A yosemite Question?

“I'm flying into San Francisco, but I'll be landing kind of late. i want to drive to the edge of the park and stay the night before. Where is the best place to camp or should I stay in a motel?”

“If you are getting in late, stay at a hotel. There are a few at the base of the entrance, but once you enter that park, there is no place for you to stay. All the convienent campsites will be full. If you do not have a campsite with someone there, I will bet someone will take it as soon as it gets dark. Forget about finding anything near the village.”

“Yosemite is a pretty long way from SFO. How late do you want to drive after a long flight (assumption there)? When you say "edge of the park" we probably need a little more info... do you actually want to drive Tioga Pass at night after a long day & miss the scenery?

Without a copy of your itinerary, I'd be willing to bet that you'll be better off planning on getting a motel somewhere.”

“I'm supposed to land in Oakland at 3:00.”

“Oakland is very different from SFO. May not seem like a big deal on the surface, but that means:
(A) you can get your rental car much faster
(B) you don't have to worry about the possible traffic snafu's on the bridges, you're already in the East Bay
(C) You're already an hour or so closer to Yosemite.”

“Just got back from a 3-day star gazing party at Glacier Point with my grand-daughter.We camped at the Bridalvail Creek campgrounds off Glacier Point Road.It was not crowded, but it is about 30 miles to the valley.There seemed to be a lot of empty spots in the campgrounds in the Valley and a lot of empty Housekeeping Tents.After I got home I tried to make reservations to take the rest of my family, but it was impossible.If you go real early and stand in line,you might get a spot because of cancellations.That is usually only a 1-nighter and you have to try again every day.At 59 I still hike to the top of Half Dome, but I don't have the guts to be stuck without a place to sleep.
Good luck and I hope you enjoy awsome Yosemity.”

“I live right next to OAK and go to Yosemite several times a year. What day of the week are you arriving at 3:00? If it's a weekday, it will take you about 5-6 hours to get to the nearest edge of the park at that time of day, and it might be about the most miserable 5-6 hours of your life. Otherwise, it's about 3-4 hours. There are several National Forest campgrounds along highway 120 within an hour of the park - you could try those, although they will all be full on weekends. Best bet would be to drive out toward the park, stop when you get tired, get a motel room, then get up early and go the rest of the way.”

“Thanks BowlderMan that's about what I was thinking. By the way I will get there on thursday. But I have 20 days:)”