Yosemite Menu NON-HIKING MENU CHOICES: 1. If you have a little bit of time to spend, lie in the El Capitan meadow and gaze up at the climbers. 2. Check out the Ansel Adams gallery in the Yosemite Village. 3. Check out the Visitors’ Center in the village. There is a wealth of information and this is where students can purchase things. 4. Take a quick look in the Yosemite Hotel (formerly called the Ahwahnee). Don’t get stalled out too long here. DAY HIKE OPTIONS IN THE VALLEY: El Capitan: There is a climbers trail to the base of El Capitan. Find it on your map. The students have learned a lot about climbing in the valley. Standing at the base of El Capitan and looking up would be mind-boggling. This would be a short hike. Artist Point: (This sounds like an amazing hike…I haven’t done it but want to) Distance: 2 miles (3.2 km) round trip Elevation at trailhead: 4,400 feet (1,340 meters) Elevation Gain: 500 feet (150 meters) Why Hike to Artist Point? To see a Tunnel-View-like vista without engaging in the scrum for position that's the normal state of affairs at the actual Tunnel View. Best Time to Visit: After two or three tour buses have unloaded their swarms at the Tunnel View. If you want to take pictures, it'll also help if sunset is approaching and there are some big fluffy clouds accessorizing the eastern sky. Hiking Time: 45 - 90 minutes Scenery Factor: It's similar to Yosemite's most famous panorama, the Tunnel View, but from higher and a bit to the southeast. In my opinion, it's superior to the Tunnel View. You don't see as much of Half Dome, and you miss Sentinel Dome and much of Sentinel Rock, but you do see more of Clouds Rest, plus things you can't see from the Tunnel View: Bridalveil Meadow, Royal Arches, partial views of North Dome and Ribbon Fall, plus a few corners of the Merced River. If you're a serious photographer, you'll find this spot eminently tripod-worthy. Getting There: The trailhead is at Yosemite Valley's Tunnel View vista. If you're already in Yosemite Valley, head to the western end of the valley and follow the signs pointing you to Highway 41 and/or Bridalveil Fall. The Tunnel View is about two miles (3 km) uphill from Bridalveil Fall. Trail Notes: The trail starts from the Tunnel View on the uphill side of the road. This is the Pohono Trail, which goes all the way to Glacier Point, passing several other points (Inspiration, Crocker, Stanford, Dewey, and Taft) plus Sentinel Domeen route. For this hike, though, you want to turn left half a mile along, where the trail intersects the old stagecoach road into Yosemite Valley. You'll reach Artist Point in just under half a mile. Shortly before Artist Point, you'll pass a viewpoint partially obstructed by trees; this isn't it - keep going and you'll find a much better view just around the corner. Just past Artist Point, the trail crosses Artist Creek. If you get this far, you've missed the literal point, though you'd have to be distracted by assorted bears and a flying saucer to overlook it. If you keep going, you'll eventually come out at Highway 41 a quarter mile uphill from Bridalveil Fall. Bridalveil Fall: Photos · Trail Map · Satellite View · Reviews Distance: 1.2 miles (2 km) round trip Elevation at trailhead: 4,000 feet (1,200 meters) Elevation Gain: 200 feet (60 meters), more or less Why Hike to Bridalveil Fall? At 620 feet (189 meters), this cataract is short compared to Yosemite Falls, but chances are you still don't have anything like it in your neighborhood. It's famous for the mist that wafts off it when the breezes blow and which, according to the poetic, isolation-addled souls who get to name waterfalls, resembles a bridal veil. Hanging out at the base of the falls during peak runoff can be akin to taking a shower in a tornado, sans the flying cows. Best Time to Visit: In the springtime, when the snowmelt is roaring over the falls and you'll need windshield wipers for your spectacles - sometimes from a quarter mile away. Hiking Time: 15 - 30 minutes Crowd Factor: As heavy as the waterflow, generally. Along with Lower Yosemite Falls, this is one place where virtually every tour bus is sure to stop, so crowds will appear in waves. Difficulty: Easy; a 1 out of 10. There's some incline and the spray-soaked path can be slippery near the falls, but it's still a hike that almost anyone can do. Parking: A large lot at the trailhead. It often