Crane Flat Campground

We really enjoyed our night at Crane Flat! This campsite is a very basic site with no electricity hookups or showers, but it was in a good location and had bathrooms/sinks. We went on a bear walk at night with a ranger which was really fun. Our campsite was not completely flat but had a patch of land that we were able to park our van on just fine.

It was definitely a good bargain for a great location.

This is the best RV campground for Yosemite National Park. But the park is badly run and arduous for visitors and the campground is no exception:

The vibe seems to be that Bay Area city folk are using the campground like a city park, instead of a national park. Think loud yelling kids, unmonitored by adults, roaring campfires nearly out of control, and general ruckus.

The flush toilets were not cleaned every day and became a health hazard after 2 - 3 days.

There were so many campfires that I felt that I was in a slash and burn forest. My wife actually became a little asthmatic from all the smoke.

The sites are generally not level and leveling the camper was a challenge.

There is no cell service of any kind.

On the plus side:

All the other campgrounds in Yosemite NP are even worse. So you just have to suck it up and stay in this one.

The location is in a beautiful and cool meadow (but see smoke above).

The campground is about 30 mins drive from Yosemite Valley which is not too bad.

The campground is at the start of the Tioga Pass Road, which is absolutely fantastic and the real reason to visit Yosemite NP in my opinion.

Stayed here for four nights, starting Oct 4th, in a Airstream International 23D.

The Good
- Decent location essentially halfway between the vast meadows of Tuolumne and the glacial valley of Yosemite.
- Very, very quiet during the day when folks are hiking. We tend to hike early in the morning and late in the evening to avoid the crowds and get the best light.
- Petrol station across the street, with acceptable prices.

The Bad
- Many late night parties arriving. If we were staying in a tent, I suspect we would've been disturbed awake quite a few times.
- No cell service, at all. Barely any satellite phone service either.
- Generator hours.

The Ugly
- Site had deep water ruts, and "slight" did not accurately describe the steep grade. In spite of the issues, we miraculously managed to level our Airstream.

It was our fault for not making reservations earlier but ultimately that may not have made much difference.
(*= more info in the blurbs below)
The plusses for Crane Flat are that :
it is about equidistance from the 3 places we wanted to see-Yosemite Valley, Tuolumne Meadows and Glacier Point
It is near a gas station and small store
if you need an ADA site they are great

Minuses:
We did not see a level site and mostly they weren't even close
You need to fill your water tanks first and theCG with water are not close*
There is no dump nearby
No cell service and signage about where to make an emergency call*

General Info: Crane Flat is located on Tioga Rd which goes to Tioga Pass and Tuolumne Meadows but is near the turnoff to Yosemite Valley. If coming from the west you will have many miles of very sharp curves, on a steep climb hugging the side of a cliff. The views are expansive but a little sad because of the thousands of pines that have died from Pine Bark Beetle and other diseases.

ACCESS: It was easy to get into, and in our 33' Class A we had no problem getting in-leveling was the problem as was maneuvering once in the site. However, some of the sites are a bit difficult to get into unless you are in a small rig.

LOCATION: For our needs it was good because we really wanted to see the areas other than the Valley and had no desire to be stuck in the Valley traffic. We were only there for 5 days and were not going to do any Valley hikes. In fact, I would say that if you're visiting during the high traffic times and don't want to be stuck in the Valley it would be a great alternative. The other side of that is that it's a 45 min drive to the Valley.

SITES: here is where Crane Flat is not good. The first site we were assigned-having made reservations for a 35' spot- had a rut running right through the middle of it. Even if the site had not been on a virtual slope there was NO WAY we could have parked and come close to level and maneuvering was treacherous and I did not want to get stuck. We finally gave up and returned to the gate and asked for another site. After much discussion it was decided that we could have the "reserve" site but other than the lack of a rut it was as un-level. It took ALL our Lynx blocks-3 backs stacked 4 high to get our MoHo as level as possible which is to say we had to walk uphill from the front to back while there. The entire process from checking in to finally deciding we had to accept what was took 4.5 hours(!) We saw other rigs tilted from side to side but most were rentals and left after a day or two. The longer stays in some cases had a variety of creative approaches. In addition, because it is so dry the sites are dirt that gets everywhere. The one green area was under the water faucet that was outside the restrooms. It was frustrating to see 3 ADA sites empty while we were there since they are level and cement pads but may not be used for anyone without the tag...even for one night at a time. Tents and RVs are side by side and the spacing is decent but parked next to the restrooms, as we were, we had a rather constant stream of campers walking almost through our site.

RESTROOMS: OK not dirty but not really clean. No showers. They are available at Yosemite Valley (Half Dome Village, formerly Curry Village and Housekeeping Camp)

WATER: Here is an important thing to know: IF YOU NEED TO FILL YOUR WATER TANKS DO IT BEFORE ARRIVING. While there is a water faucet outside the bathroom (which, because we were parked close enough to we dragged our hose over and filled our tank that way) you will not be able to fill tanks. Because of the haul up the hill and our long drive there we did not want a full tank and stupidly forgot to find water. I think it would be a good idea for them to ask at the gate if one has done so (they give MULTIPLE warnings about bears and nothing else) and there are only two places to fill within the park. Neither are close by so it would depend in which direction you come on where you get water. The same will pertain to dumping. The dump and fresh water stations are at Upper Pines Campground (all year), near Wawona Campground (summer only), and near Tuolumne Meadows Campground (summer only).

GENERATORS: Generator use is allowed, but only between 7 am and 9 am, noon and 2 pm, and 5 pm to 7 pm.

NOISE: Many people are here for only a day or two and want to get going early so be prepared for early morning (as early as 5am) noise but the good thing is most are exhausted in the evening and things are pretty quiet by 10pm.

CELL: Nada. Rien. Nothing. There is a very short stretch of road on the way to the Valley where a signal will come in but nowhere to pull over so wait until you are down in the Valley. I did have a signal up at Glacier Point. My one objection was that there was no signage about where to go if one needed to make an emergency call-turns out the camp host is the place. I realize that it is a relief for people to get away from phones but in this day and age with most people relying on phones and the absence of pay phones it is a bit disconcerting.

TRASH and RECYCLING: There are several bins out on the road that leads to the loops and all are bear safe. There are bear boxes at each site to leave your garbage IN until you take it over.

Since we had reservations through recreation.gov we just had to stop at the gate and check in which was easy. But, this is a LONG drive to just see if there are any empty spots so reservations at any popular time (i.e. April through September) I think are absolutely necessary.

All in all, we were glad we went but wished the sites were a better grade.

This is a great location for Tioga Rd activities in Yosemite NP. There is more privacy than on the valley floor. Our spot required a stabilizing/leveling miracle but my husband pronounced it the best spot for our solar panels (they recharged to from 86 to 100% each day). Apparently there are more level spots in the park (especially in the 500 loop). No cell service no matter what.