The process: Online permits can be made during overnight hours tonight starting at 12:01 a.m. PT (3:01 a.m. ET). Phone reservations can be made by calling 1-877-444-6777 starting at 7 a.m. PT (10 a.m. ET). Tip on calling: After the introductory message, press 2 (for permits), then 8 (for Half Dome).

Should you wait up tonight and try to be among the first to submit a permit application? No, phone reps at Recreation.gov tell me. This is a lottery, known as the "preseason lottery." Anyone who applies on any date during March will have an equal opportunity for having their application chosen for a permit.

Daily total: 300 hikers—approximately 225 day hikers, 75 backpackers. The goal: Reduce congestion that was clogging Half Dome's climbing cables.

Additional numbers of interest: Your permit application can include up to 6 people, and you can apply for permits on as many as 7 dates. I’m told you will be able to indicate on your application which dates you prefer most.

Cost: A nonrefundable online application fee of $4.50. If applying by phone, the fee is $6.50, also nonrefundable. Permits themselves cost $8 per person. Yeow.

Tough to plan in advance? The park will continue its short-notice permit lottery that began last year. You can apply for unclaimed or still-available permits 2 days in advance of your desired climbing date, as explained in a past REI Blog post or on the park’s website.

Want to avoid the permit hassle? Sign up for the Yosemite Half Dome Backpacking trip via REI Adventures. These 4-day trips run from June through September and include all permits.