August 13, 2026
Conundrum Hot Springs just opened through November, plus Middle Fork all fall
What dropped this week
Conundrum Hot Springs had a big shakeup this week — new openings showed up across dozens of dates from August 11 all the way through November 30. Middle Fork Salmon did something similar, with slots opening from August 13 clear through December 31. Four Pass Loop picked up eight new dates between August 18 and 27. On the climbing side, St. Helens saw repeated availability changes on August 12, plus openings scattered from July 27 through August 12 — worth watching if you've been shut out. The NVM Summit Climb permit opened for August 7 and August 12. Smaller but real: Bishop Pass (JMT) opened August 13, Cottonwood Pass (PCT) opened August 14, and Big Pine Creek North Fork opened both August 11 and 12. Mt Whitney Trail Crest Exit picked up over 30 scattered dates from August 6 through mid-October.
Open right now
Currently showing open availability: Big Pine Creek North Fork and Lamarck Lakes in Inyo National Forest, Grand Gulch in Cedar Mesa/Bears Ears, Lost Coast in the King Range, Lyell Canyon in Yosemite, Conundrum Hot Springs and the Summit Climb and St. Helens climbing permits at Mount St. Helens. If any of these are on your list, now's the time to grab a date before it fills back in.
This week's data insight
Looking at when availability changes actually land this month, Monday and Tuesday are running well ahead of the rest of the week — 453 and 450 respectively, versus 270 on Wednesday. If you're refreshing manually instead of using alerts, start-of-week checks are catching more than midweek ones. Weekends land in between, around 307 to 328. Doesn't mean nothing opens on a Wednesday, just that the odds favor Monday and Tuesday morning checks.