Photo: David Iliff (Diliff), CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Granite walls a half mile high, waterfalls that roar every spring, sequoias older than most countries, and high-country lakes most visitors never reach. Yosemite rewards early starts: the valley trails are calm at sunrise and packed by ten. Give it three days if you can, one for the waterfalls, one for a big summit, and one for Glacier Point and the sequoias. Here are the hikes we'd plan a trip around.
TRAILS
1 OF 8
Vernal and Nevada Falls via the Mist Trail
Difficulty
Hard
Length
5.4 mi
Elevation gain
2,000 ft
Yosemite Valley · Happy Isles — If you only hike once in Yosemite, make it this one. Granite steps climb right beside Vernal Fall, close enough that the spray soaks you in spring, then keep going to the top of Nevada Fall. Come down on the John Muir Trail for a view back at Liberty Cap and both falls. Bring a rain layer and grippy shoes; the steps stay wet.
2 OF 8
Upper Yosemite Fall
Difficulty
Hard
Length
7.2 mi
Elevation gain
2,700 ft
Yosemite Valley · Camp 4 — A steady climb up dozens of rocky switchbacks to the top of one of the tallest waterfalls in North America. Columbia Rock, about a mile up, is a great turnaround if you want the view without the full climb. At the top, the overlook looks straight down the falls into the valley. Start early: the south-facing trail bakes in the afternoon sun.
Photo: James St. John, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
3 OF 8
Half Dome
Difficulty
Strenuous
Length
14–16 mi
Elevation gain
4,800 ft
Yosemite Valley · Happy Isles — The bucket-list summit. The route follows the Mist Trail, then climbs through forest to the subdome and up the steel cables bolted into Half Dome's granite. It's a 10- to 12-hour day, and the cables are no place to be when storms build. Turn around if clouds roll in.
⚠︎ Permit required for the cables. Cables are usually up from late May to mid-October.
Photo: David Iliff (Diliff), CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
4 OF 8
Clouds Rest
Difficulty
Hard
Length
14.5 mi
Elevation gain
2,300 ft
Tioga Road · Tenaya Lake — Higher than Half Dome and with a wider view, plus no permit lottery. The trail leaves Tenaya Lake, passes the Sunrise Lakes junction and finishes on a narrow granite ridge with Yosemite Valley spread out below. The final ridge is airy but wide enough to walk. Only open when Tioga Road is.
Photo: Natecation, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
5 OF 8
Sentinel Dome
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
2.2 mi
Elevation gain
400 ft
Glacier Point Road — The best view for the least effort in the park. A short walk and a friction climb up bare granite lead to a full 360: El Capitan, Yosemite Falls, Half Dome and the High Sierra. Taft Point leaves from the same trailhead, so add it for a cliff-edge sunset.
⚠︎ Glacier Point Road is seasonal. Check road status before you go.
Photo: KimonBerlin, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
6 OF 8
Lower Yosemite Fall
Difficulty
Easy
Length
1 mi loop
Elevation gain
50 ft
Yosemite Valley · Yosemite Village — A paved, wheelchair-friendly loop to the base of the lower fall, with the upper fall framed above it. Easy enough for any group and stunning in spring, when the bridge at the base is pure mist. By late summer the falls can run dry.
Photo: Steveshelokhonov, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
7 OF 8
Mirror Lake
Difficulty
Easy
Length
2 mi
Elevation gain
100 ft
Yosemite Valley · Shuttle stop 17 — A flat walk up Tenaya Creek to a seasonal lake sitting right under the face of Half Dome. In spring and early summer the still water mirrors the cliffs; later it becomes a meadow. Keep going on the 5-mile loop around the lake for a quieter stretch of the valley.
Photo: Dietmar Rabich, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
8 OF 8
Grizzly Giant Loop, Mariposa Grove
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
2 mi
Elevation gain
300 ft
Wawona · Mariposa Grove — Walk among more than 500 giant sequoias in the park's largest grove. The loop passes the Bachelor and Three Graces and climbs gently to the Grizzly Giant, one of the oldest trees here, then the California Tunnel Tree. A free shuttle runs from the welcome plaza in season.
Photo: Dietmar Rabich, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Plan your Yosemite trip
The Nova Bound app builds the whole trip around these trails: where to stay, where to charge, and what to see each day. Coming soon to the App Store.
Distances are round trip unless noted, from NPS.gov and rounded. Trails, permits and road openings change; always check nps.gov before you go. Trail write-ups by Nova Bound.