3-night backpack in Sept

[bertophillips]

Hi everyone!

What an amazing group - I've just started reading through this as part of my trip research and I love the site!

So... if I can get anyone's help on planning a trip, I'd really appreciate it! Here's my story: I've had a lot of life upheaval and I've decided to get out of town. I have off September 25-28 and want to plunge into the wilderness for a few days. Problem is, I've never been to Yosemite, so I don't really know where to start. Once I have the general trailhead area picked out, I should have no problem planning out a trip, but I wanted to see if anyone had any opinions or favorite spots. Here's what I'm looking for:

1. Want to backpack out for about 3 nights and camp. I would rent equipment, so if anyone has recommendations on that, let me know!
2. Definitely want something a little off the beaten path. I also love trails with some elevation/water
3. I don't mind strenuous hikes and am pretty experienced in the mountains, but am in no need of covering a ton of ground either
4. It would be kind of cool to end up in the Valley and stay at one of the hotels, although not a requirement by any means.
5. I'm flying in (from Brooklyn probably to Fresno?) so I need to figure out where the best place to provision, rent equipment, and hike in without losing too much time is. Does anyone know what kind of busses/vans are available if I want to avoid a car altogether, or if I hike out somewhere different than where I hike in?

Obviously this is a ton of information to ask for, so thank you for any help! If you are ever camping in WNC, I can probably return the favor

[AlmostThere]

The websites you need to visit are the official Yosemite site: nps.org/yose and the DNC site: www.yosemitepark.com
Also YARTS.com

Late September the shuttles and buses go on limited schedules. The hiker bus (under Guided Bus Tours) on the DNC website no longer runs past Sept 14, which limits you to YARTS (weekends only) and the free area-specific shuttles for public trans. Hotel or lodge accommodations are also on the DNC site.

You can still manage a ride from the valley floor up to Tioga Road on YARTS if going on a weekend. Get a permit at the wilderness office in Tuolumne Meadows for the trailhead of choice and hike whichever route you choose, ending at the valley floor where you can shuttle back to your car wherever you left it (ideally trailhead parking or Curry Village where overnight parking is allowed).

Of course, this is not off the beaten path - Yosemite between Tioga Road and the valley floor is pretty trampled. You'll see day hikers often.

You may have the best luck renting from lowergear.com. The REI in Fresno no longer rents a full compliment of gear. Flying into Fresno means you will need to rent a car - there are no shuttles or buses between Fresno and Yosemite. The town you want to fly into to catch the YARTS is Merced or Mammoth Lakes.

[balzaccom]

AT covered a lot of ground with his answer. Here are a few more thoughts;

There will not be as many people in Yosemite in September, particularly the back country, so even the more popular trails won't be as packed as they are in July. By the same token, the weather can be an issue. Make sure you have a solid weather report before you leave the trailhead--a few inches of snow can completely cover a trail, and that will really challenge your navigation skills. It will also be colder--and we had freezing temperatures last weekend; which was August 23rd! Late September can be much, much colder, especially at 10,000 feet.

Three day trips are everywhere in Yosemite---and we have lots of them list on our website under destinations. Bear in mind that if you are coming from Brooklyn, you will need to adapt to both higher altitude and much lower humidity. Stay well hydrated, and take it easy for a day or two to help yourself get acclimated.

Here's my suggestion: If you have never been to Yosemite, get a backpacking permit for a short and relatively easy trip. The permit allows you to camp for one night before, and one night after, your backpacking trip in the backpackers campgrounds (Yosemite Valley or Tuolumne Meadows---if that one is still open). By camping in these campgrounds, you can also enjoy some of the wonderful dayhikes in Yosemite---some of which will have less traffic than some of the more popular backcountry routes.

[bertophillips]

Cool - thanks very much to both of you. Currently looking into these options.

I'll let you know how the planning goes!

[bertophillips]

Hi guys,

So this is what I currently have planned (and have requested permits for). I think it all works out in terms of camping legality, bus schedules, and feasibility, but any input would be appreciated!

