That's what I figured too, but Joe said the ranger told them they were very fortunate to get 5 permits, and that cancellations and no-shows were extremely low this week, along with walk-in volume being high. I suspect it's a combination of the main trail being closed next week for work, along with a dry summer and the last hurrah of Labor Day.
I chose 8/29 initially because it was a Wednesday, the best day to pick up walk-in permits. Little did I know at the time that Inyo would be shutting down the main trail for a bunch of days in September.
