A Family Guide To Winter Camping In Sequoia And Yosemite- Welcoming 2025

For successive years we’ve winter camped in Sequoia and Yosemite in December, mostly with children in tow.  This year we took off for winter camping in December and wanted to camp through the New Year Holiday, thankfully able to get campsites in both Sequoia and Yosemite.  The main difference between this year and years past was the CROWDS.  Both Sequoia and Yosemite were packed with more people than we’ve ever seen in December….with Upper Pines Campground packed (except the whole campground wasn’t open).  Here’s our stories and recommendations for camping in the winter in Sequoia and Yosemite:

Sequoia

The logic to where we chose to camp in Sequoia had to do with multiple factors…thought through very quickly.  These factors included what would be open if there was snow, what campground had availability, what was easy to get into in the dark and where we wanted to camp.  Keeping these factors in mind, there’s NOT a lot of campgrounds open in December in Sequoia, but we were able to get into Potwisha.  This campground is one of the lowest campgrounds in Sequoia National Park and open year round, known for getting less snow than other areas of the park.  It’s also known for bears.  We were able to get up into the park and campground after an all day drive, amazed at the HUNDREDS of cars coming out of the park as we drove in during the evening.  These folks were up in the park on day trips, as we would learn the next day as we tried to get into several parking lots that were completely full.  Here’s my story in pics:

Yosemite

That next day, we didn’t drive straight into Yosemite, because we took a planned stop in Oakhurst, where we hit the Vons and topped off the charge on the truck (Ford F-150 EV).  Oakhurst is a larger town with good shopping and services, just right to get all of our camp food and then continue into the park to get set up before dark.  Here’s our story:

One of the most unique and fascinating exhibits in the Exploration Center is out back….and although it’s a “reconstructed” village, it’s in use by Native Americans and has purpose beyond education.  The reconstructed village of Ahwahnee just behind the Yosemite Exploration Center is as close to real as possible, constructed by Native American descendants of the Miwok Tribe in cooperation with the Yosemite Park Conservation Foundation and the Youth Conservation Corps.  Wanna know more– click THIS LINK.

Recommendations for family camping in Sequoia/Yosemite in the winter. 

– If you want to camp in Sequoia in winter with less of a chance of snow then Potwisha Campground might be a good choice.  But be prepared for the long and windy drive up the Generals Highway to see any of the famous sights.  Be prepared for the crowds and go early with lots of patience.  AND- if you choose to camp at Potwisha please be extra BEAR aware.

– Don’t let the lack of continuous dates in a campsite stop you from camping.  If there’s no single campsite for multiple nights during a trip, look for other sites within the same campsite and be prepared to move if you have to.  We did this during our Sequoia stay because there were no other sites available, so we moved. 

– If you are camping with kids (especially smaller ones) remember they need things to do.  We’ve found that by giving the kids jobs around camp we keep them busy, but a set of Legos is helpful too.

– Even in the winter, we always pack sunscreen and bug spray.

– We have cold weather gear, but it does take up lots of duffel space.  Take the gear, it’s worth it even if you don’t use it.

– We sometimes have to drag the kids out on some of our hikes but they always start having fun quickly and enjoy the exercise in the end.  Seeing Mirror Lake at sunset is something they won’t easily forget.

– Reservations-  Don’t show up to Yosemite Valley (especially with a famly) without a camping reservation unless you are backcountry camping.  The National Parks take reservations on recreation.gov.  But, there are still self-serve campsites in some parks that are walk-in sites on a first come, first serve basis, but these are few and far between.

– Because we were unsure of weather conditions, we took snow chains for the truck despite also having robust all-wheel drive.  Be prepared to put on chains or just turn around if you need to….call the audible in order to stay safe.

– Be prepared for crowds and crowded spaces.  US National Parks are becoming more popular with both residents and visitors….so plan ahead and be patient.  This is one of the reasons we visit some National Parks in the winter….they’re less crowded and we can get camping reservations in our favorite campgrounds.

– As a bit of a nice reward during some of our longer camping/road trips, we sometimes stay in a hotel on our last night of the trip or sometimes mix tent camping with short hotel stays.  This lets everyone get cleaned up, warmed up and allows us to do laundry as needed.  

Winter camping is different than other seasons as it requires more planning and purpose, more gear and a different mindset.  But all this is for the reward of a different landscape with less people, fewer hassles, less traffic and different patterns of animal life.  If you have an inkling to go….I strongly urge you to follow that desire and go try winter camping.

Here’s a few other posts I’ve written about this magical winter camping trip:

A Whisper of Elegance: Experiencing The Ahwahnee Hotel In Yosemite

Roadtripping An F150 Lightning, An EV Tale