The Big Outside Ultimate Guide to

The Best of Yosemite, Part 1: South of

© 2018 Michael Lanza All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying or other electronic, digital, or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, contact the publisher at the address below.

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Hiking and backpacking is a personal choice and requires that YOU understand that you are personally responsible for any actions you may take based on the information in this e-guide. Using any information in this e-guide is your own personal responsibility. and associated trail activities can be dangerous and can result in injury and/or death. Hiking exposes you to risks, especially in the wilderness, including but not limited to: • Weather conditions such as flash floods, wind, rain, snow and lightning; • Hazardous plants or wild animals; • Your own physical condition, or your own acts or omissions; • Conditions of roads, trails, or terrain; • Accidents and injuries occurring while traveling to or from the hiking areas; • The remoteness of the hiking areas, which may delay rescue and medical treatment; • The distance of the hiking areas from emergency medical facilities and law enforcement personnel.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY: TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE PURSUANT TO APPLICABLE LAW, NEITHER MICHAEL LANZA NOR THE BIG OUTSIDE, THEIR AFFILIATES, FAMILY AND FORMER AND CURRENT EMPLOYERS, NOR ANY OTHER PARTY INVOLVED IN CREATING, PRODUCING OR DELIVERING THIS E-GUIDE IS LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF A USER’S ACCESS TO, OR USE OF THIS E-GUIDE.

Captions Cover photo: Todd Arndt on the Diving Board atop , above . Frontispiece photo: Todd Arndt and Jeff Wilhelm on the summit ridge of , Yosemite National Park. Back cover photo: Rock art found near the Rafferty Creek Trailhead, Tuolumne Meadows.

Dear Reader,

Congratulations, you have just downloaded the best guide you’ll find to a backpacking trip through one of Yosemite’s largest chunks of wilderness, hitting some of the park’s highlights and more-remote areas south of Tuolumne Meadows, in the park’s southeast quadrant. (The photo of me at right was taken on this trip, on the summit of Clouds Rest, with Yosemite Valley in the background.) I know you will find this trip as beautiful and adventurous as you expect of Yosemite.

I make those statements with confidence not only because I have taken this trip, but I have been writing about outdoors adventures for more than two decades between my blog, The Big Outside, magazines, and authoring print guidebooks.

In responding to innumerable questions from readers planning a trip they read about at my blog—and, of course, through many years of planning my own trips—I’ve acquired a strong sense of what information people like you are looking for. I believe you simply want an e-guide that tells you only what you need to know to understand what a trip is like, and to pull it off successfully and safely—without a lot of superfluous verbiage.

For The Big Outside, I decided to create affordable, downloadable, single-trip e- guides that are organized to most effectively help you do just that.

I also understand that you want the information presented in a way that allows you to customize the trip to suit your party’s style of backcountry travel. Whether a family outing or a group of friends, complete beginners or hard-core experts, what you are about to read will clarify what you must do to properly prepare for this trip, and then pull it off in a way that feels like an adventure personalized for you.

In the pages that follow, I will describe this trip’s character and highlights, and provide details on its total distance and elevation gain and loss, difficulty, and the degree of solitude you can expect to find along it during the peak season. I will give you extensive advice in Section 1 on how to plan this trip, including tips about seasons, getting a permit, travel logistics, gear, and what you need to know regarding safety and other issues specific to this trip. And finally, in Section 2, I give you my expert guidance on how to execute this trip, including primary and alternative hiking itineraries.

A few points: • I don’t rate trips for quality or scenery. Instead of a dry, numerical ranking, this e- guide will describe for you the trip’s unique character. Plus, every one that I’ve created an e-guide for is excellent and highly recommendable. • I don’t provide GPS waypoints or tell you precisely where to take photos or pitch your tent every night, because I believe that excessive hand-holding sucks the mystery out of the wilderness and robs you of the joy of discovery. Instead, this e- guide suggests itineraries and, in general, the best camping areas and other highlights, with enough specific tips on how to maximize enjoyment and safety. • I’m a big believer that much of the success of any outdoor adventure is determined before you leave home, so you’ll find abundant information in Section 1: Planning the Trip. • Please be aware of and always follow low-impact backpacking guidelines; learn about them at lnt.org. They ensure that we all have as pristine a wilderness experience as possible. Also, respect park regulations, they also exist for good reasons. • You have purchased one electronic copy of this e-guide for your personal use only. I retain all rights to its content, and I ask you to respect my rights and not distribute it by any means or for any purpose, including for profit. • When clicking on hyperlinks in this e-guide, you will find that they may open in the same window in which you’re already viewing this pdf file. I suggest opening this e-guide twice, so that you have one copy constantly open while clicking on hyperlinks in the other copy (and using the back button anytime you want to return to this pdf file in the second open copy). • Lastly, if you find any inaccuracies in this e-guide, I hope you will contact me afterward so that I can correct it.

Thanks again for purchasing this e-guide. I hope it helps make your backpacking trip in Yosemite very special. If you would like a more personalized trip-planning service, and have many questions about how to safely and successfully pull of any trip, I would be happy to talk to you on the phone or communicate via email about this or any trip I’ve written about at my blog. See my blog’s Ask Me page for more details.

Please be sure to follow my stories about my adventures at The Big Outside.

Have fun and be safe out there,

Michael Lanza Creator of The Big Outside

Mark Fenton enjoying the dawn view above the Lyell Fork of the .

Backpacking South of Tuolumne Meadows

Location: South of Tuolumne Meadows and east of Yosemite Valley in the southeastern quadrant of Yosemite National Park, .

Primary Route: 65 miles/105 km (including 4-mile round-trip hike up Half Dome).

Approximate Cumulative Elevation Gain and Loss (primary route): 11,600 feet/3,536m gained, 11,400 feet/3,475m lost.

Difficulty for the primary route, on a scale of 1 (easiest) to 5 (hardest)

4—Strenuous at times, but also with some easy stretches, with challenges including significant elevation gain and loss, steep terrain, possible severe weather (mainly afternoon thunderstorms) and extreme temperatures (especially hot summer afternoons), and remoteness, with potentially few other parties encountered—but no extraordinary navigational challenges or need for technical skills. Good to excellent fitness and intermediate-level backpacking skills and experience recommended. See Concerns section below for specific details.

Overview I had already taken several trips in Yosemite over the years, backpacking, dayhiking, and climbing, before I finally got around to exploring the park’s two most expansive swaths of wilderness: the Clark Range and Merced River headwaters south of Tuolumne Meadows on this 65-mile hike, and even vaster northern Yosemite on a subsequent 82-mile hike that I also wrote about at The Big Outside. They were the two pieces of a one-week, 147-mile grand tour of this flagship park that friends and I made. And a grand tour it was, hitting unquestionably much of the best backcountry Yosemite has to offer. This hike south of Tuolumne Meadows displays something of a split personality: It hits some of the busiest areas of Yosemite’s backcountry as well as some of its most remote and lonely wilderness. Highlights include what are certainly two of the best summits in the park, Clouds Rest and uber-popular Half Dome overlooking Yosemite Valley, as well as thunderous, 594-foot-tall , the beautiful Vogelsang area, the mind-boggling granite domes of Tuolumne and Lake, the remote Red Peak Pass in the Clark Range, and the rocky terrain and tarns, lakes, and creeks at the headwaters of the Merced River. In a sense, this represents the perfect Yosemite backpacking trip: You get to see iconic vistas that few backpackers want to miss, despite the crowds—like the view of Yosemite Valley from the brink of the sheer, 2,000-foot Northwest Face of Half Dome— while still discovering the solitude and scenic rewards of Yosemite’s quieter backcountry. And the entire route follows good trails and remains no more than moderately strenuous. Its main challenge is the long stretches without water on the first two days. Read my full story about this trip and see more photos at thebigoutside.com/best- of-yosemite-part-1-backpacking-south-of-tuolumne-meadows. Read my full story about the 82-mile hike through northern Yosemite that followed this trip at thebigoutside.com/best-of-yosemite-part-2-backpacking-remote-northern-yosemite.

Solitude This hike begins, ends, and passes through some of the busiest parts of Yosemite: the Road in the Tuolumne Meadows area, and the most popular summit in Yosemite: Half Dome. But it also traverses one of the park’s most-remote corners. The typical experience on this trip, even during the peak months of July and August, will range from quite crowded to a high degree of solitude. You will see other dayhikers and backpackers around Tenaya Lake, Half Dome (dozens of people), , where this hike overlaps the Trail, and at Nevada Fall, the Vogelsang area, and close to any trailhead in Tuolumne Meadows. But you will encounter few if any other people on long stretches of trail, including Clouds Rest (despite its incredible views); the Illilouette Creek and Ottoway Creek valleys; Red Peak Pass and the upper forks of the Merced River; the high trail (above the Merced River canyon) between the upper Merced’s forks and the Lewis Creek Valley, as well as along Lewis Creek; and ascending to Vogelsang Pass from the Lewis Creek side.

