National park · Mariposa, CA
North Pines is open seasonally from mid-April to mid-October for tents, RVs (up to 40 ft.), and trailers (up to 35 ft.).nps.gov, read Sep 24, 2026
Electrical, water, and sewer hookups are not available in Yosemite, although dump stations (with fresh water) are available at Upper Pines Campground (all year), near Wawona Campground (summer only), and near Tuolumne Meadows Campground (summer only).nps.gov, read Sep 24, 2026
Upper Pines is open all year for tents, RVs (up to 35 ft.), and trailers (up to 24 ft.).nps.gov, read Sep 24, 2026
One email when a California owner lists a rig for those nights.
PickRV
Published by PickRV
Official park page confirmed live on July 25, 2026.
Yosemite National Park spreads across 1,187 square miles of the central Sierra Nevada in Mariposa, Tuolumne, and Madera counties, California. The headline rig fact: none of its 13 campgrounds have electric, water, or sewer hookups — every site is dry camping. Three Valley campgrounds (Upper, Lower, and North Pines, all ~4,000ft) cluster near Half Dome and book five months out on Recreation.gov, vanishing within minutes for summer dates. High-country grounds (Tuolumne Meadows, White Wolf, Crane Flat) only open once Tioga Road is plowed, usually late May. In 2026 no entrance reservation is required — but you still need a valid park pass to drive in.
The notes below are PickRV's editorial record. Only the figures in the strip at the top of the page, each with its link and date, were re-read on the park's own pages.
Yosemite Valley holds a one-mile-wide span of glacier-carved granite — El Capitan, Half Dome, and the cluster of waterfalls that feed the Merced River. Beyond the valley floor, the park climbs into the high country around Tuolumne Meadows, which the Tioga Road opens for only a few months each year once the snowpack clears.
May and June bring the strongest waterfall flow; September and October offer thinner crowds with the Tioga Road still typically open into the autumn.
Upper Pines and most valley campgrounds accept RVs up to about 35 ft with no hookups; reservations on Recreation.gov open five months ahead and fill within minutes during peak season.
What the official site doesn't tell you
NPS.gov lists Lower Pines and North Pines at a 40ft maximum, but it buries the real number: only about six sites per loop actually accommodate a 40ft rig — the rest are sized for vans and short trailers. If you book a 'Lower Pines, up to 40ft' site sight-unseen, you can arrive to find a pad that physically won't take your slide-outs. Second, the page says 'dump stations available' but doesn't stress that Upper Pines is the ONLY year-round dump in the park — Wawona and Tuolumne are summer-only, so a fall or winter trip means you dump at Upper Pines or haul it out to a gateway town. Third, the three short generator windows mean residential-style A/C-dependent rigs suffer on hot Valley afternoons (noon-2pm is your only midday burn). Fourth, Tioga Road's opening date is genuinely unpredictable — plowing starts ~April 15 and can take two months, so any high-country campground reservation before mid-June is a gamble. Fifth, cell service is dead through most of the park; download offline maps and your Recreation.gov confirmation before you lose signal at the entrance.
Length + clearance
Dump + generator
Boondock alternative within 25-35 min to entrance — free, 14-day limit, no facilities; bring water + dump before arrival
Hardin Flat Rd dispersed area, Stanislaus National Forest, off Hwy 120 near Groveland (west of the Big Oak Flat entrance)
Full season: Late May - early October (all campgrounds open, Tioga Road and Glacier Point Road plowed)
Limited access: November - April (Valley grounds Upper Pines + Wawona + Hodgdon Meadow stay open year-round; high-country and Pines loops closed)
Known closures:
Hidden — not on the official map
Hodgdon Meadow Campground
Year-round, 4,900ft near the Big Oak Flat (Hwy 120) entrance; 35ft RV cap, quieter than the Valley but no dump station
Owens River Rd dispersed camping (east side)
Between Lee Vining and Mammoth on Hwy 395 side; free, big-rig-friendly, 30-60 min to the Tioga Pass entrance when Tioga Road is open
California scenery around Yosemite National Park
Landscapes from around California — the country you cross on a Yosemite National Park RV trip.
Owners in California list their rigs on the state page.
Browse California rigsThis guide is provided for general informational purposes only. PickRV is not an insurer, legal advisor, or vehicle-safety authority. Trip planning, route selection, rig suitability, weather, and emergency decisions are the renter's responsibility. Always consult the rig manufacturer's owner's manual, your insurance provider, the U.S. National Park Service (nps.gov), NOAA / NWS weather alerts (weather.gov), state and local emergency-management agencies, and current local regulations before and during travel. Cost figures, season windows, road conditions, and fee references on this page are estimates as of May 2026 and vary by season, location, rig, carrier, and operator. Mentions of brand names, state-tourism marks, national-park feature names, or third-party programs are informational only and do not imply affiliation, sponsorship, or endorsement.
Per-state legal callout · CA
Noncommercial Class B for motorhomes > 40 ft or > 3 axles
California requires a noncommercial Class B license for housecars over 40 ft OR with more than 3 axles. Standard Class C covers most rental motorhomes under that threshold (CA VC §12804.9, §12804.10). Out-of-state visitors must meet the same standard.
California Vehicle Code §12804 · verified 2026-05-24
California Boater Card mandatory by 2025 (all ages)
As of January 1, 2025, all motorized-vessel operators must carry the California Boater Card. The card is issued for life after passing a NASBLA-approved course administered by California State Parks Division of Boating and Waterways.
California State Parks — Boater Card · verified 2026-05-24
Green sticker / red sticker required for OHV use on public land
California OHVs must display a current OHV registration sticker (green = year-round, red = restricted seasons for 2003-and-earlier 2-stroke) on any state-managed riding area. Issued by DMV; renewed every 2 years.
California State Parks OHMVR Division · verified 2026-05-24
0.08% BAC limit; open container prohibited in passenger area
Standard 0.08% BAC for drivers (0.04% for commercial). California enforces the federal open-container framework: alcoholic beverages must be sealed or stored in a non-passenger area (e.g., RV living-quarters separator closed) while the vehicle is on a public roadway.
California Vehicle Code §23222 · verified 2026-05-24
