Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Yosemite National Park

Tuolumne Meadows Campground is located in Yosemite National Park in the Central California's Sierra Nevada Mountain. Its elevation at 8000 plus feet gives you the chance to see beautiful scenery.

Had a great weekend going to Yosemite national park, either way if the temperature was low

So if you didn't know, to camp inside Yosemite National Park, you must book your reservation a year in advance or take a chance on trying to get one of the first come first serve sites. The problem is your only a few hours from Sacramento and 4 or 5 hours from LA, so the locals have an advantage on getting the first come first serve sites. I live in Iowa, and if you are like me, planning a trip a year in advance, with kids school schedules and activities, and to travel 1,700 miles to Yosemite National Park is impossible. So a good alternative is booking the Mariposa KOA about thirty miles from the Arch Rock entrance to Yosemite National Park. If you don't want to drive into the park there is even a bus that passes the entrance to the campground. It costs about the same as a Motel 6, but it is clean and has a lot of amenities including a pool, fudge shop, and an ice cream shop. It has tent sites and RV sites, and they are separated so if you are tenting you don't have to stare at camper trailers and RVs. I give it a four out of five because you still have to drive thirty miles to get to the park and the shower house isn't very large so you generally have to wait in a twenty minute line to take a shower. Bottomline, if you are traveling from a long distance I highly recommend Mariposa KOA to visit Yosemite National Park.

We stayed here for one night to stage before entering Yosemite National Park. The Stanislaus National Forest. They have a great ranger station with detailed maps of the logging roads and campsites. We camped just on the logging road next to Diamond O. The trees burned a few years back during the big Yosemite Fire. So, it not the most scenic site but we had the area to ourselves and we’re happy to get a place so close to Yosemite. No facilities here and you need a permit from the ranger station for some of these sites. The area is popular for dispersed campers in waiting to get a spot in Yosemite National Park.

With a pool, petting zoo, a corral where they have a fire and s'mores followed by a movie, this is a great place to camp with the kids.

The showers are free and usually clean although on Saturday evening the campground was full and the bathrooms were dirty and out of TP.

There are tent sites, RV sites and cabins so something for everyone.

There were A LOT of stray cats on the property which kind of drove our dog crazy. But at least the campground is pet friendly.

If you plan to go into Yosemite NP, it's a long drive so plan accordingly. Our family really enjoys Rainbow Pools and Yosemite Pine's proximity to Rainbow Pools is part of why we stay here. The kids can jump and swim there and that's all they really want to do anyway so being close to that is key for us. So many of the places in the park where we used to get in the water do not allow swimming anymore.

The site is right outside Yosemite National park. It is perfect for car camping as it is a large parking lot. There is a dumpster and it’s fantastic for viewing the stars.

Very great campsite located right in the heart of Yosemite National Park. Hard to get reservations unless you plan way ahead which we do every year but we'll work it. Right on a creek you can swim in, trails galore, it's Yosemite!

As Yosemite is a very well visited National Park, the Yosemite Creek bears an amazing view of the massive granite wonders and the nature that fills the Yosemite valley, a beauty within itself! As an overall experience, I give the Yosemite Creek, and the Yosemite National Park overall amazing experience and would highly recommend it!

This was a great jumping off point to explore Yosemite National Park. Be sure to use the bear boxes (there are bears) and clean up after accessing food. I noticed plenty of people left food and food wrappers out at night or while they were away from camp. Poor form, folks.

Not a lot of shade here, so the sun can be intense in the summer.

Near the South entrance to Yosemite National Park, SUMMERDALE campground is a small, quiet, well maintained campground that requires advanced reservations. The sites are spread out in a little valley with a small stream called Big Creek flowing through it. Nice, clean pit toilets and drinking water available. A short drive from Yosemite Valley makes it a good place to base day trips into the park and great, quiet place to spend the night.

I stayed in the group camp part of this campground, which was right by a clean pit toilet and a short, slightly uphill walk to the bathrooms that had running water.  This is on the outer part of Yosemite National Park, so it's not as crowded as Yosemite Valley.  There are hiking trails around.  When I was there, there were warnings about a mountain lion being spotted in the campground, so just be aware.

