When I visited Yosemite National Park for the first time and was awed by its breathtaking beauty, I now truly understand why it’s spoken of alongside the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone. I was joined by three close friends from my wedding party nearly 40 years ago, along with three of their family members. Exploring Yosemite together made the adventure even more special. Over the course of a week, we covered all the major must-see moments of the park, including Glacier Point, Yosemite Valley, Tioga Road/Tuolumne Meadows, Wawona/Mariposa Grove, and Hetch Hetchy.
I hope you’ll use these must-see moments to help you plan your own trip, and as a reminder, you do need to plan your trip! Access to Yosemite requires a park reservation pass during most of the May-September high season.
Glacier Point
We began our Yosemite hikes at Glacier Point, with stunning views of Half Dome, El Capitan and Yosemite Falls. An early start let us complete a 9-mile loop to Sentinel Dome, Roosevelt Point, The Fissures, and Taft Point. Next time, I’d hike the loop without Glacier Point and drive there instead.
Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley is the park’s iconic heart—crowded in high season but unmissable for its legendary sights: Half Dome, El Capitan, Yosemite Falls, and Bridalveil Falls. A scenic loop road makes it easy to enjoy and revisit these timeless views. The entrance through Wawona Tunnel offers perhaps the most breathtaking welcome to any national park. Tunnel View, famously captured by Ansel Adams (“Clearing Winter Storm”), is a must-see and Instagram favorite. For the best light, visit in early morning or late afternoon. We found ourselves circling the loop road often—these unforgettable landscapes never lose their magic.
Yosemite & Bridalveil Falls
Yosemite Falls and Bridalveil Falls are stunning and easy to access. Yosemite Falls, the tallest in North America at 2,425 ft, features Upper, Middle, and Lower tiers. We reached the base of each in minutes, though some visitors scrambled even closer. We considered hiking the steep Upper Yosemite Falls Trail but opted out—80+ switchbacks felt like too much for too little “ROE” (“return on effort,” as we say at Parks & Peaks!). There is a very efficient shuttle bus system that allows you to park and ride to most anywhere in the valley.
Fun Fact: Bridalveil Falls, plummeting 620 ft in a single drop, is as stunning as Yosemite. Gusts of wind fan the waterfall’s lower reaches, creating an image of a white, lacy veil, hence the name. The Ahwahneechee named it Pohono, “Spirit of the Gusting Wind”. We hiked part of the Pohono Trail during our day on Glacier Point.
Despite arriving at 7:30 a.m., we found the parking lot full near the Mist Trail and had to park over a mile away, relying on Yosemite’s excellent shuttle system. The Mist Trail climbs 1,000 ft in 1.2 miles to Vernal Falls, with misty views and even rainbows. We continued another 1.4 miles and 1,000 ft up to Nevada Falls, where sunshine and a granite perch made for a perfect lunch spot. We returned via the gentler, slightly longer John Muir Trail.
We also enjoyed gazing from afar at climbers scaling El Capitan, a seemingly insurmountable wall of rock rising 3,593 feet above the valley floor. We paused in the meadow in front to watch them inch their way up the sheer granite face – small specs against a gray façade. Incredible. And of course, one never tires of the iconic Half Dome.
Fun Fact: In 2017, Alex Honnold became the first to climb El Cap without ropes or other protection, “free solo” as it is called. Perhaps you’ve seen the 2018 documentary of this ascent by the same name. If you haven’t, it is still streaming on many services.
Tioga Road & Tuolumne Meadows
The day after visiting Glacier Point, we hiked into the Cathedral Peaks—highly recommended and a favorite of our group. A memorable moment was encountering a massive black bear, so large and brown we briefly mistook him for a grizzly. After he wandered off, we continued, making plenty of noise. The hike ended at stunning Lower Cathedral Lake, where we enjoyed lunch on granite slabs, surrounded by snow-capped peaks and the peaceful beauty of the alpine lake.
Fun Fact: Brown vs Black bears: you can’t tell them apart by the color of their fur. Rather, the former have a dish-shaped face and prominent shoulder hump; the latter have a straighter face and snout with no hump. And here’s the old safety adage about bears: “If it’s brown, lay down; it’s black, fight back; it’s white, good night!”
Later that afternoon, on the drive back down Tioga Road, we stopped at another picturesque lake, Tenaya Lake, and several of us decided it was just warm enough to swim. I am not such a cold-water denizen, but I managed to wade in thigh-high.
Tip: Tenaya Lake makes a great picnic spot, especially the eastern end of the Lake with its sandy beach and tables. The name Tenaya comes from the chief of the Ahwahneechee tribe.
On our final day, worsening weather didn’t stop us from enjoying a short hike to May Lake, though the nearby Mount Hoffman scramble had to wait. We continued up Tioga Road to its high point at the Pass, where rain, sleet, and snow marked a sharp contrast to our recent swim in Tenaya Lake. Later, a break in the weather let us hike along the Tuolumne River. That stretch uniquely overlaps both the John Muir Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail—2,650 miles long. I now proudly claim I’ve hiked both… all 2 miles of it!
Wawona/Mariposa Grove
In Yosemite’s southwest corner, we spent a restful day in Wawona and Mariposa Grove, home to the park’s largest sequoias. Though larger groves exist in Sequoia and Kings Canyon, the Mariposas were impressive and a welcome break from hiking. We strolled a 3-mile loop on the Mariposa Grove Trail, admiring highlights like Fallen Monarch, Grizzly Giant, California Tunnel Tree, The Bachelor, Three Graces and Faithful Couple. Wawona itself, with streams and peaceful lunch spots, was serene. We also explored its historic village, watched blacksmithing, and hiked partway up the lovely Chilnualna Falls Trail to its first series of waterfalls.
Fun Fact: The giant sequoia is the largest tree in the world by volume. And they live longer than almost any other living organism. Grizzly Giant, for example, is estimated to be over 2,000 years old and 209 feet tall, higher than the Statue of Liberty (without pedestal).
Hetch Hetchy
As some of us headed back to San Francisco, we stopped at Hetch Hetchy, the controversial reservoir supplying the city’s water. Its creation, through damming the Tuolumne River, was opposed by John Muir and others who believed there were less damaging options. Though altered, the valley still holds beauty. We hiked a scenic 5-mile round-trip trail along the reservoir’s north shore to Wapama Falls. The flow was full but safe—ideal for lunching on nearby rocks in the cool mist. We passed on the extra 4-mile hike to Rancheria Falls, deciding it wasn’t worth the additional time and effort.
Fun Facts: The Hetch Hetchy Reservoir provides over 80% of the water supply for the San Francisco Bay area. From the reservoir, water travels 160 miles via gravity – no pumps required! With neighboring lakes, its hydroelectric system provides 20% of SF’s electricity needs.
Yosemite National Park is truly one of the greats, with so much to offer. Check out my itinerary here for more travel tips.
Get out there and Carpe Diem!
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.