Section 1: Planning the Trip

Season The peak summer backpacking season in Yosemite generally begins in early or mid-July, when higher elevations and passes become mostly snow-free—although passes can remain snowy into late July, especially Red Peak Pass on this hike—and the prime season runs well into September. Mosquitoes get quite thick near any water in Yosemite (and throughout the High Sierra) from the arrival of summer temperatures until mid- to late August. Summer days are fairly reliably sunny, although afternoon thunderstorms are not uncommon. Mid-summer afternoons feature notoriously withering heat and an intense alpine sun, from which there’s often little respite, especially at higher elevations; stay well hydrated and wear a wide-brim hat.

Insider Tip For moderate daytime temps and comfortably cool nights, few to no bugs, and few people in the backcountry, late August until mid- to late September (especially after Labor Day) stands out as an ideal time for backpacking in Yosemite, and good weather sometimes lasts into October. But watch the forecast in fall, because a first-of-the-season snowstorm could dump several inches or more. Also, the park shuttle only operates until mid-September (see Getting There section below).

Permit Free wilderness/backcountry permits are required year-round for camping in the Yosemite backcountry. Many trailheads are popular, so make an advance reservation (a reservation costs $5 per confirmed reservation plus $5 per person). The park issues permits based on a quota system, limiting the daily number of hikers starting at each trailhead. You can reserve a permit up to 24 weeks (168 days) before your hike’s starting date; for example, to start a trip in late July, you should submit your application in early February. Fax in your permit application early on the first day they begin accepting applications for your starting date; for many trailheads, reservation quotas are filled within hours. For each trailhead, 60 percent of available permits can be reserved in advance, while the remaining 40 percent are available on a first-come, first-served basis no earlier than 11 a.m. the day before your hike begins, as long as permits are available. For this trip, you need to specifically request adding Half Dome to your permit, at a cost of $10 per person. (The park also requires dayhikers to obtain a permit for Half Dome and sets a daily quota of dayhikers and backpackers.) Find out more at nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/wpres.htm and read my blog story “10 Tips For Getting a Hard-to-Get National Park Backcountry Permit.”

Insider Tip When applying for a backcountry permit, include alternative routes or starting dates, in case you’re denied a permit for your first choice. That may be as simple as reversing your route’s direction, starting midweek instead of on a weekend, or choosing an entirely different, less-popular route. For example, for this hike, you could alternatively start at the Cathedral Lakes Trailhead in Tuolumne Meadows and camp your first night at Sunrise.

Management This hike lies within federally designated wilderness in Yosemite National Park, nps.gov/yose.

Getting There The closest major airport to the Tuolumne Meadows area, where this hike begins and ends, is in Reno, Nevada, a roughly 3.5-hour drive via Yosemite’s east entrance at Tioga Pass (through the town of Lee Vining) and Tioga Road. Driving to Yosemite from the east side rather than the west side avoids the typically congested traffic around Yosemite Valley. The Tioga Road remains closed due to snow from November through late May or early June. To hike this route counter-clockwise, from Tenaya Lake to Tuolumne Meadows, leave your vehicle at the Rafferty Creek/Lyell Canyon Trailhead in Tuolumne Meadows (down the road past the Wilderness Center). Then take the park shuttle bus to the Sunrise Lakes Trailhead at the west end of Tenaya Lake on Tioga Road to start the hike. A park shuttle bus runs frequently between several stops along the Tioga Road in the Tuolumne Meadows area from June through mid-September. Find out more about it and other public transportation serving the park at nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/publictransportation.htm.

Map Trails Illustrated Yosemite no. 206, $11.95, natgeomaps.com. Digital maps can be obtained from various online sources, including: caltopo.com mytopo.com/maps natgeomaps.com/trail-maps/pdf-quads nationalmap.gov/ustopo

While planning this trip and reading through this e-guide, consult the interactive online maps of the entire park at nps.gov/hfc/carto/PDF/YOSEmap.pdf, and park trailheads at nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/upload/wildernesstrailheads.pdf, and the list of Yosemite National Park trails and distances of segments of them at nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/upload/trailheads.pdf.

Services Tuolumne Meadows has a visitor center, campground, wilderness center, and a small café. The nearest town with lodging, food, gas, and other services is Lee Vining, about a 30-minute drive from Tuolumne via the park’s east entrance at Tioga Pass. Check out the fish tacos and breakfast burritos at the Whoa Nellie Deli, in the Mobil station at the junction of CA 120 and US 395 in Lee Vining; whoanelliedeli.com.

