Camp 4
1Heads up1 fire 12 mi away
We don’t think it should be. Every campground should hold some sites for whoever drives up.Tell your representative →
- Right now
- Taking bookingsSites offered on 7 of the next 30 nights read 15:34 UTC
- A night
- $10–$60Across the site types the agency prices
- Sites
- 681 on recreation.gov
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 14 notices
In the agency’s own words
Camp 4 has returned to reservations. Arrival dates are released one week in advance at 7AM PDT. Camp 4 is a shared site campground , which means six individuals (including children 3 and older) are assigned to each site and all site amenities are shared . As such, this campground is challenging for large groups who all want to camp together. Camp 4 is located in breathtaking Yosemite National Park in Central California's rugged Sierra Nevada Mountain Range at an elevation of 4,000 feet. The site is situated in the heart of Yosemite Valley, an awe-inspiring landscape containing many of the famous features for which Yosemite National Park is known. Keep reading
Recreation
Yosemite's trails, cliffs, roads and rivers provide endless recreational activities. Hiking, biking, rock climbing, fishing, horseback riding, rafting, auto touring, cross-country skiing and photography are all very popular activities within the park. Hiking trails range from the easy paved, two-mile roundtrip walk to Mirror Lake/Meadow, to the grueling but rewarding 14 to 16 mile trek to Half Dome (permit required) . Rafting the Merced River is a fun way to cool down on a summer day when water levels are sufficient. Yosemite Valley also offers numerous guided bus tours, educational programs, museums, ranger-led activities and an art center with workshops.
Facilities
Camp 4 is a shared site campground, which means six individuals (including children 3 and older) are assigned to each site. The campground has a total of 61 sites (only 25 open in winter) which accommodate tents only . Since Camp 4 is a walk-in campground, no vehicles are allowed to enter the campground. You may not sleep in any type of vehicle in the Camp 4 parking lot, including vans. Each site has picnic tables, food storage lockers and fire rings that are shared by all occupants of that site. Restrooms and drinking water are located in the center of the campground. Tent areas are mostly level and most sites have shade. Due to the close proximity of sites and its shared nature, Camp 4 is not considered a quiet campground. Other than Service Animals, pets are not allowed at Camp 4. Parking is available adjacent to the campground (approximately 100-300 yards away). A parking permit is required from spring through fall. You will receive a free parking permit upon check-in.
Natural Features
Yosemite Valley is forested with a diverse mix of California black oak, ponderosa pine, incense-cedar, white fir, and white-leaf manzanita, which offers a pleasant combination of sun and shade. Through the trees, Yosemite's telltale granite cliffs peek through, and the gentle, refreshing Merced River flows nearby. Lottery Information The Camp 4 lottery has ended for the 2022 season. Sites at Camp 4 will be available for per-person reservation beginning Wednesday, September 7 at 7:00 a.m. Pacific time. Contact Info For facility specific information, please call (209) 372-8502.
Charges & Cancellations
Cancellation Policy: Cancellations made 48 hours or more in advance of arrival date will incur a $10 cancellation fee. Cancellations made within 48 hours of arrival date will also lose the first night's camping fee. Change Policy: Only two changes may be made to each reservation. No Show Policy: Reservation holders have until 8:30 a.m. the day following their arrival date to check-in or their camping reservation will become void. Campers should call (209) 372-8502 if they know they will be late. The maximum fee for no shows is $20 and loss of the first night’s camping fee.
What the agency tells you
Reservation holders must go to the campground kiosk to check-in and receive their site assignment and parking pass.
If the ranger has departed for the day, your site assignment will be posted on the kiosk. You must sign in and then return to the kiosk in the morning to get your tent tag and car pass.
Call the campground office at 209-372-8502 ONLY IF you will be MORE than 24 hours late, otherwise you will be considered a no-show and your reservation canceled.
Everything else this campground posts · 11
DO NOT bring more people than you initially stated when you made the reservation. Every person older than two must have a reservation. Any extra people not on your reservation will have to leave.
Proper food storage is mandatory 24 hours a day at Camp 4. No food or scented items allowed in vehicles or tents; you must secure these items in the food storage locker provided at your site. Locker dimensions are 35"Dx43"Wx28"H. Deposit garbage in bear-proof dumpsters.
Carpool if possible; parking is limited!
Checkout is 12:00 p.m. PDT.
