I'm heading out tomorrow and I see the TM campground is sort of open at this point but can any of you kind folks tell me if the backpackers section is open yet or will I have to take my chances with a first-come first-served site?

Not to waste your time... since I don't know... but I would be surprised if it wasn't open for your business
since Loop A is open... and BP campground is ... ya know... like right there and all.
(and to waste more of your time... the only BP campground that I have every slept in was at HH)
(so I'm no expert on BP campgrounds... but I do know where they are)

Have fun

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Thanks chick-on!
I figure I'll head up and give it a try unless anyone knows for sure that it isn't open, worst comes to worst I'll have to try my luck at White Wolf or Hetch Hetchy.

You actually slept at the hetch hetchy one?

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oakroscoe
You actually slept at the hetch hetchy one?

Many many times. Pre 9/11.

We used to drive up after work... Kiosk would be closed...
Sleep the night... get up and drive to kiosk at 7am... pick up
permit... and be on our way.

Or.. if get there before kiosk closed... night hike to Beehive.

Nowadays... I just get my booty up at 4am and drive to park...
pick up permit... and get a hike-on.

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Another option is that there are lots of undeveloped camp sites in the forest along Evergreen Rd before you reach Camp Mather.

Ok, that actually makes sense. I forgot about the permit & that it didn't used to close at night. I think doing it at night would actually improve that trail to beehive.

That's one of the reasons I love going out of kibbie/Eleanor is that the groveland ranger station will leave the permit in the mailbox after hours.

Yabba Dabba Doo. We've done that a zillion times too..
Pick up permit from Groveland... hike up the switchers in the dark... go out onto the dome... camp.
Next morning ... zig into Kibbie and have the whole weekend at Kibbie to goof around.

Kibbie has become ridonkulously busy recently... so been quite a while since have done that too.

It sure was fan-tab-u-lous having the entire area to ourselves last Christmas though.



Hiked up Kibbie Ridge in the dark a number of times too...

(btw... need to go find that darn marker atop Mercur... argh!)
(that kinda stuff ... sigh... been up there about 4 times )

Have fun

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I think I sent you a pic of that right?


And of course you had to make it to Inferno so I couldn't say I've been to a lake you haven't!

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oakroscoe
I think I sent you a pic of that right?

And of course you had to make it to Inferno so I couldn't say I've been to a lake you haven't!

Yes. Sigh...

And don't let it bother you... there's loads in The Emigrant you got on me.

Maybe this year.... maybe not...

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oakroscoe
You actually slept at the hetch hetchy one?

Friends of mine did that a few weeks ago. Not my cup-o'-char, but it meant they got on the trail early so they could boost all the way up through Tiltill to Vernon.

If you make it in before the gate closes, why not get the permit and hike to beehive like chickon suggested or even just make it to the legal 4 miles out at the top of the switchbacks and get an even better start on the next day to get to Vernon.

I'm planning to spend the night at HH Backpackers Camp later this year...I had reserved the permit for the next day anyway, and figure if I make it before the entry closes (almost guaranteed, unless a suspicious fire screws up all bay area roads as happened today) then I can get an early morning start...I hate heat, and really want to at least get up the long climb before its a major issue, but I'm not committed to making it to the entrance on the drive after work if the worst happens.

More to the point of the original request...the only backpackers camp I've used so far has ben TM's, but not early season. However, I think the 'if A loop is open' guess makes sense, the TM backpackers camp is on a hill above A-loop.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/15/2012 06:43AM by ttilley.

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oakroscoe
You actually slept at the hetch hetchy one?

I spent a night there in 2008 (4 years ago to the day) prior to a Rancheria Falls overnighter. It was convenient, but definitely not awesome. It was our first time to Hetch Hetchy, and we didn't know any better. We slept in, broke camp at 11AM, and headed around the reservoir. It had to be in the upper 90's by the time we made it to Rancheria Falls. Hottest trip ever. You can bet we got up at 5AM the next morning and got the hell out of there before the sun had a chance to get too high in the sky. Wow.




I guess I have to post some other requisite Hetch Hetchy photos while I've got the thing opened up!

The spillway; I think posting pictures of this gets you on the FBI terrorist list. I fully expect a knock on the door tomorrow:



That one dome thingy, and the watery part.. Looking "upstream":



Dangerous rocks - time to scramble!



Requisite cheesy Hetch Hetchy rainbow picture (I spared you the rainbow spillway picture); pretty sure this is Wapama: