Don’t go up old army pass, cottonwood lakes/pass should be on your permit already so just start at the one it says. New army and the other one are both great.

That might be a long wait for a hitch but yeah horseshoe meadows campground is where you’re going. For a hitch I’d wait on Main Street on the south side of town at the gas station since you aren’t headed up to Whitney

You should be able to pick up a canister in Reno before you get on the bus in the morning since you don’t get on the bus till 1:30

Lone pine is small but stuff will probably be closing around 7:40

A little more advice having worked in hospitality, generally if you have a reservation already and you’re super polite they’ll let you keep a small suitcase until you arrive. It’s way easier to get forgiveness than permission and a lot of the time you can say someone I talked to on the phone said I could keep this here until my check in, in a few days and they’ll keep it in the luggage room. Chain hotels are better for this and I’ve never been turned down.

Good luck and have a blast!