Tow vehicle? You have a Cherokee, what would you need a tow vehicle for?
Last time I went one of the guys left his tow on one of the dirt roads at the White Bark overlook. Another possibility is to see if you can leave it at the boat docks at Shaver Lake.
There is a gas station at the end of the 4 lane highway (168?) that takes debit cards 24 hours. There is another one at Dinkey Creek but it is 8-5 I think. It wouldn't be a bad idea to carry one full gas can on the trail, I found out that one the hard way too.
If you have an extra day to spend after the trail I highly recommend driving all of the way to the end of the road to Edison Lake. It's a beautiful, if somewhat treacherous drive but the Vermillion Valley Resort at the lake has AWESOME grub and hospitality that I have never found comparison to. I spent quite a bit of time there on my road trip/through hike. You'll also pass by the Mono Hot Springs, can you say hot bath?
