Blauert on Outdoors: Dates, deadlines for planning your excursion

It’s once again time for our seventh annual updated list of opening dates and deadlines for reservations and permits for some of the most popular outdoor (and hard-to-reserve) destinations in Central California.

Yosemite’s campgrounds are managed by the National Park Service, unlike the other accommodations in the park. Seven of the largest campgrounds accept reservations through the National Recreation Reservation System (www.recreation.gov/877-444-6777). You can book up to five months in advance with a new month of reservations opening on the 15th of each month at 7 a.m. Pacific.

Reservations often sell out within a few minutes. The website is recommended because the phone system can be overloaded and online users may book all the sites while phone users are waiting for an operator. For the best luck, have multiple dates and campgrounds listed in advance. The NRRS also handles campground reservations for all other national forests and parks (including cabins and fire lookouts), with reservations available six months in advance.

Yosemite’s hotels, motels, cabins, tent cabins, High Sierra Camps and housekeeping cabins now are operated by the park’s new concessionaire, Aramark. The change is the reason I decided to publish this annual piece a bit earlier this year. Despite the awful name changes that have taken place while the historic names of Yosemite’s lodging facilities are tied up in trademark litigation, nothing substantial has changed in the process of getting a reservation other than a new website address and reservation phone number.

The High Sierra Camps are by far the most competitive, and applications are chosen via a lottery. Lottery applications for 2017 will be accepted from Sept. 1 through Nov. 1. Reservations for all other accommodations and tickets for the Bracebridge Dinner at the hotel formerly known as the Ahwahnee are available one year and one day in advance beginning at 7 a.m. (www.travelyosemite.com✔/888-413-8869). For next Christmas, mark your calendar to call THIS December. As with the NRRS, Internet users have an advantage because they don’t have to wait to speak with an operator.

Sequoia National Park operates its high-elevation backcountry camp at Bearpaw Meadow along the popular High Sierra Trail. Reservations open Jan. 2 at 7 a.m. (www.visitsequoia.com/bearpaw.aspx or call 866-807-3598).

Finding lodging in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks is less challenging than in Yosemite, though your safest bet is to make the reservation as early as possible. As with Yosemite, lodging can be reserved 366 days in advance. Go to www.visitsequoia.com or call 866-807-3598.

Permits to hike to the top of Half Dome are distributed through a lottery with applications accepted March 1-31. About 50 additional permits will be offered for each day the cables are up. There is an application fee ($4.50 Internet/$6.50 phone), plus a fee of $8 per hiker if your permit is granted. For information, go to www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/hdpermits.htm.Applications can be submitted through www.recreation.gov or by calling 877-444-6777. Because this year’s lottery is over, the only option is to try to get a permit on the day you hope to hike. To avoid disappointment, plan your Half Dome hike for next year and hike a Yosemite summit that doesn’t require reservations this year – Clouds Rest and Mount Hoffman are my recommendations for outstanding views.

Permits also are required to hike to the 14,505-foot summit of Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in the United States that isn’t in Alaska. Applications are placed into a lottery because the trail is so popular. Even determined hikers who attempt the 22-mile challenge in a day must have a permit. Inyo National Forest (http://www.fs.usda.gov/inyo/760-873-2400) accepts applications from Feb. 1 through March 15. The cost is $15 per person. As with Half Dome, this probably is a hike to plan for a future year. However, unclaimed reservations will be released for sale at www.recreation.gov on May 1.

Wilderness permits are required for all overnight trips into most wilderness areas. For national forest areas in the Sierra Nevada, and especially for the national parks, advance reservations are strongly recommended. Yosemite permits can be reserved up to 24 weeks in advance by phone, fax or mail (www.nps.gov/yose/phone 209-372-0740/fax 209-372-0739). The reservation fee is $5 plus $5 for each person in the group. Many dates already are filled, but you still can plan a trip for less popular dates or trailheads. A list of open dates and trailheads is available on the website.

Reservations for Sequoia and Kings Canyon permits are accepted starting March 1. A $15 fee is charged (www.nps.gov/seki/559-565-3341). Many dates and trailheads are available this summer. For national forest trailheads, requesting a permit in March or April should guarantee a reservation in areas subject to daily quotas, but National Forests are usually less popular than National Parks, and there are many places where it still is easy to get a permit. Check with each forest’s headquarters for details.

The Emigrant Wilderness in Stanislaus National Forest is a good bet for a last-minute trip. Within National Parks, walk-up permits are set aside for a small number of backpackers each day, but getting one is not guaranteed and advance reservations are advised.

Day hikes usually do not require a permit unless you are hiking in the Desolation Wilderness.

California State Park campground reservations are available at www.reserveamerica.com or by calling 800-444-7275. Reservations can be made seven months in advance and are opened in month-long blocks on the first of each month. Currently, they can be made through Oct. 31. The next block (through Nov. 30) will open May 1 at 8 a.m. Reservations for group walks to see the elephant seals at Ano Nuevo State Park will become available Oct. 20 and can be reserved using the same phone number and website.

This story was originally published April 19, 2016 at 5:42 PM with the headline "Blauert on Outdoors: Dates, deadlines for planning your excursion."