We could always use the (not so) Big Black Dick to clear spaces.

Lisa, can I ask what is UP WITH YOU?


I didn't say I didn't believe anyone. I just asked where and when the info was gotten, because things CHANGE.


I'm not the one who has to chill out. This thread is here and it's about planning. It's 3 months from now, so this thread exists to chat about stuff until then. We can chat about food, bears, mountain lions, hikes, gear .. and also about getting cool riverside campsites with no reservations.


Sheep Creek may not be as popular as Disneyland, but the handful of good campsites may not be handed to us on a platter. They may require a little advance planning and an early arrival. It's true of almost anything desireable in this world.

No one is forcing anyone to get to King's Canyon early in the morning. You don't have to. I'm just suggesting it's advisable, and I'm volunteering to do it.

So why are YOU making a big deal about that? Please chill out your own self.

It's been like that for at least half a century, I don't think it's changed in the few years since I was there last.

If you want to get there early, then get there early. Campsites may be available or they may not. There's really no strategy involved. The Canyon is pretty empty the weekend after Memorial Day and we won't have a problem getting 4 or 5 sites together. If they are the "most" desirable ones, then we'll be lucky. If they are not, there will be plenty of other ones to choose from. There's not much we can do about it.

I've camped at this site probably 10 times and NEVER had a problem getting sites - and the reason I KNOW about the desirable ones is that I was able to get them without a problem.

And, if by some fluke the entire campsite is filled, there are 3 more campsites to choose from.

There's just no reason to be in a frenzy about this.

As far as change goes.....call the ranger station if you have doubts.

Wow! It's like I can already hear us singing "Kumbaya" by the fire!

Well, there's always some stress in hashing out the details. Better now than at Swank Camp, right? :cheers:

True, but there are really no details to hash out. It's not difficult at all - find people to camp with, drive up, get/pay your site, cook your one meal, and hang out with friends. It's really not that difficult of a concept. There's only one thing to really plan - the meal, and that's it. Why we need to add more stress to it is beyond me.

Speaking of which... our team is looking decidedly small. Anybody here not on a team yet? We could really use some more folks...

How about combining with Team Discovery Channel which only has 3 people? They're going up early, and it will also save money by reducing the group down to 4 sites instead of 5. :)

I don't know why there's stress at all.

It's been that way for centuries is, by the way, famous last words.


It was that way for centuries at Yosemite until the day it wasn't. Just as we had done for six or seven years, we got to Lower Pines and found the campsites we liked that people were vacating that day. We made arrangements with them to turn the sites over to us, and then went to the Ranger station to inform them ... as had been done for centuries.

Lo and behold, that was the year the system was changed. There was already a significant line of cars at the Ranger station to be assigned empty sites per the brand new procedure that we did not bother to become aware of because we assumed things would be as they were for centuries. We lost the cool sites by the river.

A few years later, increased popularity resulted in a further change, and sites are now assigned at the time of reservations.

Those were, by the way, the reservations that now sell out in under 4 minutes. Do you suppose the other 464,000 thousand people who want to go camping in Yosemite simply cancel their plans entirely? Or do you think a few of them might go elsewhere in the Sierras, increasing the popularity of other parks and forests?



Sheesh. I have no idea why I am getting grief for trying to work things out in advance so we can have the most pleasant time possible. Is anybody harmed by discussing this?


If you don't happen to agree that those four riverside campsites won't likely be ready and waiting for people who arrive from Los Angeles at 5pm, you can just say so without asserting that I'm somehow freaking out or bringing up absurd subjects like campsites when we should be talking about meals.