Backcountry camping in US national parks: permits and bear canisters

Does every park want a permit, and how do you get one?

In Yosemite, a wilderness permit is required year-round for backpacking, overnight climbing or any other overnight stay in the wilderness, and each trailhead has a daily quota. Reservations are required from late April through October: 60 per cent of each quota is released by lottery 24 weeks ahead, the other 40 per cent seven days ahead [1]. The reservation fee is $10 per application, plus $5 per person if you receive a permit; both are nonrefundable [2]. The park publishes the application window for each start date [3]. From late October to mid-April, permits are issued in person the day before or the day you start [1].

Grand Canyon asks for a backcountry permit for any camping outside the developed campsites on the rims. It costs $10 per permit or lottery application, plus $15 per person per night below the rim and $4 above it; the park entrance fee is separate. Reservations start with an early-access lottery on Recreation.gov: you apply during a two-week window that ends on the 1st of the month, four months before your start month (1 January for a May start). Up to 750 applicants win a slot to book first; on the 1st of the following month everyone can reserve what is left, and cancellations can be booked up to five days ahead [4].

Rocky Mountain issues a printed paper permit and a vehicle dashtag, both picked up in person at a Wilderness Office open 7am to 3.30pm daily; camping is only at designated sites, with no dispersed camping [5]. Summer reservations (1 May to 31 October) opened online at Recreation.gov on 1 March 2026, at 8am mountain time, for a $36 nonrefundable administrative fee per reservation, with no phone, mail or in-person bookings [6]. In winter the fee is $10 per permit, permits are first come, first served in person, and advance reservations are not accepted [5]. The pages we read do not give the 2027 opening date.

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Glacier requires a wilderness use permit for all overnight camping, either reserved online or picked up first come, first served at a backcountry ranger station [7]. About 70 per cent of campsites can be reserved ahead, within a limit of 16 miles (26 km) of hiking per day; about 30 per cent of the sites in each campsite area are held for walk-up permits issued the day before or the day of the start [8]. Early-access lotteries open the reservations: for groups of 9 to 12, the 2026 lottery ran on 1 March with a $10 nonrefundable application fee, and only five large-group reservations are issued per year [7]. From 1 May to 31 October, the cost is a $10 permit fee plus $7 per person per night [8].

At Mount Rainier, a permit is required year-round for every overnight stay in the backcountry. Peak-season (June through September) advance reservations are optional and go through Recreation.gov, and permits must be obtained in person at a wilderness information center or visitor centre [9]. In 2026 the fee is $12 per person per night, free for anyone 15 or younger, plus a $6 Recreation.gov application fee per trip. The first chance to apply is an early-access lottery in February, with reservations opening in March and April [10].

In Great Smoky Mountains, all new backcountry permits have been issued through Recreation.gov since 30 April. The fee is $8 per person per night plus a $6 nonrefundable fee per permit, and the old $40 cap on the total permit cost is gone [11].

Food storage: a canister here, a cable there

In Yosemite, all food, drinks, rubbish, toiletries and other scented items must be in an allowed bear-resistant container or a food locker, and hanging food is illegal. Keep the container closed and locked, on the ground 8 to 15 metres (25 to 50 feet) from your campsite, away from cliffs and water. Food lockers exist only at designated sites in Little Yosemite Valley and next to the High Sierra Camps, and they may be full [12]. The park rents one model, the Garcia Backpackers’ Cache 812, at the Valley Welcome Center [1]. The bear page was last updated in 2018: check the list of allowed containers before you buy.

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Grand Canyon is a different problem: rock squirrels, deer mice and ravens. The park asks for an animal-proof container, and advises against hanging food, which ringtails, mice and ravens can still reach and which can damage trees [13]. At Mount Rainier, trailside camps have food storage poles for hanging food and garbage, and the park says a bear-proof canister is highly recommended in some sub-alpine areas without tall trees [14]. In the Smokies, all odorous items, lip balm and toothpaste included, must be hung on the bear cable system at each campsite or shelter [11].

Rocky Mountain and Glacier are the strictest. Rocky Mountain requires a self-provided, hard-sided, lockable, commercially made bear-resistant canister for every wilderness overnight; you must bring it to the Wilderness Office to get your permit, and keep it 60 metres (200 feet) from your campsite when you are not using it [5]. Glacier requires food, cookware and garbage to be in an Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee (IGBC) approved bear-resistant container, secured at least 30 metres (100 feet) from camp at all times except when eating, and rangers ask to see the device before issuing certain permits [8]. The committee’s list covers nearly 500 products from more than 100 manufacturers [15].

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What to verify before you book

Open the wilderness page of the park you picked, read its last-updated date, and check three things: the reservation window for your start date, the exact fee, and the food storage rule. Then book on Recreation.gov, and carry the permit the way the park asks: Rocky Mountain requires the printed copy [5], Grand Canyon requires the printed permit on you and attached to your pack or tent once camp is set [4].

Worth watching

In about a minute, Leave No Trace explains what a bear canister keeps out of reach, food, trash and anything with a smell, and why that limits food conditioning of wildlife.

The video is hosted by YouTube (Google): nothing loads until you play it, and Google may then set cookies.

Arnaud Couderc

Fact-checking, regulations and safety

Arnaud Couderc reviews our contributors’ articles and writes for Outfarer about regulations, safety, fishing, the sea and outdoor pursuits. He traces every rule back to its official text and every figure to its source, so that you set off with sound benchmarks.

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