Small (10 sites), quiet and convenient location, about 15 miles from the northwest Yosemite National Park boundary. It is cheap - so no frills, vaulted toilets, picnic table, fire ring, that's about it. You may find it charming (or not) but prepare to wake up to a parade of cowbells every day. They return in the evening. Laughed so hard I fell out of my hammock. The cow sounds seem to echo at night.

What a great place to stay and enjoy this magnificent National Park. Reservation fill up quickly and you can see why, as the (closest town) [Mariposa, CA](http://Mariposa, CA https://www.google.com/maps/place/Mariposa,+CA+95338/@37.6138031,-119.9096238,11z/data=!4m21!1m15!4m14!1m6!1m2!1s0x8096b0aac3ff60c5:0xb0ab002eb339644e!2sMariposa,+CA!2m2!1d-119.9662843!2d37.4849377!1m6!1m2!1s0x8096f24a1bc3a93d:0xbda9e022a9515b5a!2sUpper+Pines+Campground,+Yosemite+National+Park,+9024+Southside+Dr,+YOSEMITE+NATIONAL+PARK,+CA+95389!2m2!1d-119.56555!2d37.7391319!3m4!1s0x8096b0aac3ff60c5:0xb0ab002eb339644e!8m2!3d37.4849377!4d-119.9662843) is about an 1.5 hours away. You can reserve camping up to 5 months in advance for $26. This camp ground is close to the (general store) Yosemite Village, Half dome trail head and a river runs along side. The sites are small with 2 parking spaces, the bathroom were well maintained.

I really enjoyed staying here. The view you wake up to is priceless. If you get a chance to dine in the park the [The Majestic Yosemite Hotel Dining Room](http://The Majestic Yosemite Hotelhttp://www.travelyosemite.com/lodging/the-majestic-yosemite-hotel/ Dining Room) has delicious but $$ food.

[Valley Camp ground Map](http://Valley Camp ground Maphttps://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/upload/pinescombined.pdf)

Each campsite contains a fire ring, picnic table, and a food locker and is near a bathroom with drinking water and flushing toilets.

We stayed here in May 2019 in a car with a roof top tent (tepui). Since it was early in the season the campground was pretty empty. The sites by the river are nice for the river noise to fall asleep too, but as we later found out they also flood when it rains. Overall, I think this is a good alternative if you can't get any camping in the park. Pros:

• Available when Yosemite National Park isn't
• Close to the park
• Has wifi and hot showers Cons:
• Expensive
• Bathrooms could use some work

Yosemite Lakes RV Resort was a gem of a campground. It was like we were nestled in the heart of Yosemite Valley but we were actually over an hour away from it. A taste of what Yosemite National Park has to offer, if you will. They offer the best riverfront camping spots. The tranquil waters were a pleasant surprise to our trip. We have been to Yosemite many times but have never experienced it quite like this before. I recommend Yosemite Lakes RV Resort to anyone looking to take a relaxing break from lifes hustle and bustle.

Five couples took over the far end of Obsidian Campground to celebrate my wife's birthday for a couple nights.  The elevation in this part of the Sierra's is a great way to beat the August heat.  We were at sites 12, 13 and 14 with our custom van, a Sportsmobile, trailer, fifth wheel, and a tent.  Campground had one other campsite occupied, so basically just us.  Easy access two miles off US 395 by gravel road.   It is know as an infrequently utilized destination.

The trailhead for Molybdenite Creek is just past site 14.  One day we took this trail about 2-1/2 miles up a canyon that leads into the Hoover Wilderness on the North East boundary of Yosemite National Park.  The next day we did the 1 mile hike to Emma Lake, also in the Hoover Wilderness.  Take a vehicle from the campground up the road another 2 miles to the Emma Lake trailhead.  See photos.

Yosemite is one of my very favorite places in The world, but I have yet to camp in Yosemite Valley. One, the valley campgrounds fill up IMMEDIATELY when registration opens in March of each year, and two, I do prefer to be in quieter campgrounds with more space in and between sites. Wawona is within the gates of Yosemite National Park, and is about 25 minutes away from the valley floor - it’s not too far of a drive, but it’s on the windy mountainous Highway 41 into Yosemite.