fills up, but if you drive a few hundred meters into the valley, you'll find a trail to the falls running parallel to the road, and you can almost always find a parking spot somewhere along here, with the added bonus of having a view of El Capitan. This longer trail is probably better anyway; it crosses Bridalveil Creek and some pleasant meadows, and really, the more of Yosemite Valley you walk through, the happier you're going to be. Here are Google Street View panoramas of the turnoff to the main parking area and the alternate trailhead (trail at right, El Capitan looming overhead). Nearest Bathrooms: You can find some rather pungent pit toilets next to the parking lot, and bathrooms with plumbing in Yosemite Village, five miles east. Nearest Snacks: Assuming that all the cooler-laden cars in the parking lot are out of bounds, your best bet is Yosemite Village, five miles east. Getting There: From Yosemite Valley, take Highway 41, which heads towards Wawona and the south park exit. You'll reach the Bridalveil Falls parking lot very shortly after turning onto Highway 41. See the trail map for a clearer idea. The Mist Trail (Vernal and Nevada Falls): Photos · Trail Map · Reviews Distance: 3 miles (4.8 km) round trip to Vernal Fall, 7 miles (11 km) round trip to Nevada Fall. If you walk from Curry Village instead of catching a shuttle bus to the trailhead, add an extra 1.5 miles (2.4 km) round trip. Elevation at trailhead: 4,000 feet (1,200 meters) Elevation Gain: 1,000 feet (300 meters) to top of Vernal Fall; 1,900 feet (580 meters) to top of Nevada Fall Why Hike the Mist Trail? This is Yosemite's signature hike. While many of Yosemite's trails are popular due to having a single spectacular destination, the Mist Trail has fabulous views scattered all along it, beginning at the bridge overlook, progressing to two unforgettable waterfalls that fall a combined total of more than 900 feet (270 meters), and ending with perhaps the most striking of all: the view of Nevada Fall, Liberty Cap, and the back of Half Dome from the Muir Trail return segment. Best Time to Visit: During peak runoff, which is generally from April into June, though after particularly snowy winters this can extend well into July. See the Should I Hike the Mist Trail Today? page for examples of how the falls look at various states of water flow and for information on current flow levels. Because the Mist Trail is such a popular hike, time of day matters as well. If you're hiking it during peak season, and especially during a peak season weekend, you'll get the best experience starting early in the morning or later in the afternoon (in the latter case, be sure to pack a flashlight). Hit the trail by 7 AM, assuming you possess the sort of superhuman getting-out-of-bed powers that this entails, and crowds won't be a factor for you until your return trip to the trailhead. Hiking Time: 2 - 5 hours, depending on how far you go Scenery Factor: Sublime. You can get covered-with-spray close to two of Yosemite's rock- star waterfalls, and the view looking back from the Muir Trail is just as remarkable as the trail up the falls. Crowd Factor: Heavy to the top of Vernal Fall, especially when the water is high. The crowds thin out considerably if you continue to the top of Nevada Fall, although several trails intersect at the top of this fall, so you won't be alone there. Difficulty: Medium, but bordering strenuous if you go all the way to the top of Nevada Fall. The stretches beside Vernal and Nevada Falls are both quite steep - in fact, the last few hundred meters up the Vernal Falls trail are stairs cut into the cliffside. If you need a gentler workout, you can just proceed as far as the bridge looking upstream to Vernal Fall without exerting yourself quite so much. Parking: You can park just about anywhere in the eastern half of Yosemite Valley and catch a free shuttle bus to the trailhead near Happy Isles. The nearest parking, however, is at the trailhead parking lot, which is just east of Curry Village. If it's full, try Curry Village, where you can usually find a spot if you're willing to poke around in the back corners of the unpaved section of the lot. Nearest Bathrooms: Park planners were apparently concerned about what subliminal messages our bladders would receive from the sight of all that flowing water, because the Mist Trail is Yosemite's toilet king.