Camp 4 is a walk-in campground; vehicles are never permitted inside. You may not sleep in your vehicle in the Camp 4 parking lot; this includes vans.
With the exception of Service Dogs, pets are not allowed at Camp 4. Click here for NPS policy regarding Service Dogs.
Your camping reservation does NOT get you into Yosemite for free. You must pay an additional fee per vehicle at the park entrance or buy a pass ahead of time on recreation.gov.
Help Yosemite be a Zero Landfill park ! Leave excess packaging at home. Bring reusable containers and propane bottles. Recycle!
Don't Move Firewood: Help protect our forests! Prevent the spread of tree-killing pests by obtaining firewood at or near your destination and burning it on-site. Moving firewood is illegal in some states. Visit dontmovefirewood.org to learn more.
Road conditions can change at any time. Call (209) 372-0200 for road and weather conditions inside Yosemite, and 1-800-427-ROAD for conditions outside the park.
Resale or auction of your reservation is prohibited.
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 68 · 62 tent-only
- Hookups
- None
- Accessible sites
- None listed
- Campfires
- Allowed, barring fire bans
Facilities
- Toilets
- Flush Toilets - year round
- Drinking water
- Yes
- Bear boxes
- Yes
- Stay limit
- 7 nights
- recreation.gov facility rule maxStay
Around the campground
- On the water
- Lake, River, Meadow
- Cell signal · Cell signal · Park Service says
- Yes
Full this Saturdayread 15:34 UTC
How full the weekend is nationally.
5 campgrounds have sites open within 30 miles, read 17:04 UTC. See them
OpenBookedNot yet released
The one site on offer is taken this Friday and Saturday. 1 is free on Mon, Oct 19. read 15:34 UTC Why the weekend fills and the week doesn’t
Watch for a cancellation
Watch this campground
One email when a night opens, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We read recreation.gov once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time a site in your window is free for the nights you asked for.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
Tell me when the season opens
Watch for the season to open
One email when the season goes on sale, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We check once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time the agency has that season on sale.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 23
What you actually pay
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rates for this season, $10–$60 a night, plus one $8 recreation.gov reservation fee for the booking. A weekend here means Friday and Saturday night, booked once. Optional charges (an extra vehicle, a second tent, a dump-station fee) are listed separately and aren’t in this total.
“Cancellation Policy: Cancellations made 48 hours or more in advance of arrival date will incur a $10 cancellation fee. The maximum fee for no shows is $20 and loss of the first night’s camping fee.” · this campground’s own no-show terms
Who keeps the booking fee
The agency’s own policy text says the reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee are “retained by the reservation service contractor”, and that a campground concessionaire will decline to refund them because “they did not receive these fees”. Recreation.gov is run under contract by Booz Allen Hamilton. What share of your booking fee the contractor keeps isn’t published in any federal dataset we can read, so we print no number for it. Our reporting on the contract →
How we know this receipt · 6
Open within 30 miles this weekend · 5
Sites the agency is offering this Friday and Saturday that nobody has taken, nearest first. read 17:04 UTC
- Wawona CampgroundYosemite National Park · 12 mi · 1 of 192 site-nights open
- Hodgdon Meadow CampgroundYosemite National Park · 15 mi · 1 of 206 site-nights open
- Railroad Flat CampgroundMother Lode Field Office · 24 mi · 3 of 18 site-nights open
- Recreation PointSierra National Forest · 29 mi · 13 of 14 site-nights open
- Forks Campground (Sierra)Sierra National Forest · 30 mi · 4 of 48 site-nights open
recreation.gov availability, read 15:34 UTC · rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Oct 1, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
68 sites · which ones have room · the site map
The sites, ranked
from 61 mapped sitesAll 68 sites
Toilet distances are OpenStreetMap’s, measured for 61 of the 68 sites listed. A site with no reading is unknown, never far.
