It looks like there are spotty cancellations here and there ... I've never seen anything like this.
Cottonwood Pass is definitely an easier entry than Cottonwood Lakes. In 2018, I entered at Cottonwood Lakes and went over New Army Pass and camped at Rock Creek. Even though I spent a night at the trailhead prior to starting, I had a lot of altitude issues that first day and didn't climb Mt. Langley as I had planned. ?Cottonwood Pass which I went over in 2015, in contrast, is pretty gentle and then it is smooth sailing to Rock Creek which is under 10,000 feet.
ravi_jmt2013