2022 Wilderness Permits---things are getting better

Looks like it's back to the future for wilderness permits in Yosemite.

The new policy for 2022 manages to avoid some of the pitfalls of the last couple of years. Only 60% of the permits for each trailhead can be reserved, and those only by a lottery system--no more "fastest fingers win the prize." And the remaining 40% are available first-come-first-served to walk ups on the day before.

This is great news. It means more permits will be available to people who really do use them, as opposed to reserving out all the permits to on-line reservations months in advance. Here's what the Yosemite website says:

Wilderness Permit Reservations

You can get a wilderness permit or reservation during three different periods:
Reservations by lottery are available 24 weeks in advance on Recreation.gov.
Reservations not taken by lottery are available on a first-come, first-served basis on Recreation.gov from about 22 weeks in advance until seven days before intended start date.

Permits are available in-person on a first-come, first-served basis at permit issuing stations starting at 11 am one day before intended start date.

Sixty percent of reservations are available by reservation. Forty percent of permits (plus any unused reservations) are available starting one day in advance.

The processing fee is $10 per application. If you receive a wilderness permit, an additional fee of $5 per person applies. These fees are non-refundable and non-transferable.

You can only apply once per weekly lottery. While there isn't an annual limit on the number of confirmed reservations you can have, you can only have six active (i.e., future) reservations at any given time.
Wilderness permits are required all year, but reservations are only available for trips May through October.
The Yosemite Conservancy Wilderness Office processes all permit reservation applications. Its hours are Monday through Friday, 9 am to 4 pm.

And here's a link to the page that gives even more detail: https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/wpres.htm

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balzaccom
only by a lottery system--no more "fastest fingers win the prize."

They already had a lottery system last year; it was run on a daily window instead of weekly.

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Permits are available in-person on a first-come, first-served basis at permit issuing stations starting at 11 am one day before intended start date.

Has that changed? was 11am the usual time? I think the unclaimed, reserved permits come available at 10am the day of, right?

There was a policy of giving priority on walk-up reservations to those people who are waiting at the permit office closest to the trailhead. With nowhere to camp near TM, I'm wondering whether the TM office will still have that priority. It's inconvenient if you get yourself up to TM, but then don't get a walk-up permit. Where do you camp, to try again the next day?

Sadly, they're not issuing permits from Glacier Point Road THs, I guess simply because the road is closed.

Inyo and Stanislaus does not charge fees for walkup. Sierra doesn’t either…
Hmm… do any National forests charge if you do walkup?

I don’t think so.

So, yeah, I’m glad I can do walkup and don’t have to decide 4 days in advance.
But charging the same as rec.gov … sigh.. for walkup… boo!

Anyway, since SEKI started charging long ago… figured it would only be a matter of time…

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60% go by lottery 24 weeks in advance.

The remaining 40% go on sale at recreation.gov exactly at 7AM Pacific time, a week before. Frankly, it is much easier to plan a week out, than to plan 6 months out, especially with all the uncertainties of the past few years.

Remaining or unused permits are available as walk-ups as described earlier.

The most popular trailheads go to the fastest fingers, but there are many other trailheads with available permits well after 7 AM.