Wawona is located next to the Merced River, so I chose a riverside campsite. The river was by no means at the heels of the site, but it was less than 50 yards away at the time we were there, and we were there in drought conditions.

Wawona has nice clean bathrooms and we had our own bear bin in our campsite. Camping amongst the trees and next to the Merced was gorgeous and peaceful, and I recommend it it anyone who does not want to camp like sardines in the Yosemite Valley.

CAUTION: be extremely aware of bears while camping in Yosemite National Park! Each campsite in Wawona has a bear bin - USE YOUR BEAR BIN! Bears are known to break into cars to snack from coolers or any food or toiletries are left out. The bear bins are quite large, so coolers do fit inside - bears can still smell food in coolers inside of cars, and apparently recognize a cooler when they peak into your car windows. If you have to leave your cooler in the car, it is suggested that you cover it up with towels or gear to hide it from site. On the same note, do not leave any of your toiletries or snacks inside the tent with you. In general it seems that the rangers seem to have good control over the bears that have been tagged and are constantly monitored, but not all bears are tagged, and even the tagged bears will make their way into Yosemite campgrounds. Be smart and safe in bear country!

CAMPSITE SPECS

Fees: $26/night peak ($18/night non-peak)

Plumbed Toilets: Yes

Drinking Water: Yes

Showers: No

Picnic Table: Yes

Firepit: Yes

Cooking Grate: Yes

Shade: Yes

Cell Service: No

Animal Bins/Food lockers: Yes

Trash: Yes

Campground Review

Although it requires one heck of a climb to get to, Sunrise Lakes might be my favorite campsite in Yosemite National Park. The Sunrise Lakes area has tons of dispersed, semi-established spots along the shore for you to lay out your tent footprint and call home. One of my favorite things about Sunrise Lakes is not only the lake views but also the ability to have a campfire. With wildfires being a very real and reasonable concern in Yosemite NP, campfires have been banned in a lot of the backcountry but Sunrise Lakes luckily falls within the safe zone (just be sure to use an established fire pit). Also, the proximity to fresh water is an added bonus, as you do not need to carry up a ton of water with you for the night. Of note, there was a marsh-y waterlogged area at the lake’s east end that I can see being quite buggy depending on the time of year. We luckily did not encounter too many pests during our time of stay but don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get the chance to test out products from time to time and I recently brought my Qaras Waterproof Soft Shell Jacket made by Mishmi Takin into the backcountry with me while backpacking in Yosemite National Park. During my trip, I encountered both wind and rain and the jacket holds up impressively well. I usually wear a size S in regular tops and a size M in the Qaras jacket fit me well with room for layers underneath (I was warned that sizes tend to run small). The jacket’s design features different zippers that you can open for your ideal amount of ventilation. However, keep in mind that the inside of the pockets are not fully lined and you’ll lose a lot of heat if you keep them wide open, which could be a desired effect depending on the weather conditions you’re dealing with. I am excited to trial this jacket out in the snow and see how it performs, I have a feeling it will do exceptionally well. In a backpacking setting, this jacket is a bit bulkier to carry than the typical lightweight waterproof shell jacket I’m used to carrying, so this could be a potential con for you weight conscious backpackers. However, armed with warm fleece lining, you might be able to eliminate carrying around additional layers.

We tent camped on the river here and really enjoyed our stay. We floated on the river in tubes, visited Nearby Rainbow Pools, went into Yosemite Valley a couple of days, the park is about 5-10 mins from the entrance to Yosemite but we didn’t mind we enjoyed the drive into the valley and used it as an opportunity to spot wildlife. We had two young kids (6 &8) and the campground restrooms and showers were perfect after a long day hiking, they were well maintained, good water pressure. These restrooms were located at the ponderosa tent sites, we had some family also camping in RVS along the river and I can’t speak for those restrooms. No cell service & WiFi is unlikely to work so prepare to be unplugged..they do give you printed directions to the closest area to get a signal depending on your carrier. The staff was very friendly and helpful! We will definitely be back one day. Side note: we came during COVID so reservations to Yosemite National park were required, therefore the park and surrounding campgrounds were not as packed as they normally would be. (This was heavenly).