Camp Mather email leads to confusion among SF campers

Camp Mather is a patch of land owned by the city of San Francisco just outside the gates of Yosemite National Park. Camp Mather is a patch of land owned by the city of San Francisco just outside the gates of Yosemite National Park. Photo: Carol Irvine / Honeymilk Studio Photo: Carol Irvine / Honeymilk Studio Image 1 of / 29 Caption Close Camp Mather email leads to confusion among SF campers 1 / 29 Back to Gallery

Every year, San Francisco families anxiously await acceptance emails to Camp Mather, the beloved family camp 20 miles outside Yosemite.

This year, emails started going out in early March, and word on the street is that a new design in the email has led a whole lot of people to think they're all going on the same date and staying in the same cabin.

The reason is the instructions on how to login begins with a step-by-step example on how to reserve and make payments for a six-person cabin, beginning August 4. You have to click beyond the example to get your specific assignment, and not everyone is doing that.

"I was at a party yesterday and someone said they really should send out a second email because people at the party were convinced that half of San Francisco is going to arrive at Camp Mather on August 4th and head for that one cabin," Elizabeth Weise of Glen Park wrote to SFGATE in an email.

ALSO: Kid-friendly Camp Mather: It's a safe haven for frazzled families

San Francisco Recreation and Park spokesperson Madison Sink says the city is aware of the confusion, and they've amended the email so the example is clearly labeled "Sample Permit."

"We will send an email to those who have already signed up for further clarification," Sink said. "The entire process is online, and the reservations and waiting list notifications were emailed the first week in March."

Camp Mather runs for 11 weeks and Sink says this year the city assigned 1,170 families reservations. Not every family who applies gets in; the system is based on a lottery. Swims in mountain lakes, campfire songs, and home-cooked meals served cafeteria-style in a big dining hall are all part of the experience.

This story was updated on March 18 at 6:15 p.m.