Pyramid Peak Camping

[lordhelmut]

Hoping for some updated information here?

Can you still get to upper parking lot between 7pm - 7am when entrance station is closed?

Are there any good places to car camp just outside the ranger/entrance station? Alternatively, are there any dispersed spots up the trail a bit near the turnoff for Pyramid?

Was up there back in July. When entrance station is closed, apparently still need to pay at self-service kiosk. Only pay camps along road on way in to Bells. If you want to car camp, my suggestion is crash at the Cathedtal TH down Castle Creek Rd.

No dispersed sites before Crater Lake. Apparently rangers are cracking down due to numerous illegal sites being pitched all over the basin. As I was hiking out from Willow Pass that Sunday, there was a single file line of people from Crater to Maroon going both ways and nobody understood the etiquette of passing. Area seems well beyond repair. Good luck.

[DeTour]

The hike to the turnoff toward the peak is probably only ten minutes from the parking lot.

Pardon me if I question your memory. It's about 1.5 miles and 500' elevation gain from parking lot to turnoff. Maybe you can do that in 10 minutes, but most humans with packs and a 14er in front of them are going to take 30-45 minutes or more. However, I acknowledge that's still not much gain if the objective is strictly a good start for the summit. My group did it mainly because we enjoy the experience.

No dispersed sites before Crater Lake.

Lordhelmut has more recent information, but I will say there are two nice campsites right beside the Pyramid trail about a quarter-mile up (toward the peak) from where it turns off the Crater Lake trail. I had discussed them with a FS ranger prior to us using them two years ago; he voiced no objection. That was during a time in which camping was barred within a half-mile of Crater Lake due to bear activity. Maybe FS policy has changed since then as to use of that location. No water source at that spot, however, meaning you're hiking to the lake if you need to filter water, and the lake is, as BKS states, a pretty poor source. Probably better to just pack in enough water if you camp there.

[druid2112]

My $0.02 - not worth camping. Leave your house at whatever time necessary to get to TH at, say 4 or 5 am or whenever you wish to start, and get on the trail.

Plan on taking a nap before you drive home. Good 'nuff.

[pmeadco]

And if you don't mind splurging a bit, as the summer tourist season winds down and it is a few months before ski season begins, hotel rooms get cheaper in the valley. It is kind of nice knowing you have a place to stay for sure and not having to hassle with camping equipment. Of course, that goes against the rugged 14er ethos, but, hey, as we get older, the comforts of life get more appealing.

[oldschoolczar]

My $0.02 - not worth camping. Leave your house at whatever time necessary to get to TH at, say 4 or 5 am or whenever you wish to start, and get on the trail.

Plan on taking a nap before you drive home. Good 'nuff.

Eh I prefer to not get up before ~4AM - 5AM for climbs.

Just drove down Castle Creek road, camped and had a 30 min drive in the AM. Worked fine. Lot was almost full by about 545 AM.