Hello

I will be backpacking from Tuloumne meadows to the valley floor this weekend (5/24). However, I noticed that YARTS doesnt operate a shuttle until June. So any suggestions on how I can park my car in the valley floor and make it to my trailhead? I searched the internet but couldnt find anyone else who had been in this situation.

Advice is much appreicated - thanks

-Sri

Hitch-hike. It's probably easier if you park at the gas station at the SR120/SR140 junction.

> I searched the internet but couldn't find anyone else who had been in this situation.

I've both hitched out of Yosemite Valley and picked up hitchhikers out of the Valley before. Make a sign that says where you are going and look like a backpacker and its pretty easy to get a ride.

wether you park at the gas station, as Mr. Burd suggests or you park in the Happy Isles Long Term parking lot . . . you're gonna have to make a trek through the valley on the shuttle and then a little hiking to get wherever you're going . . .

Park in the Happy Isles Long Term Lot and you have the advantage at the end of your trip, of your car being right there––but then you have to take the free shuttle bus (and I can't access the PDF's at the moment ) and then thumb in order to get to the 120/140 junction––where the gas station is and your real thumb up to TM begins.

I'll defer to Mr. Burd's knowledge regarding parking at the gas station––I suppose you could,but I'd research that one first and of course, if you park there, then when you come down all beat to hell from the endless day of downhill and step into the sea of screaming and blindingly clean valley tourists, you're going to then have to make that trek all the way back to the gas station. ugh.

You could try calling the Crane Flat Gas station to see if parking there is cool : 209-372-2742.

. . . and as mentioned . . . if you've got a backpack, thumbing through Yosemite is fairly easy and if you're on 120, well . . . "TM" works real well in BIG BLACK PRINT.

> Park in the Happy Isles Long Term Lot and you have the advantage at the end of your tri

I'm agreement on this- this has the big advantage of being right at the end of your route. I'm never in the mood to deal with transportation logistics at the end of a route when all I want is a shower.

For the same reason I'll always try to do the hitching/bus travel/etc at the start of my outing and leave my car at my exit point.
Far easier to hitch a ride when you don't look/smell like 2 weeks on the trail.

thank you all - I'm very grateful for your advise

Bob Burd wrote:Hitch-hike.

Hitch hiking in Yosemite is Class V