Need to Know • A bear canister is required for food storage when backcountry camping in Yosemite. Canisters are available for loan at the park’s Wilderness Centers, including in Tuolumne Meadows, where you will pick up your backcountry permit. See my “Review: Essential Backpacking Gear Accessories.” • While water is plentiful along much of the route, there are long waterless stretches, including for several miles going over Clouds Rest; between the Merced River at Nevada Fall and the Merced Pass Lakes (you can get water from Ottoway Creek, just off the trail a short distance west of the lakes); and between Triple Peak Fork (in the Merced River headwaters area) and the Lyell Fork of the Merced. Estimate your own hiking time and water needs for those sections. • High Sierra summer afternoons can be very hot, and high elevation and the dearth of shade magnify the effects of the heat. Wear a wide-brim hat, stay well hydrated, start early to hike in the cool morning hours, and don’t overpack. I also prefer wearing lightweight shoes or boots on trips that are hot and often dry. See my ultralight backpacking tips and my “10 Tips For Making Hiking and Backpacking Easier” and “7 Pro Tips For Preventing Blisters When Hiking.” • Occasional afternoon thunderstorms can be intense. Avoid high ground or descend quickly if one is approaching. • High runoff from melting snow can extend into late June and July, particularly after a winter of heavy snowfall and a relatively cool spring; ask backcountry rangers for current information about any potentially hazardous fords. • Much of this hike is at altitudes between 8,000 and 11,500 feet. Most people acclimate to these altitudes without major problems. Stay hydrated. If possible, camp in Tuolumne Meadows—at 8,600 feet—before the trip to begin acclimating.

Gear No specialized gear is needed, other than a bear canister. During the summer season, given the generally dry weather in the High Sierra and nights that don’t get very cold, you can (and should) use lightweight or ultralight gear, including your pack, tent, bag, rain shell, and footwear. In late summer and early fall, past the bug season, I typically use a tarp shelter in the High Sierra. See my Gear Reviews page at The Big Outside, my “Essentials-Only Backpacking Gear Checklist,” and these reviews for my top recommendations (including a bear canister in the review of backpacking accessories): “Gear Review: The 10 Best Backpacking Packs” “The Best Ultralight/Thru-Hiking Packs” “Gear Review: The 5 Best Backpacking Tents” “The 5 Best Rain Jackets for the Backcountry”

Section 2: The Hike

The Primary Route: Tenaya Lake to Tuolumne Meadows

This approximately 65-mile route between Tenaya Lake and Tuolumne Meadows can be hiked in either direction, with pros and cons for both options. The daily mileages in the itineraries below indicate distances between named places and/or trail junctions; your daily mileages will depend on your choice of campsites. Hiking in this direction, you’ll begin with the ascent of Clouds Rest when your pack is heaviest, and there are few to no water sources on this day (depending somewhat on how early in summer you are there). Also, the ascent to Red Peak Pass is steep in this direction. I offer alternative suggestions in both this primary itinerary and the two alternative itineraries below for adding days, to break up the longer days. Bear in mind that trail mileages can vary between different maps, guidebooks, and other sources, including trail signs.

Day one: Tenaya Lake to Little Yosemite Valley 16.5 miles, 3,800 feet uphill, 5,700 feet downhill

From the Sunrise Lakes Trailhead at the west end of Tenaya Lake, hike over 9,926-foot Clouds Rest, one of Yosemite’s most thrilling summits, culminating in a narrow, granite knife edge with steep drop-offs off hundreds of feet to one side and thousands of feet on the other side. (The crest itself is about the width of a city sidewalk, so it’s quite safe.) Beyond Clouds Rest, descend to the junction with the Half Dome Trail. If you have a Half Dome permit, stash most of your packs, gear, and food in the woods nearby and take the four-mile, out-and-back hike up Half Dome, which finishes with a crazily steep ascent of several hundred feet up the cable route. Camp at Little Yosemite Valley (the only designated camping in the area and the most popular backcountry camp in the park; reserve your permit 168 days in advance).

Alternative plan: Spend two nights at Little Yosemite Valley.

But for the popularity of Little Yosemite Valley and the difficulty of getting a permit for camping there for two nights, I would have designed this primary itinerary as a six-day trip, with two nights at Little Yosemite and a day for hiking Half Dome. If the first day described above is too long, here’s an option: Skip Half Dome on day one and hike directly to Little Yosemite Valley— shortening the day’s distance by four miles to 11.7 miles, and cutting total elevation gain almost in half, from 3,800 feet to 2,000 feet. (You’ll also avoid hitting Half Dome in the afternoon, when it’s most crowded and there’s a greater likelihood of thunderstorms.) Build an extra day into your itinerary to hike Half Dome (7 miles round-trip with 2,700 feet of vertical), and spend a second night at Little Yosemite Valley. You’ll add three out-and-back miles to the trip’s total distance. But with a light pack, it will feel like a relatively easy day. Get an early start to beat the crush of dayhikers up Half Dome—it’s a much different experience with few other people up there. See Alternative Itinerary no. 2 below for another suggestion for making this a six- day or weeklong trip.

