i 100% agree with this. everyone forgets about those curry village cabins!
i don’t know how to make this more clear- a wilderness permit gets you into the park starting the day before your permit until the day after your permit. in your example you can enter starting on july 3rd
this is answered in #6 in the post here that you are replying to.
100% you will get turned around. There are rangers checking permits in the lines well before the gate where you pay.
everything you need is open. park at curry or 4 mile trailhead depending on where you want to start/end. you can take the valley shuttle between the two if you want to save a couple miles.
if the cables are up, a permit is required, period. https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/halfdome.htm
the park updated the current conditions page on wednesday night with the permit required language that is currently there: “The Half Dome cables are up for the season; they are planned to remain in place through October 15. A permit is required to hike to the top of Half Dome when the cables are up.” https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/conditions.htm
you seem to have gotten away with it without a ranger stopping you but you shouldn’t advocate for others to violate rules also.
unfortunately if the diary dates are correct, this was the very first day the cables were up (and her diary says she used them) this year so she broke the rules.
source: me, i moderate r/yosemite 👋🏻
Glacier Pt Rd has been open since May 14th.
4 mile is not actually a legal wilderness trailhead at all, eg. you will never have a permit that says 4 Mile as the starting trailhead.
You can hike up it to start at GP trailheads so that you can make a full loop to your car in the Valley
Crane Flat opened this week. Your friend is right that the rest of the road (past Crane Flat) is not yet open. Here’s a grid of all the opening dates and reservation timelines from the park’s website.
don’t need them in June during the week (except 6/19 which is a holiday and they are already staying inside the park).
you’re looking for somewhere to sleep before you start your wilderness permit? again, read the email you received for info. https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/bpcamp.htm
there is a hikers bus that goes that direction once a day in the morning and YARTS does it 2x/day in the afternoons. You can google the schedules.
if you’re planning to do this after mid June (when Tioga Rd is likely to be open), many of the Tuolumne Meadows permits will work (and be easier hiking). Lyell Canyon, Rafferty Creek, etc
the length of your trip has no bearing on odds- you just need the permit for your starting date. your success rate depends on the day of the week, how popular the trailhead is, etc
unfortunately you want the most popular permit in the park (because it is the shortest distance to Half Dome and includes a permit for it). Be online 2 weeks in advance and see how it goes
as many nights as your permit is for.
Anything that gets you to Dewey Point. Any of the Pohono trailheads or McGurk.
lodging reservations are transferable.
Read the email you got when you were granted the permit. You are required to sleep at Little Yosemite Valley the first night.
even more exposed to the sun?
Food Melt in Bear Can?
Yosemite