Oh, the news just keeps getting crappier the more research I do.

Crane Flat Campground is really far from Yosemite Valley. It's just past the Tioga Road (which is the road that actually crosses the Sierra's, and leads to the lovely Tuolmne Meadow). I don't want to camp there. Bah.

White Wolf, the closer campground, does not take reservations.

Lower Pines and the other campgrounds in the Valley will not allow for more than 2 adjacent reserved campsites.



I hate to say it, but Yosemite is going to completely suck for Swank Camp.


But if I don't hear anything to the contrary, my plan is to reserve 4 campsites in Lower Pines, in pairs as close to each other as possible.


If you will recall last years' Swank Camp ... there was the hardscrabble no-man's-land between Upper and Lower Camps (or whatever cool nicknames we had for them). If we're lucky, the distance between our two sets of double campsites would be simiilar.


Here's a map of Lower Pines Camground. The best sites, and those that will go most quickly, are the ones on the outer edges of a loop, near the Merced River. From the looks of it, 36, 37, 38 and 39 would be the prime 4 sites.

17, 18, 19, 20 also look good, though farther apart from each other (but perhaps more individually spacious, who knows?)

Have we ever considered just reserving a group site?

Seriously - the rangers leave you alone more, and there's more room to spread out, noise is not generally an issue since you don't have others around, there are less parking restrictions, more bear boxes, super large firepits than can withstand big fires, and usually a central restroom.

For our Pagan group campouts in the Angeles Forest, it rocked. People could still spread out for privacy, but then commune in one central location. We would have (sometimes topless) drum circles that lasted until 5am, with the night ranger joining in at times. And, we even burned a very large wicker man in the firepit once.

that actually sounds kind of fun. would there be enough attendees to qualify for a group site?

But a group site where? It wouldn't be in Yosemite. The Group campground there is horrible.

hmm...I dont have enough diverse recent camping experience to answer that.

The Valley group site was destroyed by the flooding, there are only group sites outside the Valley.

Some places have minimums and others don't. Most don't care, because you pay a flat rate for the site, not per person anyway.

I'm totally cool with staying outside the Valley, if others are.

From the Yosemite website:

There are four group campgrounds in Yosemite: in Wawona, Tuolumne Meadows, Hodgdon Meadow and Bridalveil Creek. The valley group campground was destroyed in the January 1997 flood. A maximum of 30 people are allowed in each group campsite, and check-in/check-out time is noon.

During periods of peak visitation, all group campsites may be booked early. Make reservations for the Wawona and Bridalveil Creek group camps by writing to: Wawona Group Reservations, Wawona District Office, P.O. Box 2027, Yosemite, CA 95389 no sooner than 12 weeks in advance.

I would rather stay outside the valley in a site where we could spread out and still be communal than trying to shoehorn into several small sites.

I am all for a group site thing! Good idea DP.

I'm cool with staying outside the Valley, but not a million miles outside the Valley. It we're going to camp all the way out by the Tioga Road, we might as well stay at Not Afraid's brother's place in Oakhurst. :p


White Wolf is a workable distance outside the Valley. We can take our chances with first-come, first-served, but I don't think that would get us any closer to four adjacent campsites.