Wilderness Permit Lottery Guide
Every major backcountry permit lottery in one table: when it opens, when it closes, when results land, and the odds the agency publishes. Most of these draws run in February and March, so the planning happens over the winter.
The same deadlines are laid out by month on the lottery calendar. If you are applying with friends, a lottery pool multiplies your odds.
| Permit | Lottery Opens | Lottery Closes | Results | Odds | Tips |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rolling weekly lottery | 24 weeks before entry | Following Monday | Not published | Apply during the Sunday-Saturday window 24 weeks out. Happy Isles counts against the 45-per-day Donohue Pass quota. | |
| March 1 | March 31 | Mid-April | 22% preseason | Missed preseason? The daily lottery runs 2 days before each hike date and NPS puts it at 19%. | |
| Monthly, year-round | Apply 4 months ahead | 1st of next month | Not published | Apply every month with all 3 dates. BLM caps entry at 64 people a day and publishes no success rate. | |
| Mid-March | One-day application | Two days later | Early access | Skipped the lottery? Remaining sites go on sale May 1, and NPS sets aside approximately 30% of sites parkwide for walk-up campers. | |
| 16th of each month | 1st, 5pm MST | 2nd of the month | Not published | NPS runs a two-week early access lottery four months before your start month, then announces results on the 2nd. | |
| February 15 | March 1 | Mid-March | <10% all zones | Only 24 people a day enter the Core Zone. Permits the winners never claim go back on Recreation.gov after the draw. | |
| February 1 on-sale | Until sold out | Instant (first come) | No lottery | There is no lottery. Book at havasupaireservations.com, and watch the public calendar for cancellations. | |
| Seasonal releases | Ongoing | Instant (first come) | No lottery | About half the sites reserve in advance on Recreation.gov, half are walk-up the day before. Bottom-up day hikes need no permit. | |
| February 1 | March 1 | March 15 | Not published | Quota season caps the trail at 100 people a day. Dates the winners never claim go back on Recreation.gov after the draw. | |
| February, each year | Early March | March to April | Not published | NPS makes approximately two thirds of summer permits reservable in advance. General reservations open April 25; the other third go first-come at Wilderness Information Centers. |
Don't Miss the Lottery
Set up PermitSnag to monitor your permit. We'll alert you the moment spots open from cancellations — many hikers get their permits this way.
Start Monitoring FreeFrequently Asked Questions
When do most wilderness permit lotteries open?
The big annual lotteries cluster in late winter: Mt. Whitney runs February 1 to March 1, the Enchantments February 15 to March 1, and Half Dome all of March. NPS says the Wonderland Trail early access lottery opens in February each year. Rolling systems like Yosemite wilderness, The Wave, and Grand Canyon backcountry accept applications year-round. Always check Recreation.gov for the exact dates of the season you are planning.
How can I improve my lottery odds?
Where agencies publish rates, the date is the lever: NPS puts Half Dome's daily lottery at 22% on weekdays against 14% on weekends, and Angels Landing anywhere between 10% and 100% depending on the day. So: (1) aim for mid-week dates, (2) list every date choice your application allows, (3) enter the second lottery where one exists, and (4) set up PermitSnag alerts for cancellations.
What happens if I don't win the lottery?
Don't give up. Permits the winners never claim go back on sale after results, and cancellations come back all season. The key is being fast. PermitSnag monitors cancellations 24/7 and alerts you the moment a spot opens.
Can I get a permit without entering the lottery?
Yes! Many top permits are straight first-come reservations with no lottery at all: Sequoia and Kings Canyon, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Olympic, and Havasupai among them. Many parks also hold back a share of permits for walk-ups the day before entry.
What's the hardest permit lottery to win?
Fewer agencies publish success rates than you would think. The Forest Service says the Enchantments advance lottery runs under 10%, and only 24 people a day enter the Core Zone. BLM publishes no rate for The Wave, where 64 people a day get in. NPS publishes no rate for the Wonderland Trail or the John Muir Trail's Yosemite trailheads. Where the numbers do exist they are friendlier: Half Dome's preseason lottery runs 22%, and Angels Landing averages about 50%.
Permit pages for the big draws
Application windows, quotas, and cancellation watches for the lotteries on this calendar.
- The Wave permit lotteryCoyote Buttes North, capped at 64 people a day across an advance draw and a daily draw run inside the geofence.
- Half Dome cables permit225 hikers a day on the cables, sold through a preseason lottery and a daily lottery two days out.
- Enchantments Through-Hike permitThe 18-mile Snow Lakes to Stuart Lake traverse, drawn in the same February USFS lottery as the zone permits.
- Mount Whitney day hike permitThe 14,505-foot finish line for half the Sierra. February lottery, 100 day hikers a day, and cancellation alerts after it.
- John Muir Trail Yosemite entry permitsThe Donohue Pass-eligible trailheads, where a northbound-to-southbound JMT actually starts. Quota belongs to the trailhead, not the trail.