Parking at Exit TH?

[Bart.T]

Forgive me if this is covered in a FAQ somewhere, but my tentative plan is to hike from Tuloumne and out Happy Isles the 3rd week of July. We have 3 kids, so going downhill is key! We'll probably have 6 days / 5 nights to do this, and if we do, we would spend our first night at Cathedral Lakes, then Sunrise, ______, Merced Lake, Moraine Dome. I think the hike from Sunrise to Merced would be too much for my youngest who is 5. So is there a nice spot to camp between Sunrise and Merced?

Also, can we leave our car at Happy Isles? It seems like it would be a lot easier to start with a shuttle then to have to fetch the car afterwards.

I've heard that the HSCs have some kid friendly activities in the evenings and also that reservations can be made to take meals there, which would be nice to lighten the load a bit.

[balzaccom]

I've done this hike with a bunch of kids, and it's a great one. I seem to remember a campsite near the footbridge over Cathedral Creek... that might be a good spot for you.

No, you can't park at Happy Isles...but you can certainly park in the Valley, and catch your shuttle. And the park buses will take you back to your car easily inside the valley

http://www.backpackthesierra.com/home/

[Wickett]

You could park your car in the backpacker parking lot which is close to happy isles. That is normally where I park.

[Bart.T]

Thanks all!

Good to know. We're really looking forward to the trip. Appreciate the great advice on this forum.