North/Upper/Lower Pines camping

Hello!

First time poster Now, this may be a stupid question, so please bear with me! It's been a long time since I've been camping the states. I'm a US expat, in London.

Anyway, we're planning a trip to Yosemite in May and am wondering whether we'd be allowed to have a VW camper and a tent (or, possibly, 2 tents) on the same pitch?

In the UK, pitches tend to be very small, so you often don't have room for more than one "unit" and sometimes it's just not allowed at all.

I know that the NPS site says that 6 people are allowed per pitch, but it doesn't seem to say anywhere whether you can have more than one tent/camper per pitch.

Basically, my father has decided he'd like to accompany us and I think he'd be more comfortable in the van, but we'd like to be together.

Thanks in advance!

You'll definately have room for the VW camper van and a tent. Most sites do have room for two tents as well. I've seen 3 tents at a site, in fact one party was using what was technically my tent space, but I was in a trailer, so I wasn't using it.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/18/2010 05:50AM by hotrod4x5.

That's great news! So, would be book an RV space or a tent space? Does it matter?

It's only a small VW camper van.

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jetlag
That's great news! So, would be book an RV space or a tent space? Does it matter?

It's only a small VW camper van.

A tent space should work. Sites can be viewed at http://yosemitecampsites.com/ before you book.

Yes, all the sites have a parking area, and that is where you put your vehicle. The tent part of your site is actually separate, and like I said, usually big enough for 2 tents.

Thanks so much for your help! What a great forum

In Yosemite there often won't be any defined boundaries between campsites, although there are some boundaries that are well defined by rocks, logs, or bushes. Sometimes you simply need to discuss it nicely with the party next door.

I have camped in other National Park Service campgrounds where some or most campsites were well defined and spaced apart. I've even camped in a few with clearly placed tent areas.

A VW tent camper should easily fit in any campsite in the Pines Campgrounds. They all have paved parking pads big enough for a reasonable sized van.

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y_p_w
In Yosemite there often won't be any defined boundaries between campsites, although there are some boundaries that are well defined by rocks, logs, or bushes. Sometimes you simply need to discuss it nicely with the party next door.

I have camped in other National Park Service campgrounds where some or most campsites were well defined and spaced apart. I've even camped in a few with clearly placed tent areas.

A VW tent camper should easily fit in any campsite in the Pines Campgrounds. They all have paved parking pads big enough for a reasonable sized van.

Discuss it nicely?

So the British approach of shouting, "OI! LAUGHING BOY! I'M CAMPING 'ERE, ALRIGHT?" and then glaring menacingly >:-< is not recommended? Duly noted. lol




(I jest of course, most Brits are lovely, but camping in close quarters can be fraught with tension lol )

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jetlag

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y_p_w
In Yosemite there often won't be any defined boundaries between campsites, although there are some boundaries that are well defined by rocks, logs, or bushes. Sometimes you simply need to discuss it nicely with the party next door.

I have camped in other National Park Service campgrounds where some or most campsites were well defined and spaced apart. I've even camped in a few with clearly placed tent areas.

A VW tent camper should easily fit in any campsite in the Pines Campgrounds. They all have paved parking pads big enough for a reasonable sized van.

Discuss it nicely?

So the British approach of shouting, "OI! LAUGHING BOY! I'M CAMPING 'ERE, ALRIGHT?" and then glaring menacingly >:-< is not recommended? Duly noted. lol




(I jest of course, most Brits are lovely, but camping in close quarters can be fraught with tension lol )

Wow. I never thought of that approach.

I do remember meeting a group of Scots at the Valley Backpackers Campground across the creek from North Pines. I had intended to bring a bottle of Scotch to celebrate the completion of my backpacking trip, but left it at home. I asked them what might have happened had I brought it and (being a gentleman) shared it with them. They said that they probably would have kept the entire campground awake all night with their noise.

