Just last week the National Park Service announced they will be requiring permits/reservations for all Half Dome climbs in the 2011 season. The announcement follows the release of the Half Dome Trail Visitor Use Monitoring Report that analyzed the visitor numbers from this past summer. Some interesting analysis can be found in the report, the most obvious being the unintended consequence that the weekend/holiday permit requirement had on weekday visits.
Tag Archive: Yosemite National Park
Permits to climb Half Dome will be required weekdays
Last year, the National Park Service initiated a program that required people interested in climbing Half Dome in Yosemite National Park on a weekend to make a free reservation online (but incurred a $1 transaction fee). Next year, hikers will need to make a reservation if they plan to climb on any day of the week.
Lottery for High Sierra Camps in Yosemite extended
With winter (and ski season) just around the corner, not everyone is thinking about planning their next summer vacation. But if you’re hoping to score a stay at the coveted High Sierra Camps in Yosemite National Park next year, you probably are. If you haven’t made your reservations already through the online lottery, you’re in luck. In the past, the deadline for entering you dates into the lottery was November 1, but this year the deadline has been extended to November 20.
Cables coming down for the season at Half Dome
Unless you are a very experienced climber, you’ll have to wait until next year to climb Half Dome in Yosemite National Park. The cables are scheduled to be removed tomorrow (Tuesday, October 11), and will be reinstalled next year in late spring/early summer, depending on weather conditions. (This year, the cables went up June 11).
Cool resource: Chimani Yosemite app
Though not everyone may agree that technology and the outdoors belong together, it does have its benefits (like sharing topo maps and elevation charts in our Trail Reports). If technology is your thing, and you’re making a trip to Yosemite, it’s worth checking out the new Yosemite National Park app from Chimani.
Yosemite holds annual “Facelift” event next week
September 22-26 marks the seventh annual Facelift event in Yosemite National Park. The event is a multi-day, park-wide clean-up program sponsored by the Yosemite Climbing Association and made possible by the many volunteers that participate.
Yosemite National Park developing new plan for Yosemite Valley
All the national parks have their hot-button issue; for Yosemite, it’s Yosemite Valley and the wild and scenic Merced River. Here’s the backstory. Heavy snowmelt in 1997 caused massive floods, turning the slow river into a torrent that surged through the low campgrounds of Yosemite Valley, uprooting trees, destroying bear lockers, sweeping away picnic tables,…