Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion Inyo NF Walkup Quotas?

Hey all,

Hoping to get Whitney-adjacent overnight permits for Cottonwood Lakes. Looks like all of reservations are taken with only "W" listed for walkups for the dates I'd like.

I think Inyo NF used to reserve either 10% of a quota or 10 permits for walk-ups...but I can't remember. I've been out of CA for a few years.

Does anyone know for certain? I used to find that info on the TH page on the USFS website but that information doesn't appear to be where it used to.

TIA.

It's still posted online (though I found it througha google search, so I can't speak to the link tree to get there natively):

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd922360.pdf

=)

Yes, the Forest Service, ie, Rec.Gov still holds back a certain amount of permits for walkins, "W."

They releases the walkins approximately 2 weeks prior to the date you want.

Permits are no longer issued by the Forest Service Visitor's Center in Lone Pine. Everything is online.

I used to enjoy driving up and getting a permit for the next day. No more.

Paul

I guess my days of snagging a walk in at 0800 and going up to Thor Peak via LBSL are history.

Because of the walkins going online and sometimes difficult to get, I now hike over Trail Pass. It is a non-quota pass meaning that permits are unlimited. The only caveat is that you cannot head north on the PCT.

I do a loop which includes going down to the Kern, and then up to Wallace Creek and JMT and back out.

My next permit is over Trail Pass down to Little Whitney Meadows. From there I take the trail through Saltlick Meadow to Rocky Lakes Basin. This time, instead of crossing over the ridge down to Siberian Basin, I am going to head over to Funston Lake and then take Siberian Basin to the PCT and out. A little bit of cross-country hiking.

It should be fun.

paul

Yeah! This “online only” business really sucks! No more taking an extra day to drive hundreds of miles to stand in line at 11:00 AM the day before your trip, only to have the quota already filled. What were they thinking?

Thanks all!

I got a canceled permit via Rec.gov but this info is great going forward.

Hey, everyone. I'm still confused about how walkup permits work. I see for today, for example, recreation.gov lists W for Walkup, but you can't click on the W or anywhere else to get one of these online. How does one get a walkup permit? I'm hoping to snag two spots in September for an overnight. If there aren't any permits listed, but a W appears on that day, what do I do to get a walkup permit?

Most walk ups will be reservable on rec.gov 2 weeks before the entry date.

How does that work, WanderingJim? I see Walkups listed for various recreation.gov permits, but there is no way to click on the link or make a reservation.

2 weeks before, they shoudl change into numbers that can be reserved.

At least that was my experience with the Kennedy Meadows permits recently.

I guess Walk-up is kind of an outdated term that doesn't make a whole lot of sense anymore. Maybe they should come up with something new to call it.

Looking at recration.gov I see the # of available permits turns from numbers to W's beyond 2 weeks, which is expected. But I also see a few W's for today's date, I wonder what that means.