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 62 of the 68 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
Measured shade is NLCD Tree Canopy Cover 2024 (USDA Forest Service / MRLC) read at the site’s own coordinate, 27% canopy or more, and only for the sites the agency gave no Shade value. It never changes the agency’s own shaded count beside it.
| A | 37 | tent only nonelectric | 53 ft | 819 ft | 299 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 38 | tent only nonelectric | 50 ft | 827 ft | 324 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 39 | tent only nonelectric | 50 ft | 812 ft | 357 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 40 | tent only nonelectric | 52 ft | 788 ft | 312 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 41 | tent only nonelectric | 53 ft | 757 ft | 262 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 42 | tent only nonelectric | 35 ft | 765 ft | 247 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 43 | tent only nonelectric | 35 ft | 730 ft | 212 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 44 | tent only nonelectric | 49 ft | 674 ft | 184 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 45 | tent only nonelectric | 59 ft | 662 ft | 139 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 46 | tent only nonelectric | 59 ft | 607 ft | 82 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 47 | tent only nonelectric | 49 ft | 631 ft | 171 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 48 | tent only nonelectric | 59 ft | 575 ft | 128 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 49 | tent only nonelectric | 43 ft | 519 ft | 99 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 50 | tent only nonelectric | 27 ft | 482 ft | 94 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 51 | tent only nonelectric | 27 ft | 458 ft | 101 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 52 | tent only nonelectric | 49 ft | 418 ft | 127 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 53 | tent only nonelectric | 62 ft | 374 ft | 171 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 54 | tent only nonelectric | 61 ft | 333 ft | 225 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 55 | tent only nonelectric | 51 ft | 291 ft | 284 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 56 | tent only nonelectric | 54 ft | 261 ft | 336 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 57 | tent only nonelectric | 47 ft | 315 ft | 306 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 58 | tent only nonelectric | 47 ft | 339 ft | 259 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 59 | tent only nonelectric | 55 ft | 404 ft | 174 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 60 | tent only nonelectric | 55 ft | 439 ft | 120 ft | $10–$60 |
| A | 61 | tent only nonelectric | 57 ft | 479 ft | 66 ft | $10–$60 |
| Camp 4 | Scan and Pay 1 | type not stated | ||||
| Camp 4 | Scan and Pay 2 | type not stated | ||||
| Camp 4 | Scan and Pay 3 | type not stated | ||||
| Camp 4 | Scan and Pay 4 | type not stated | ||||
| Camp 4 | Scan and Pay 5 | type not stated | ||||
| Camp 4 | Scan and Pay 6 | type not stated | ||||
| 1 | tent only nonelectric | 54 ft | 988 ft | 236 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 10 | tent only nonelectric | 41 ft | 956 ft | 216 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 11 | tent only nonelectric | 49 ft | 1,054 ft | 145 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 12 | tent only nonelectric | 48 ft | 978 ft | 224 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 13 | tent only nonelectric | 49 ft | 1,076 ft | 171 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 14 | tent only nonelectric | 58 ft | 1,001 ft | 252 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 15 | tent only nonelectric | 51 ft | 1,104 ft | 216 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 16 | tent only nonelectric | 58 ft | 1,027 ft | 284 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 17 | tent only nonelectric | 51 ft | 1,127 ft | 258 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 18 | tent only nonelectric | 58 ft | 1,050 ft | 327 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 19 | tent only nonelectric | 68 ft | 1,193 ft | 286 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 2 | tent only nonelectric | 54 ft | 1,022 ft | 182 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 20 | tent only nonelectric | 68 ft | 1,257 ft | 281 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 21 | tent only nonelectric | 58 ft | 1,173 ft | 217 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 22 | tent only nonelectric | 67 ft | 1,236 ft | 213 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 23 | tent only nonelectric | 58 ft | 1,151 ft | 162 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 24 | tent only nonelectric | 69 ft | 1,217 ft | 145 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 25 | tent only nonelectric | 57 ft | 1,130 ft | 54 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 26 | tent only nonelectric | 64 ft | 1,185 ft | 45 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 27 | tent only nonelectric | 57 ft | 1,111 ft | 33 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 28 | tent only nonelectric | 65 ft | 1,161 ft | 70 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 29 | tent only nonelectric | 59 ft | 1,092 ft | 79 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 3 | tent only nonelectric | 42 ft | 1,017 ft | 144 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 30 | tent only nonelectric | 55 ft | 1,163 ft | 134 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 31 | tent only nonelectric | 59 ft | 1,082 ft | 133 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 32 | tent only nonelectric | 51 ft | 1,159 ft | 187 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 33 | tent only nonelectric | 74 ft | 1,055 ft | 228 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 34 | tent only nonelectric | 51 ft | 1,140 ft | 234 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 35 | tent only nonelectric | 72 ft | 1,037 ft | 312 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 36 | tent only nonelectric | 56 ft | 1,107 ft | 282 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 4 | tent only nonelectric | 51 ft | 932 ft | 216 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 5 | tent only nonelectric | 42 ft | 1,019 ft | 127 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 6 | tent only nonelectric | 51 ft | 934 ft | 211 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 7 | tent only nonelectric | 31 ft | 1,027 ft | 122 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 8 | tent only nonelectric | 41 ft | 936 ft | 219 ft | $10–$60 | |