Seriously though, the Pines Campgrounds have been cleared of most vegetation (except trees) long ago and are among the most packed campgrounds I've stayed in. You can see in a few pictures that there are blackberry bushes forming an obvious boundary:



However - I'd say most of the campsites sort of blend in with each other, such as this:



I mentioned "ask nicely" because I did a few things into the posted "quiet hours" including operating an electric pump for my air mattress.

Also - it will be somewhat cold during May. You can probably convert from fahrenheit.

http://www.intellicast.com/Local/History.aspx?location=USCA9249

Newbie here myself, but I have a tiny bit of additional advice.

Valley campsites book up in about 3 - 5 minutes of becoming available. If your arrival day for camping is May 1-14, the reservation day is Dec 15. If your arrival day is May 15-31, the reservation day is Jan 15. Practice making reservations before the actual reservation day. On the 15th (of the appropriate month), just before 7 am Pacific Time, set up the reservation you want but don't complete the transaction. As soon as the clock strikes 7, try to get a place. If you fail, have your buddy (who is also set up for a reservation and sitting next to you) make an attempt. Meanwhile, you go thru the Recreation.gov website again to set up a reservation. If your buddy is unsuccessful, then you try again.

And seriously, within three or four minutes, all the Valley campsites are gone.

Yes, I'd heard that about the campsites. Thanks for the advice. I have several friends lined up to all start booking at the same time as it's 3pm here when booking opens. I'll be at work and several colleagues are on board to help!

y_p_w, the low temps are why I'm trying to convince dad to sleep in the van, though he's adamant he wants to camp, despite not having done so for 30 years, and that was in the summer.

The last camping trip my husband and I did was in March this year, in Cumbria, just below Scotland and it was so frosty in the morning, it looked like it had snowed. It was SO cold, the dog slept under the covers!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/22/2010 12:16AM by jetlag.

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jetlag
Yes, I'd heard that about the campsites. Thanks for the advice. I have several friends lined up to all start booking at the same time as it's 3pm here when booking opens. I'll be at work and several colleagues are on board to help!

y_p_w, the low temps are why I'm trying to convince dad to sleep in the van, though he's adamant he wants to camp, despite not having done so for 30 years, and that was in the summer.

The last camping trip my husband and I did was in March this year, in Cumbria, just below Scotland and it was so frosty in the morning, it looked like it had snowed. It was SO cold, the dog slept under the covers!

The valley temperatures don't really get all that cold in May.

Here is a chart showing the high and low air temperatures over the past 720 days (scroll down the page to see the chart):
http://cdec.water.ca.gov/jspplot/jspPlotServlet.jsp?sensor_no=8288&end=11%2F22%2F2010+04%3A05&geom=medium&interval=720&cookies=cdec01
You can use the interactive interrogation feature to view earlier years if you desire.

Only one dog?
(The name of the band "Three Dog Night" came from a reference to how many dogs you needed in bed with you in order to generate enough body heat to stay warm.)

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szalkowski

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jetlag
Yes, I'd heard that about the campsites. Thanks for the advice. I have several friends lined up to all start booking at the same time as it's 3pm here when booking opens. I'll be at work and several colleagues are on board to help!

y_p_w, the low temps are why I'm trying to convince dad to sleep in the van, though he's adamant he wants to camp, despite not having done so for 30 years, and that was in the summer.

The last camping trip my husband and I did was in March this year, in Cumbria, just below Scotland and it was so frosty in the morning, it looked like it had snowed. It was SO cold, the dog slept under the covers!

The valley temperatures don't really get all that cold in May.

Here is a chart showing the high and low air temperatures over the past 720 days (scroll down the page to see the chart):
http://cdec.water.ca.gov/jspplot/jspPlotServlet.jsp?sensor_no=8288&end=11%2F22%2F2010+04%3A05&geom=medium&interval=720&cookies=cdec01
You can use the interactive interrogation feature to view earlier years if you desire.

Only one dog?
(The name of the band "Three Dog Night" came from a reference to how many dogs you needed in bed with you in order to generate enough body heat to stay warm.)

Yeah, and she's only little (a border terrier), but we have two now for more warmth next time! Personally, I think she'll remember it as a 2 human night :lol: