Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion Cottonwood Lakes permit question

Hi all,

On the fs.usda.gov page for the Cottonwood Lakes Trail, it says wilderness permits are required for overnight trips and that quotas are in effect from May 1 - through Nov 1. I understand this to mean that permits are required for any overnight stay but are limited to a certain number of permits during May 1- Nov 1.

My confusion is that permits are only available on recreation.gov, but there are no permits available for this weekend whereas other area (Convict, Bishop etc) show 99+ (seems to be a miscellaneous default number). Or are overnight permits only required during that quota period?

I've called (760) 873-2483 a couple times but when I press "0" to speak to the next person, it just rings a bunch of times and hangs up.

Additionally, it appears Horseshoe Meadow Rd is closed. I've heard this is a gate that is not far from the campgrounds/ trailheads. I assume one can still park on the side of the road before closure?