Has anyone camped at Paradise before?

[JDCH]

Is this allowed? I'm looking to leave Seattle Thursday night, with a plan of heading up to Muir on Friday AM. Would be nice to get a jump on acclimatizing and spend the night in my car at the parking lot. Is this allowed? Is it enforced? Is there another option?

 

Thanks!

[rob]

I slept at longmire once on the ground behind the ranger station, and nobody seemed to care. if it were me, I'd just do it. Seems unlikely they're going to patrol the parking lot looking for sleeping climbers in their cars.

[obwan]

I have done the same, camping at Longmire - but the problem is , they don't open the gate to the Paradise Rd. until 9am?? or so.

So the next time I camped on the snow field a mile in - no problem, except when it was pissin' rain upon waking and when I drove down to go get a real breakfast and hot coffee, the gate was closed - and got a lecture about staying up there and trying to get down early.

So, the car nap may work - and I don't think it's an issue if you are not climbing above 10,000 ft; of course not my call.

Give the Park a call and see what is acceptable.

[JDCH]

I know that the gate is open for the indefinite future, according to a ranger I played phone tag with. Just not sure about the sleeping part, and wondering if its easier to ask for forgiveness than permission...

 

[Dchromey]

the gate is always open nowadays pending weather conditions. They'll tell you to sleep away from trails and water, but sleep on snow. it is allowed. Camp somewhere below panorama point, the winds above can get nasty outta nowhere

darren

[obwan]

Darren - Thanks for the update, you can tell I haven't been up there in awhile.

[saxybrian]

Don't sleep in the main lot, head to the overnight lot just down the road, and don't 'let them know you're sleeping' in your car. They will ask you to go to a camp ground or 'not do it again' It's technically against their policy to do this as I've been poked at for doing it once by a Ranger at night.

[Whatcomboy]

It's been a couple years but we slept in the back of a pick-up with a canopy at Paradise. Like everyone said, they don't want you to but we were very discrete about it. Didn't have a bunch of gear all spread out. Just parked with all the other rigs, climbed in back and got some zzzz's. Don't know if the altitude helped but that was the plan.

[ScaredSilly]

What ever you do - do not piss in the parking lot. Gotta watch a ranger bust someone for doing that years ago. It was pretty damn funny.