2021 Backcountry Permit Applications: Date for submittal now March 17

[cdsmith379]

Sites are starting to move. FIF and HOL availability is disappearing. Looks like the processing is underway!

[teapot57]

Yep. Just saw a post on FB where someone got their Gunsight Pass Trail permit today.

[PeteE]

The "Big Question" in mind is, "How many applications came in the the 24 hour lottery period?"
Are my/our chances 1 in a 1000? 1in 5000?, 10,000?
Do they publish how many applications come in during the initial 24 hours?

pete

[zozeppelin]

The "Big Question" in mind is, "How many applications came in the the 24 hour lottery period?"
Are my/our chances 1 in a 1000? 1in 5000?, 10,000?
Do they publish how many applications come in during the initial 24 hours?

pete

If only we had a someone in the area who could ask

[cdsmith379]

I really hope they didn't get over 10000 applications. Even if they process 100 applications each day, which would be more than 12 an hour(given an 8 hour day) which is a pretty grueling pace, it will still take them 100 days or over 3 months to process them all.

[PeteE]

The "Big Question" in mind is, "How many applications came in the the 24 hour lottery period?"
Are my/our chances 1 in a 1000? 1in 5000?, 10,000?
Do they publish how many applications come in during the initial 24 hours?

pete

If only we had a someone in the area who could ask

I can ask someone how many applications came in during the 24 hours, if 1) I can find someone to ask, and 2) they are willing to tell me

I really hope they didn't get over 10000 applications. Even if they process 100 applications each day, which would be more than 12 an hour(given an 8 hour day) which is a pretty grueling pace, it will still take them 100 days or over 3 months to process them all.

I was being facetious with the 10,000 number
5,000 isn't out of the realm of possibility though.

There are a BUNCH of fairly recent videos on YouTube by all sorts of people, and I mean LOTS of them.
YouTube's algorithm sends them to me all the time since I began looking at a few.
Over time these videos extolling the wonderfulness of GNP could well have inspired unprecedented numbers of potential visitors/backpackers.
So it could be a while before we hear anything from the BC Office if they have to wade through an S-Load of apps.

My 2 cents
pete

[cdsmith379]

FIF in August is disappearing fast. As Tom Petty would say The waiting is the hardest part!

[PeteE]

FIF in August is disappearing fast. As Tom Petty would say The waiting is the hardest part!

Ahhhh Tom Petty
Your post reminded me of one of my all time favorites of Tom Petty songs: Learning To Fly.
I love this music video.
Maybe because like Tom Petty, I was a teenager growing up in Florida during the 60's.

I love these 2 lines:
I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings
Coming down is the hardest thing

[liketohike]

From the NPS website:

The Wilderness Permit Office received approximately 3,700 advance reservation applications on March 17, 2021.
This is twice the number we receive in a typical year.

[NDjason]

Hey everybody! Kids and work have been keeping me busy, but put in two requests this year after ending to head to the Cascades in 2019 and Yellowstone in 2020. I got one night at Sperry in September, so trying to do GUN, ELL, and SPE leading up to it. Not likely, but it is early September, so maybe a little less competition. Also applied for a 6 night Belly trip for anytime between early July to mid September. We'll see! Everytime I get a an email notification I'm hoping for a permit notification!

In other news, I had surgery in late October for a torn Labrum, rotator cuff, and bicep tendon in my right shoulder. Just starting to feel like I'm making improvements in my recovery after 5 months! I turned 40 this year, and my dad hit 70, so this summer is hopefully going to be a special trip!

[Sue Z]

Good luck with the permit!
Speaking as a veteran of 3 shoulder surgeries, it really doesn't interfere with my backpacking much. Just gotta be careful putting on and taking off my pack.
Happy recovery!

[zozeppelin]

From the NPS website:

The Wilderness Permit Office received approximately 3,700 advance reservation applications on March 17, 2021.
This is twice the number we receive in a typical year.

Nice find! I actually sent an email on Thursday asking for the number and saying they used to publish it on the backcountry blog and I hadn't seen it there

3700 isn't too bad all considered, only 20% more than 2019.

Hopefully someone breaks the seal soon and can post their confirmed itinerary.

[paul]

Hey everybody! Kids and work have been keeping me busy, but put in two requests this year after ending to head to the Cascades in 2019 and Yellowstone in 2020. I got one night at Sperry in September, so trying to do GUN, ELL, and SPE leading up to it. Not likely, but it is early September, so maybe a little less competition. Also applied for a 6 night Belly trip for anytime between early July to mid September. We'll see! Everytime I get a an email notification I'm hoping for a permit notification!

In other news, I had surgery in late October for a torn Labrum, rotator cuff, and bicep tendon in my right shoulder. Just starting to feel like I'm making improvements in my recovery after 5 months! I turned 40 this year, and my dad hit 70, so this summer is hopefully going to be a special trip!

Hey Jason,

I put in for a 6 day trip in the Belly river for August. If I don't hear back by May, I will probably make plans to go the Wind River range like last year.
I hope your recovery goes well.

-Paul

[zozeppelin]

From the NPS website:

The Wilderness Permit Office received approximately 3,700 advance reservation applications on March 17, 2021.
This is twice the number we receive in a typical year.

It may be a server thing or a 'me problem', but I don't see it. If I search google for The Wilderness Permit Office received approximately 3,700 advance reservation applications', the result is a link to the backcountry page and it shows those words explicitly underneath the search result, but when I click through .... not there. Perhaps checking their math on 'twice'?

But, I do now see standard format GPS files for trailheads, campgrounds and trails - looks like they did a really nice job with these.

[Sue Z]

zozeppelin - this link worked for me. https://www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/backcountry.htm