FYI, I've been keeping an eye on the permits and grabbed some in early August (my lottery entry won me some late August permits).
A day later, a day earlier permit opened up, but it wouldn't let me get it since I had the next day already (it would have been closer to the weekend, but I didn't want to chance cancelling the permits I had). A question to the site support confirmed that I'd have to cancel and eat the non-refundable fee if I wanted to get another permit on an adjacent date.
So it might not allow you to reserve it if you have an adjacent or same day permit already reserved.
You might need to get one of your other group members to actually buy the additional permits.
You could try to call 1-877-444-6777 when the permits are available on the website to get a human to get the additional permits added manually to your reservation, but that could chance losing the permits to someone else.
BTW, would people think early August would be better than Late August? My experience with the Sierra Nevadas is that afternoon thunderstorms tend to be more likely in late summer (not to mention a hail storm in mid-September in the Yosemite High Country that I once found myself stuck in
).
My lottery entry early picks were early August, but the late August was what I won. I also snagged a reserved campsite for my late August dates, so not sure if I'm going to go for that or shift to the earlier date yet and hope one of the walk-in sites is available.