Wednesday - Travel from NYC, rent a car from Fresno to get into the Valley, pick up pass around 3-4pm, maybe do a bit of sight-seeing, stay at curry village (?)
Thursday - Up early and head from Happy Isles for an ambitious hike across Cloud's rest (lunch at summit). Camp on the other side of cloud's rest (is this likely to be a dry camp or will I find water?)
Friday - Hike to sunrise and pitch camp (wilderness, not the campsite). Then maybe a jaunt to Tenaya lake. Camp at Sunrise.
Saturday - Hike out via cathedral lakes. Camp either at cathedral lakes or head all the way back up to the tuolumne campsite and camp there.
Sunday - catch the 10am YARTS back down to the valley, drive back to Fresno

Thanks!
bert

[AlmostThere]

One thing that has not been mentioned is elevation issues.

Coming from NYC, to do a 22 mile hike with more than 5000 feet of gain to a peak more than 9,000 feet above sea level does not strike me as a great idea, unless you have been doing a lot of elevation hiking RECENTLY. 10 years ago doesn't count.

Anyone can have elevation sickness at any time. Being jet lagged and tired will make you much more likely to have issues.

I strongly urge you to reconsider this plan.

[bertophillips]

The thing that makes me fairly confident about the elevation is that I came from NYC to Winter Park, CO (9k feet) last winter and did pretty serious skiing with no issues. I hear you that there's a risk though.

In any event, my Happy Isles permits just got denied So I'll need to investigate a few other options anyway...

[AlmostThere]

Last winter isn't recent - last month would be more appropriate for any level of confidence. But I wish you well on whatever you can get. I suspect any climb from the valley floor will leave you breathless and looking for any legal campsite you can get, regardless.

[Dave_Ayers]

Bert asked, "Camp on the other side of cloud's rest (is this likely to be a dry camp or will I find water?)"
Expect water in the tarn along the Cloud's Rest trail about 1 mile south of the Sunrise Lakes/HSC trail junction, at Sunrise Lakes, and at the HSC spigot. Poster's elsewhere on the internet have reported that the small creek shown on maps about 0.6 mile south of the tarn is dry. The tarn is approximately 12 miles from HI and sits at a bit over 8,900 feet, so +1 on the 1st day altitude concern.

Bert: "Friday - Hike to sunrise and pitch camp (wilderness, not the campsite). Then maybe a jaunt to Tenaya lake. Camp at Sunrise."
Assuming you camp at the tarn, it's only about 2 miles to Sunrise Lakes, making for a very short day. Consider camping the 1st night at the JMT/Cloud's Rest trail junction (assuming the small spring fed creek is still flowing there). That way your 1st night's camp is at only ~7200 feet and the 1st and 2nd day mileages would be more even.

[bertophillips]

Dave Ayers - that's a very good plan that addresses some of AT's concerns. I will plan on doing that, and I will definitely be super careful about hydration and workload.

Thank you both for the ideas!

I also just talked to the Wilderness office and they said it should be feasible to get a first-come permit on Wednesday to hike out on Thursday, so I'm crossing my fingers. Wish I had had this plan earlier!

[bertophillips]

So here's my current itinerary. It's about 5-7 miles each day. The elevation gain, while definitely serious, is at least mitigated by being stretched over 2 days for the biggest gain.

WED: 4am pacific time (7am NYC time) fly from NYC, land in Fresno at 11am local time. 12pm get car, arrive in Yosemite Valley 2pm. Get permit for tomorrow. Sight-see. Camp at Curry Village.
THURS: Hike in at Happy Isles. Set camp at junction of John Muir and the Cloud's Rest Trail (hopefully the creek will be wet?). Will there be extra time on this day?
FRI: Hike over clouds rest, lunching on cloud's rest. Hike on to Sunshine Lake. Pitch camp and swim/sleep at lakes.
SAT: Hike via John Muir trail to cathedral lakes. Pitch camp near lower lake. Hike to upper lake. Sleep at lower lake.
SUN: Up early and hike out to Tolumne, where I catch YARTS at 10am. YARTS back to Curry, 12p pick up car and drive to Fresno. 2p Drop car back off. Catch flight around 4p. Arrive around 11p pac time, 2am NYC time.

Excuse the travel-related notes included for myself

[AlmostThere]

There are lakes where camping is not allowed, and no fires above 9600 at any time. But I am sure the ranger will mark the no camping zones for you. Seems to me the lower Sunrise lake does not allow camping.

I suspect it will be chilly swimming. It isn't summer at 8000+ feet.