Day two: Little Yosemite to Lower Merced Pass Lake 13.5 miles, 2,900 feet uphill

Leaving Little Yosemite Valley, pick up the John Muir Trail one mile southwest to Nevada Fall; walk a minute off the trail to overlooks of the waterfalls’ brink. (But don’t approach the river; even rock that’s dry can be unsafe, because the water will occasionally wash higher up the granite slabs containing the river, and can easily sweep a person over the falls.) From there, continue into and up the forested Illilouette Creek Valley, passing some granite domes, to camp near Lower Merced Pass Lake. (We saw a black bear along this section of trail.)

Day three: Lower Merced Pass Lake Triple Peak Fork 12 miles, 2,200 feet uphill, 2,000 feet downhill

From the trail junction near the Merced Pass Lakes, turn northeast toward 11,500- foot Red Peak Pass, the highest pass reached by trail in Yosemite. The pass is a dramatic, narrow notch in a ridge of clean, white granite. Descend the other side to cross a stark plateau of brilliantly red-orange rocks. Continue beyond to camp near the trail junction at the Triple Peak Fork of the Merced River. There are also nice campsites by lakes and tarns between Red Peak Pass and Triple Peak Fork.

Day four: Triple Peak Fork to Lewis Creek 10.1 miles, 1,300 feet uphill, 1,700 feet downhill

From Triple Peak Fork, hike toward Isberg Pass, but at 1.2 miles uphill, turn north onto the trail following the rim above the Merced River (past Cony Crags labeled on maps). Follow this trail through open, quiet forest littered in places with boulders, for 8.9 miles to Lewis Creek to camp. There are numerous nice, potential sites as you head up the creek valley.

Day five: Lewis Creek to Tuolumne Meadows 12.4 miles, 1,000 feet uphill, 2,000 feet downhill

Hike up the valley of Lewis Creek to Vogelsang Pass, a relatively easy pass. The trail descends gently to pretty Vogelsang Lake and the busy High Sierra Camp and backpackers camping area at Vogelsang. Follow the Rafferty Creek Trail north to Tuolumne. Less than a mile before reaching the Rafferty Creek/Lyell Canyon Trailhead parking lot, you’ll pass creeks and pools that offer a refreshing swim.

Alternative Itinerary no. 1: Tuolumne Meadows to Tenaya Lake

You could essentially reverse the above primary itinerary, using the same campsite areas, but I think it would feel harder in some respects—unless, of course, you add at least one day and perhaps two. While the first day from Tuolumne Meadows to Vogelsang Pass and Lewis Creek never gets terribly steep, it’s long and has limited shade, and can feel like a tough day under the relentless sun. (Start in the cool temps of early morning.) You could shorten it by camping at Vogelsang or somewhere in the upper Lewis Creek valley. The ascent of Clouds Rest in this direction is nearly 4,000 feet uphill from Little Yosemite Valley; combining it with Half Dome and hiking out to Tenaya Lake would be a very hard day of 16.5 miles with 5,700 feet of uphill and 3,800 feet of downhill. Hiking in this direction, many backpackers would, if possible, prefer to spend an extra night at Little Yosemite Valley, and devote one day to hiking Half Dome.

Alternative Itinerary no. 2: Tenaya Lake to Tuolumne Meadows

Long waterless stretches make it difficult to shorten some of the longer days when hiking in this direction (as my primary itinerary recommends)—unless you carry extra water, allowing to camp wherever you decide to stop; but that adds considerable weight to your pack. One alternative is to add a night at the start, camping at the backpackers’ camp at Sunrise (where there’s also a High Sierra Camp, so this is a busy but scenic spot); that adds more than five miles out-and-back to the total trip, but shortens the big first day, and gives you a little more time to acclimate before ascending Clouds Rest. Plus, you could still build in two nights and a layover day at Little Yosemite Valley to devote one day to hiking Half Dome (as suggested above). While there’s no good camping options in much of the Illilouette Creek valley— the creek is mostly inaccessible from the trail—you can shorten the day over Red Peak Pass by camping at one of the lakes beyond the pass, before reaching Triple Peak Fork. From Triple Peak Fork, instead of taking the high, mostly waterless trail in the primary route, you could descend the Merced River canyon to Lewis Creek, having good water access and more camping options, while adding about 1.5 miles to the trip. There are multiple camping options along Lewis Creek, allowing you to add another night before heading over Vogelsang Pass.