| 9 | tent only nonelectric | 31 ft | 1,043 ft | 120 ft | $10–$60 | |
| Camp 4 | tent only nonelectric | Accessible Flush Toilets +1 listed | $10–$60 |
25 of 68 listed
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Lower Pines CampgroundYosemite National Park · 2.0 mi
North Pines CampgroundYosemite National Park · 2.1 mi
Upper Pines CampgroundYosemite National Park · 2.3 mi
Porcupine Flat CampgroundYosemite National Park · 5.0 mi
Bridalveil Creek CampgroundYosemite National Park · 5.5 mi
Yosemite Creek CampgroundYosemite National Park · 5.9 miUpon entering Yosemite Valley, turn left onto Sentinel Drive, then left onto Northside Drive. Camp 4 will be on your right after approximately 1.25 miles.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Yosemite Valley, CA
Typical weather
Typical October night 41°F, day 71°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical December night 28°F, below freezing. Bring a bag rated colder than that, and expect ice in the water bottle.
Daily high and lowDays with 0.10 in or more
A normal is the 1991-2020 average for the month, not a forecast: about half of all Julys are colder than the July line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.
The land, and who answers for it
what threatens it · who answers for it · a letter you can send
What threatens this place
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Camp 4 is in California’s 5th congressional district. Its representative, Tom McClintock (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →
Who can change it · 4
Two offices, two different asks. The draft to the agency asks it to set aside a published share of the sites here for whoever drives up. The draft to Congress asks why that share is zero and presses for a published minimum at the campgrounds it funds.
- The office that runs itYosemite National ParkNational Park Service unit
- The member who votes the moneyTom McClintockU.S. Representative · California’s 5th district
- Your senator, on the same appropriationAdam B. SchiffU.S. Senator · California
- Your senator, on the same appropriationAlex PadillaU.S. Senator · California
Read the draft, or change the wording
For the camper who turned up, or tried to book, and couldn’t get in. Every draft is written from this campground’s own record (its agency, its unit, its site count and its own weekend) and the buttons above copy whichever wording is selected here.
Asks the National Park Service to set aside a published share of the sites here for whoever drives up, and to post what that share is.
Subject Hold back a share of sites at Camp 4 for campers who drive up
To the National Park Service, Yosemite National Park: I tried to camp at Camp 4 in California and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 1 of the 68 campsites the agency files at Camp 4, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, the one site recreation.gov was offering there was already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Camp 4 keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m asking for one specific thing: set aside a published share of the sites at Camp 4 as first-come, first-served, and post what that share is so it can be checked. Somebody who drives up has no way in, and no way to find out whether they might have had one. Sent about Camp 4 (Yosemite National Park, California) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Camp 4, Yosemite National Park, California
Dear Tom McClintock, I’m a constituent in California’s 5th district. I tried to camp at Camp 4, Yosemite National Park, California, and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 1 of the 68 campsites the agency files at Camp 4, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, the one site recreation.gov was offering there was already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Camp 4 keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Camp 4. I’m asking you to put it to the National Park Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Camp 4 (Yosemite National Park, California) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Camp 4, Yosemite National Park, California
Dear Adam B. Schiff, I’m a constituent in California. I tried to camp at Camp 4, Yosemite National Park, California, and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 1 of the 68 campsites the agency files at Camp 4, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, the one site recreation.gov was offering there was already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Camp 4 keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Camp 4. I’m asking you to put it to the National Park Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Camp 4 (Yosemite National Park, California) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Camp 4, Yosemite National Park, California
Dear Alex Padilla, I’m a constituent in California. I tried to camp at Camp 4, Yosemite National Park, California, and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 1 of the 68 campsites the agency files at Camp 4, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, the one site recreation.gov was offering there was already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Camp 4 keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Camp 4. I’m asking you to put it to the National Park Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Camp 4 (Yosemite National Park, California) via campanac.com
How we know this · 4
How we know
every fact on this page, and where it came from
“the agency's own site records list "CELL PHONE SERVICE" on 1 of 68 campsites here”