National Parks of the USA tent camping suggestions?

Eloise

I'm traveling with a friend from the east coast to the west coast. Driving. Sharing a tent. We'll have bikes. Would prefer to have shower facilities as it'll be summer & we'll prob. break a sweat. Looking for a literal map of parks to visits and which campsites you would prefer! We'd LOVE to get into the wilderness with the exception of extreme cases that we could get eaten by a bear or something outrageous. Leads to the nest point.... Would like to see Mt. Rushmore, Yellowstone, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, etc. Friend has an aunt in Oklahoma we can stay with for free so, any and every other park in that route we can camp at please let me know! & we're 19 & 20 yrs old & have never done this alone before, or at all... so what could you suggest as far as food? Cooler & grocery stores? Idk about ice though. Please any tips let me know!! We want to see the world and we decided to start at home! :D I know we have to book in advance so that's why I am asking. Hopefully booking campsites later this week! Thanks all!!
Ways to SAVE $$ & spend as little as possible!

& Places to avoid!!

thanksss

Answer
Ahhh... the sun & the moon & stars. You have a big dream with long distances. It is a good idea but you have to take into account time and distance. How long and how far will you want to travel per day and for how many days. You talk east to west trip but the places you want to see are north to south. As for showers the national parks don't offer showers. You can buy most of the equipment you need for less over here. Walmart, Kmart, Campmor.com, Bass Pro Shops. I don't think you are into backpacking and long hiking trips so weight quality is not a trade off. West of the Rockies the gas prices go up a lot. Every town has some place to buy ice and food. As you travel you'll find the stores you like and just about every other exit on the interstate has a Walmart. For Cycling try adventure cycling on the web and railtrail.org. Look into our National Forests for camping and wilderness over the Nat. Parks. State Parks have better camping facilities, showers, beaches. For cycling in Colorado there are two good cycle paths along I 70. Glenwood canyon and Vail Pass. In Idaho/Montana the Hiawatha(sp) rail trail is a wilderness, no roads except the path 18 miles downhill with a shuttle bus at the bottom. Mt. Rushmore is near Custer State Park which is about 10XBetter than the over sized carvings. The whole Yellowstone area inside and outside the park is worth a lifetime. Make a point of seeing the geysers at night hopefully under a full moon with the stars. Wild animals are not a worry. At any and all truck stops and discount stores you can buy a road atlas with campsites listed. Every state, city and county has a website for tourists and camping suggestions. All libraries have internet. Every bank has an ATM. Places to avoid. I'm not a big fan of anything East of the Rockies too crowded. You'll find the west more interesting. As a general rule I keep the gas tank 1/2 full and 2 gallons of water per day, food for three days and let it happen. You'll find a small propane gas stove (any discount store) a must for cooking. You can make a campfire for pleasure at just about all campsites. Also they have picnic tables. You can walk around the campsite and get lots of advice as to gear, and the road ahead.

How much does it cost to take a tent and camp at Yosemite National Park?

kriste_01

My family is wanting to plan our first trip to Yosemite National Park. We are wanting to take a tent and do the whole natural camping thing. How much does it cost do this? I know you can rent lodges but we want to bring our own tent. Where can we stay if we bring our tent? We want to be near the water. So if you have any answers or suggestions, I would gladly appreciate them. Thanks!

Answer
To enter the park for up to a week it is $25. Wawona, Hodgdon Meadows, Crane Flat, Tuolumne Meadows and the the Pines Campgrounds in Yosemite Valley are $18 a night last I looked. Bridalveil Creek, White Wolf are $12 while Tamarack Flat, Yosemite Creek, Porcupine Flat are $8. All of the valley floor sites are by reservations only and normally are booked pretty quickly. I think they start taking them 5 months in advance. Most of the others are first come, first serve. One of my favorites is White Wolf, but most of the others are great too.

I assumed you are talking about car camping rather than backpacking. If you are backpacking and want to be near water, cathedral lakes is a beautiful area (just make sure you are at least 200ft away from any water before setting up camp). Back country permits are required (they can be reserved in advanced or gotten up there, but there is a limit on the number they give out a day) and they are free of cost. Bear cans are required and can be rented for $5 a trip per can. Most of the water in the falls and rivers are dry by now. Yosemite falls normally dries up each year, but this year was drier than normal and the water levels everywhere have been greatly effected by it.

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What campsite is best at Yosemite National Park?

best tent camping near yosemite image

Jacqueline

My family and I are planning a week long camping trip in July/August, but we are not quite sure what site is best? Or what places we should sees. We would also like to do some fishing. We are all in our 20s to 30s and some of us have young children(4-7) children. This will be our first time at Yosemite.

Answer
You need to book a site NOW for a camping trip in July/August. They noramlly sell out the day they start reservations for the month. I'm assuming you are tent camping, so I would reccomend staying in any of the pines campgrounds (north, upper or lower pines) on the valley floor. These are located near the river and are only a short walk/shuttle ride to curry village where there are ranger programs, places to eat and showers. It is also not far from the village where the visitors center, market, and yosemite falls are and, the happy isles nature center is a short shuttle ride as well.

The nature center is a great thing to see if you have kids, especially younger ones. It has some great information on wildlife as well as hands on displays. The visitors center was recently redone and has really interesting displays on the history of the park. Some of these are also geared towards children. The ranger programs are great in the park. They happen almost every evening at several different places on the valley floor and ranger led kids programs are also held most afternoons.

There are some great hikes that can be done, with or without kids. Lower Yosemite Falls is a flat one mile paved loop trail and if you go in July, there should be some water left. Also Vernal and Nevada Falls trail is great because you can go as far as you want and its totally worth it. The people with young kids might only go to the base of Vernal falls, while those without can continue on. Mirror Lake is also a nice trail, about a two mile loop and if you go in the evening you will see more wildlife. Any other questions, feel free to let me know.

Where is the best place in Yosemite to fish and camp?

babeeg11

My family and I will be going camping to Yosemite. We want to camp near a place that we can fish such as a River (preferably). Where is a good campsite that we could stay at near a good fishing place and not to crowded with people? Any ideas???

Answer
The Bridalveil Creek Campground lies along Glacier Point Road, 25 miles from the Yosemite Valley, at an elevation of 7,200 feet. It is open from June through September with sites available on a first come, first served basis. There are 110 sites available, that can accommodate RVs, trailers and tents. Each site contains a picnic table and fire pit. Campground amenities include drinking water, flush toilets and a dump station. Pets are permitted at this site. Campers can enjoy fishing, hiking, backpacking and scenic driving from this location.

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