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View Full Version : Happy Isles->Illilouette



maxthegirl
05-23-2013, 01:15
Does anyone have a clear clue what this involves?
I got my reservation for this...which says that
assuming I'm there on the day of I can get the
permit.
This is all kind of confusing for me as a first
time hiker in an area that needs such specific
permits...
Any info is gratefully requested!

Coffee
05-23-2013, 07:18
The JMT yahoo group has some great resources on alternate trailheads. The Ililouette permit requires a short detour off the JMT the first night but then you can proceed on the trip. It probably ends up adding a day to the JMT thru hike. It was my fallback but I ended up getting a Glacier Point permit instead.

wornoutboots
05-23-2013, 09:25
The JMT yahoo group has some great resources on alternate trailheads. The Ililouette permit requires a short detour off the JMT the first night but then you can proceed on the trip. It probably ends up adding a day to the JMT thru hike. It was my fallback but I ended up getting a Glacier Point permit instead.

Agreed, I believe you'll have to hike @ 8-10 mile to Ililouette, camp, then backtrack that same route the next day.

I did the same thing as far as permits! I plan on camping in the backpackers campsite the night before, day hiking from Happy Isles up to the Glacier Point/JMT trail connection & back to the campground, then shuttling up to Glacier Point the next day, avoiding the heavy crowds & getting some better views form above at the start on the hike. ~Enjoy~

Berserker
05-28-2013, 09:52
I don't remember the exact mileages since I don't have the maps with me at the moment, but basically it's roughly a 4 mile side trip and will likely add a day to the overall hike. The turnoff to Illilouette is something like 3 - 3.5 miles in from the start at Happy Isles, and you'll need to hike roughly 2 miles from there to get to camping/water. Then the next morning you hike the 2 miles back to the JMT and continue on with your trip.

I have the same permit, and am doing the hike in late July. I just added 1 day to my trip to accommodate the first night camping in the Illilouette basin.

Another option since you have a permit is to try and "upgrade" your permit once you are out there when you go to get your permit. As another poster stated go check out the JMT Yahoo group as there is a ton of info on this. I also found where someone had a nice write-up on the Illilouette option in a Word file out there.

Dogwood
05-28-2013, 14:53
If you aren't a purist several JMT add on or alternate TH Northern starting pts are VERY DOABLE and CAN land you a JMT thru-hiking permit faster than beginning at Happy Isles Th which is probably THE MOST USED TH IN ALL OF YOSEMITE VALLEY(Half Dome, Nevada and Vernal falls, those hiking to Tuolomne Meadows, JMTers, etc etc etc). This is why when you apply for your permit, not only at Y NP but other NPs, they ask for secondary or third preference permit agendas. By being a little flexible and having done your homework, as I always am when attempting to obtaining hiking permits at NPs, you can often be hiking the day after you get at NPs with a permit. Illilouotte Falls is one of those LARGELY FORGOTTEN areas in Y NP just as is Sentinel Dome, Pahono and Panorama Trails. Glacier Pt, since it has car access can be a CROWDED MAD HOUSE of people though. And, getting there by car is kind of lengthy and in a round about way on roads. From YV I can hike to GP in about the same time as someone driving there. Personally, when I can add 1 - 1 1/2 days to a JMT thru I opt to start at the Pahona TH near Bridal Veil Falls. No one does that. I've even been told that by several Y NP Rangers. They have looked at me when I told them that's what I wanted to do as I had just invented the wheel. DON'T follow the masses! Get a Y NP/YV trail map in front of you (you can pull up a free nice one through the NPS site) and you'll see where your permit will legally take you.