Re: Lower Pines - too many cars; where to park?

A few of us are meeting up in Yosemite and have reserved a campsite in Lower Pines. The site allows for 2 cars. Can we park a 3rd car overnight in Curry Village?

I don't see why not. I don't believe they actually require any sort of permit to be displayed for overnight parking like with vehicles in the campgrounds. Why don't you call up the DNC reservations/information desk and ask? It's (801) 559-4884.

thanks! I called and whoever I ended up speaking to didn't think it would be a problem at all.. they said that finding a spot at curry village may be difficult though..

Be careful where you park in Curry Village. Some of the parking spots are right in the apple orchard that was planted over 100 years ago. I've heard of people coming back to their cars during apple season, and finding that their hoods/roofs were dented from bears climbing on top to get better access to the apples.

http://www.nps.gov/yose/parknews/bear0828.htm

Parking in national park lodging is very different than with private hotels/motels which can legally restrict their parking to guests/visitors only. What we have at Yosemite is all considered federal property. I know at Yosemite Lodge there are specific parking areas that are reserved for guests (may be the same for parts of the Curry Village lots) but the implication is that lots that aren't designated for guests only are free for anyone's use.

When I went with my (now) wife in separate cars, we left her car in Mariposa. Part of it was to avoid paying a separate entrance fee, and the other was because we had serious bear chow left and already checked out of our motel room. I parked my car at the Curry Village day parking area. It's legal to store food in a car during the daytime. I've also had rangers tell me that some high-traffic parking areas aren't popular with bears, although I've seen a ticket for improper overnight "smellables" storage (cleaning solutions in fact) in a vehicle.