Act now, adventure later: Procrastinators lose in competition for prized reservations
Some of the hottest permits and reservations for summer outdoor adventures at home and abroad are being procured now, in the chill of winter.
To prevent overcrowding and resource damage, government agencies are using online systems to manage intense competition for the most popular attractions as well as for booking campsites.
Of course, countless desirable destinations can be explored without reservations or fees in North America’s vast expanses of public lands. But snooze during winter and you lose the chance to be among the chosen few who will be, say, rafting Idaho’s Selway River this summer, camping at the Bartoo Island group site at Priest Lake, or hiking a long stretch of the Pacific Crest Trail.
This is the window of opportunity my family has used over the years to plan itineraries for backpacking the Wonderland Trail around Mount Rainier, and for emailing tourism offices in Europe and even calling and convincing a ski resort owner in France to open his doors for the season a day earlier than normal in June to make our itinerary work for hiking a famous route through three countries around Mount Blanc.
Recreation.gov is the USA’s centralized travel planning platform and reservation system for 14 federal agencies, including the National Park Service and Forest Service.
Campsites, cabins and fire lookouts generally open for booking six months in advance – at 7 a.m. Have your America the Beautiful pass or Senior pass handy for applicable discounts.
Prized sites often – but not always – are booked within seconds by applicants with the speediest mouse-clicking skills and internet connections.
The transition has been evolving for years, along with my family’s eagerness to adapt. Renting the historic Red Ives Ranger Cabin on the St. Joe River, for example, was switched from a mail-in lottery to the national online reservation system in 2017. It’s among several offerings in the region prized by anglers for proximity to popular trout streams, including the Kelly Cabin on Idaho’s Kelly Creek and Hogback Homestead on Montana’s Rock Creek east of Missoula.
The six-month rollout is allowing campsite reservations to be made this week for mid-July. Yes, that means some popular offerings are already booked for Memorial Day and Fourth of July holidays.
That leaves plenty of opportunity. Some of the Landers family’s favorite outings over the years have launched from campsites in late July to reap the fruit of the huckleberry season, or from a fire lookout in mid-August for an unbeatable view of the Perseid meteor showers.
State platforms separate
State-managed parks and lands have their own reservation systems for campsites, cabins, yurts and permits. For example, reservations can be made at 23 of the 27 state parks in Idaho online at getoutside.idaho.gov or by phone at 888-922-6743.
Washington State Parks reservations can be made at parks.wa.gov or by phone at 888-226-7688.
Be mindful of exceptions on any of the platforms. For example, reservations for the Quartz Mountain Lookout in Mount Spokane State Park are offered nine months in advance rather than six.
And it’s already too late on the federal site to vie for one of 64 daily permits to hike 6 miles into a photogenic sandstone rock formation called the Wave. The lottery for the hike in the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness straddling the Utah-Arizona border was Dec. 31.
If you strike out on the place you love, then love the place you can get. For example, when reservations are mostly filled at Idaho’s Ponderosa State Park, less popular parks such as Bruneau Dunes or Massacre Rocks may still have numerous vacancies. Shoulder seasons can offer untapped opportunities.
Hunter permit drawings are handled on state wildlife agency websites. For instance, Idaho Fish and Game held its first drawing for 2026 nonresident deer and elk tags in December. The second application period is Feb. 5-15.
Wildlife photographers compete for permits for prime time at refuges and special locations where species such as birds and bears congregate. For example:
• McNeil River State Game Sanctuary, a famous venue for photos of brown bears fishing for spawning salmon, accepts applications for a viewing permit lottery until March 31 at adfg.alaska.gov.
• Brooks Camp, another popular bear viewing area, is managed by Katmai National Park. The first block of 2026 reservation dates was opened at recreation.gov on Jan. 7. Reservations for July 1-Aug. 31 will open Feb. 7 with permit seekers competing for openings starting at 9 a.m.
Some National Park Service facilities are handled by concessionaires. Yellowstone National Park, for example, manages reservations for five campgrounds and distributes backcountry permits through recreation.gov. However, camping at five other campgrounds and staying at the lodges is managed separately by Yellowstone National Park Lodges at yellowstonenationalparklodges.com.
Sperry Chalet – a century-old National Historic Landmark Hotel accessible by foot or horseback in Glacier Park – opens for reservations sometime in January through its own website, sperrychalet.com.
All is not lost if you don’t initially score a permit or reservation offered by federal or state agencies. In most cases, devoted permit seekers with flexibility have a chance to pick up openings from canceled reservations. Email alerts often are offered.
River runners poised
Avid river runners have been buzzing among themselves well in advance of the Jan. 31 application deadline for the region’s world-class whitewater – the Selway, Salmon, Middle Fork Salmon and Hells Canyon of the Snake. Savvy boaters organize in advance and have each person apply to increase the chances that their group will draw a launch date.
