Originally Posted by
stevepusser
Cyclists are allowed to stay one night only at the backpacker's campground in the Valley, and don't need the wilderness permit the backpackers require. IMO, lo these many years ago, it was much preferable to the cramped and crowded climbers' camp.
You can also always put on a hangdog look and ask to share one of the big RV's spots, offering to chip in the for the cost. I've never been turned down at a campground where I had to resort to that.
And yes, N to S. +++++++
I never knew about "backpacker's camp", not sure if a choice back then. The folks at the climber's camp were a culture distinct from myself, and I enjoyed encountering that. Walking back in the dark from Half Dome, my AAA (non-LED) minimaglite battery failing, the campsite came into view, and dozens of small, pale-blue lights, all wearing the then-new LED headlamps, and I thought, "It's a new species, the Headlamp People."
Yes, that hangdog look, I was car-traveling years before that, had stopped at a campground in AZ and was set, late afternoon a camper van had circled the loop twice, I flagged them down and invited them to fit in at my spot, easy, and they were very grateful.