Planning Your 2027 Camping Year: Permit Lotteries and Key Dates

Start with a simple step: bookmark the official page for every permit on your 2027 wish list, and check each one again in January. As of November 1, 2026, none of the agencies below has posted a full 2027 schedule on the pages we checked. The timing here describes recent years, so treat it as a planning guide, not a promise.

Mount Whitney (Inyo National Forest, California)

Recent pattern: The Inyo National Forest's Mount Whitney page lists this schedule (without a year attached):

• February 1 to March 1: apply for the lottery on Recreation.gov.
• March 15: results are posted in your Recreation.gov account.
• April 21: winners must pay and complete their reservation details to claim their date.
• April 22: remaining dates open online at 7 a.m. Pacific.

A quota season from May 1 through November 1 limits the number of people each day. Outside the quota season, permits aren't limited and can be booked online up to two weeks before your trip.

Check: the Inyo National Forest Mount Whitney page for the 2027 dates.

The Enchantments (Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, Washington)

Recent pattern: The forest says the advanced lottery application window typically opens February 15 and runs about two weeks. Results are posted around March 15. Winners must confirm and pay by the deadline shown on Recreation.gov, and unconfirmed reservations are released on April 1. Unclaimed dates then go up for first-come, first-served reservation. Overnight permits are required from May 15 through October 31.

There's also a daily lottery. You apply the day before on Recreation.gov from a mobile device, and you must be within one mile of the Wenatchee River Ranger District.

Check: the forest's Enchantments overnight permits page, which says each year's timeframes are posted on the Recreation.gov advanced lottery page in January.

Half Dome (Yosemite National Park, California)

Recent pattern: Yosemite's Half Dome permit page lists a preseason lottery with applications from March 1 through March 31 (Eastern time), with results emailed in mid-April.

A daily lottery takes applications two days before the hike, from midnight to 4 p.m. Pacific, with results emailed that night. For a Saturday hike, you'd apply on Thursday. The cables are normally up from the Friday before Memorial Day through the day after the second Monday in October, depending on conditions.

Check: Yosemite's Half Dome permits page. It hadn't listed 2027 dates when we checked.

Glacier National Park wilderness permits (Montana)

What 2026 looked like: Glacier ran two early access lotteries on Recreation.gov.

• Large groups (9 to 12 campers): applications on March 1, 2026, winners notified March 3.
• Standard groups (1 to 8 campers): applications on March 15, 2026, winners notified March 17. Winners could book from March 21 through April 30.
• General on-sale: started May 1, 2026, at 8 a.m. Mountain.

Each lottery took applications on a single day, from midnight to 11:59 p.m. Mountain. The park says about 70 percent of wilderness campsites parkwide are available for advance reservations, and about 30 percent are held for walk-up campers.

Check: Glacier's Wilderness Camping Advance Reservations page. It didn't mention 2027 when we checked, so don't assume the same dates.

The Wave / Coyote Buttes North (BLM, Arizona)

The Wave runs year-round, so its lottery isn't a once-a-year event.

Advanced lottery: The BLM's FAQ explains that you apply for one full month, about four months before your trip, and the lottery runs on the first day of the following month at 9 a.m. Mountain. The BLM's example: for a May trip, apply January 1 through 31, and the lottery runs February 1. You can choose up to three entry dates per application. Following that same pattern, applications made in November 2026 are drawn December 1 for March 2027 trips. Winners must accept by the 15th and pay within 14 calendar days.

Daily lottery: You apply from a location-enabled mobile device while inside the BLM's geofence area near Coyote Buttes North. Check the BLM's daily lottery details for current hours and timing.

Check: the BLM's Coyote Buttes North page and its advanced and daily lottery FAQs.

A rough 2027 planning calendar

Based on recent years, with every date to be confirmed on the official page:

• Now through winter: The Wave's monthly advanced lottery is always running. Decide on your spring and summer dates.
• January: Check for the Enchantments' 2027 timeframes on Recreation.gov.
• February: The Mount Whitney lottery opens, and the Enchantments window has typically started mid-month.
• March: The Half Dome preseason lottery runs all month, Glacier's early access lotteries have run in March, and Whitney and Enchantments results have come in around March 15.
• April: Half Dome results (mid-April), Whitney claim deadlines and unclaimed date releases, and Enchantments unconfirmed permits released April 1.
• May: Glacier's general on-sale started May 1 in 2026.

Tips for lottery season

• Make sure everyone has a Recreation.gov account. Mount Whitney results, for example, are posted in your account, so don't wait for an email. Log in to check.
• Read each permit's group size and pickup rules before you apply, since they differ from one permit to the next.
• Check the application fee and whether it's refundable before you apply.
• Have a backup plan for nearby trails or other dates, and keep checking for cancellations and walk-up options where the agency offers them.

Sources

• USDA Forest Service: Inyo National Forest, Mount Whitney
• USDA Forest Service: Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, Enchantments Overnight Permits
• NPS: Yosemite National Park, Half Dome Permits
• NPS: Glacier National Park, Wilderness Camping Advance Reservations
• BLM: Coyote Buttes North (The Wave)
• BLM: Coyote Buttes North Advanced Lottery (The Wave) FAQs
• BLM: Coyote Buttes North Daily Lottery (The Wave) FAQs

Last verified: November 1, 2026.