Quotas limit the number of overnight visitors who may enter each day to all of the 45 zones in the Desolation Wilderness. Unlike other wilderness areas, Desolation Wilderness quotas are based on the zone where you camp your first night. Quotas are in effect Friday before Memorial Day weekend through September 30. Permits for each party are still required at other times of the year. The maximum group size is 12.

Fontanillis Lake and Dicks Lake are in zone #23 which has a 16-person limit per day, 11 of which may be reserved. If all the permits for zone #23 have been taken, consider a nearby alternate zone for your first night, e.g. #16 Middle Velma. Then move to Dicks Lake or Fontanillis Lake for your second night.

Seventy percent of all overnight permits are available by a computerized reservation system at Recreation.gov - Desolation Wilderness Permits. You can make your reservation up to 6 months in advance of your departure date. Then within 14 days of your trip, log back onto your account at Recreation.gov and print your permit. Carry it with you at all times on your trip.

Wilderness Permit Fees

The overnight wilderness permit has a $6 reservation fee. Then there is a per person fee as follows:
  Adult (over age 12) $5 for first night, then $10 for 2-14 additional nights
  Child 12 and under - free.
  Desolation Annual Pass Holder -free (but still pay the $6 reservation fee)
Permit reservations are no longer made by phone or fax and they are not mailed.

Thirty percent of the permits are not reserved and are offered as "walk-in/same day issuance" at the Placerville Ranger Station in Camino 7 days a week starting the Friday before Memorial Day.

Check Eldorado National Forest Wilderness Permits for any updates. Some destinations (zones) have very small daily quotas, so check the Desolation Wilderness Quota and Zone Information to see if your group exceeds the entry quota for that zone. Maximum group size is 12.