Similarly, the 59-mile multiday floating-fishing experience on the Smith River in central Montana has become one of the most coveted and regulated river trips in the West. Applications for the lottery are due by Feb. 15 at the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks website, fwp.mt.gov.
Permit systems have been used to control crowding on popular western rivers for decades and are appreciated by outfitters and private groups, said Peter Grubb, who cofounded ROW Adventures 45 years ago based in Coeur d’Alene.
“There’d be chaos at the launches and campsites without the restrictions,” he said.
Grubb recommends that adventure seekers planning on booking summer trips with outfitters act as early as possible to get the broadest selection of trip dates. From his experience running outdoor trips in five states and a dozen countries, he said booking early also assures that corresponding arrangements can be made for travel and lodging before and after the trip.
Access permits needed
Climbers compete for permits that prevent overcrowding and increase safety on popular peaks. For example, California’s Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the Lower 48 states, has a lottery drawing from applications submitted Feb. 1-March 1 on recreation.gov.
Backpackers planning to camp overnight in the Enchantments portion of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness of central Washington must have a permit from May 15-Oct.31. Applications for the advance lottery are accepted Feb. 15-March 1 at recreation.gov.
About 25% of the Enchantments permits allocated for the season usually are distributed through a daily lottery from the Leavenworth Ranger Station. This daily lottery was canceled last year, but it may be reactivated this year. You must apply on a smartphone the day before you hope to start hiking.
Keep in mind that the stunning peaks and lakes of the Enchantments zone are only a fraction of the beauty of this area in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. The Alpine Lakes Wilderness encompasses 394,000 acres with 47 trailheads and 615 miles of trails, most of which is accessible with a free self-serve permit.
Mount Rainier National Park holds special lotteries for backpackers to reserve campsites and build itineraries for hiking the ultra-popular 93-mile Wonderland Trail that circumnavigates the mountain. Best to do some homework before the early access lottery launches at 7 a.m. on Feb. 10.
Glacier National Park as well as Mount Rainier appear to be backing off from reservations for entering the parks during peak season. Last year, visitors had to compete online for limited timed entry permits simply to drive their vehicles into the parks during the peak hours of the day. Officials are putting that strategy on hold while they seek other ways to reduce overcrowding on park roads and trailheads.
Reserve Canada offerings
Canada also requires permits or reservations for a wide range of spectacular outdoor destinations that have lured the Landers family north of the border over the years.
Similar to the U.S., Canada uses federal and provincial platforms with rules and deadlines that vary.
British Columbia allows front country campsites reservations three months in advance at camping.bcparks.ca.
Unfortunately for procrastinators, reservations for some of the B.C.’s popular backcountry permits opened in December. The multiday Berg Lake Trail in Mount Robson Provincial Park filled quickly, and the Bowron Lakes Canoe Circuit was mostly filled earlier this week.
Meanwhile, the federal platform at parks.canada.ca has a stellar assortment of Canadian backcountry destinations, each with a different reservation launch day in January.
A glance at a few more of the Landers family favorites over the years shows that backcountry reservations launch for the West Coast Trail (Vancouver Island) on Jan. 19, for Waterton Lakes National Park on Jan. 21, and for Banff, Kootenay and Yoho national parks on Jan. 26.
If you’re not familiar with Canada’s system, prepare for launch dates in advance by going to the parks.canada.ca website. Search for “how to make reservations” and follow the detailed directions.
Expect plenty of competition starting the nanosecond after reservations launch on Jan. 22 for camping at Lake O’Hara, a Landers favorite hiking area in Yoho National Park. Often promoted as “the crown jewel of the Canadian Rockies,” the base camp sets you up for days of exploring brilliant trails built and honed over years through a wonderland of hanging glaciers, waterfalls, pristine lakes, alpine meadows and craggy peaks.
If you get skunked on landing the trip of your dreams, keep your mind open to Canada’s wealth of options.
For example, to celebrate the college graduation of my daughter, Brook, I planned a first-class father-daughter backpacking trip. We succeeded in securing first-week-of-July campsite permits to hike the famous Rockwall route. But when we arrived at Kootenay National Park we found the trails were buried under an unusually late-lingering snowpack. The route was closed.
Instead of throwing in the towel, I got on the phone with a Banff National Park backcountry reservations officer who helped us plan and get camping permits for a six-day loop. It turned out to be outstanding for its Rockies scenery and wildlife – porcupines, bighorns and grizzlies, oh yeah. Indeed, we weren’t surprised to learn that in one stretch we were following in the footsteps left just a few days earlier by Prince William and Princess Kate.
So, while the Skoki Lodge area was the second choice for the Landers, it was still fit for a king.