Oh wow, so many thoughts, experiences, (and strong feelings on this).
Tire chains work well. Amazingly well, when used properly at the right times. In a way that Easterners and non-snow-country Westerners just don't grasp.
Back when I studied the California Vehicle Code (the 70's), you were required to have chains with you at all times in snow country – no season to that. I've used chains in all 12 months of the year in California, including a long patch of snow on the north-facing slope at 8,000 feet in July that I got stuck in without chains and I installed the chains to get out.
There are multiple levels to checkpoints and road restrictions in CA. Any vehicle allowed. Snow tires or chains required. 4WD or chains required. Chains required on all vehicles. Chains on four tires required. Chains on four tires AND 4WD (I heard that condition announced 2 hours before I-80 closed for 36 hours due to 78 inches of snow in a day in 1981).
Most all days of the Winter, you don't need chains. But 1 in 15 days, yes, you need chains for safety and/or legal reasons. Several solutions to that:
A 4WD rental gets you through the lowest levels of traffic restrictions.
The rental-car company doesn't want you to use chains on their vehicle. Or go on a dirt road. Or avoid their high-cost insurance options. I've often used tire chains on a rental car and they never found out. I always go on dirt roads. I never buy their insurance policies.
You could buy chains in Fresno once you know the tire size. You could buy the tire chains for less on Amazon and guess about the tire size. Heck, I'll ship you tire chains for a compact car if you want, and you can send them back to me afterwards (whether you use them or not) – PM me if you're interested.
MUCH more important than HAVING tire chains is KNOWING how to use them. They need to be REALLY tight. having the rubber-band tighteners helps a lot. Taking up one extra link (however hard that is) is HUGE and lets you drive faster, safer and the chains last much longer. Most problems on snowy/icy roads are solved by driving slowly, chains or not. IMO, You really don't have chains with you, unless you've tired them on your car THAT year and confirmed they fit and that you can install them correctly (P.S. I say the same thing about backpacking tents – you don't really have a tent with you unless you've set it up, in the dark, in the last few months).
Bring a closed-cell-foam pad (chains are always installed at "snow line" a.k.a. "the slush zone". Bring gloves. Be ready to tug and curse and tug again, to get the chains as tight as possible.
I worked in a Ski Shop and we made great money on renting skis, boots, poles, but also apres-ski boots, powder pants, and ski racks. I wanted us to rent tire chains. The owner couldn't get his head around all the possible sizes, etc. My response: Customers sign that they've tried them on the car before they left our parking lot. He was also nervous about renting used tire chains (for liability reasons): I showed that if we threw away any chains that had ever been used (maybe one trip in 6), we'd do great. It was one of those wonderful rental scams (like the powder pants) where the one-use rental costs was the same as the wholesale cost. Rent once, you break even. Rent more than once, it's all profit.
I've wrapped standard, straight chain around my tire/rim in a pinch. I've been ready to screw-gun 100 self-tapping screws into each tire to get where I was going during a Virginia snow storm. I've driven through snow storms that had others sliding off the road by steering, braking, and accelerating very gently.
In summary, you very likely won't need chains at all. Definitely watch the weather forecasts. If you want to get chains, you could buy them locally to fit the rental car tires. It is possible to get a winter storm that would shut down the park roads to everyone and then you'll want to have a Plan B. If bringing chains with you would give peace of ming, send me a PM. During my annual, "mental-health road trips", I've often checked tire chains in my baggage with no problem. Once I was traveling lightly and put them in my carry-on bags. It generated a few questions, but I was allowed to carry them on the plane.
