry my backpack up and down the Mist... but I almost always go when it is
not crowded.

Have fun

[nancykarr]

Thank you Bill-e-g. As far as the mist trail, when we were on it 30 years ago, in early July, I think we met about 10 people. Not many there were interested in going beyond the valley it seemed like. Do you believe it is a safety issue for not going that way with a backpack, too much jostling, too slippery with all the crowds, or just slow and more time consuming?

Alex, We did check on this with the ranger early on, hope this info helps your hikes too, this site is great. Adding the permit for halfdome is automatic if we ask for it when we pick up the entrance permit, got that on my check list to do. The permit controls only where you enter, the very first night camp, and the total number of nights. Since we are backtracking to the Panorama Trail, then JMT, everything is fine. The number of nights can usually be changed fairly easily with the rangers, but the entrance and first night area are very fixed.

[bill-e-g]

Well... the first time I went on the Mist Trail... about 20 years ago now I guess...
right around the super soaker section below Vernal... it was ... take 1 step... wait... take 1 step... wait.
Biggest pain in the rump.
That being said... I nearly always take my backback up and down the entire Mist Trail.
It's just so much quicker.... but I also only do the Mist from about Oct-early June.
Last year went down on Fathers Day... not toooo bad... but...
The main issue may be the section above where you leave where you can see Vernal.
That section is very narrow with large steps. This can be a problem for some shorter
people carrying a fully loaded backpack. One reason why I use hking sticks...
Anyway, go with your plan... and when you are at the top of Vernal... just look down
and you'll see if it's nightmarishly crowded... and if so you can hike back up
500 ft. to Clark Pt. to the JMT and back down.
It prob. won't matter though since you'll have had so much fun and won't want to leave anyway.

Have fun