This was my first time visiting Yosemite National Park as an adult, and I honestly cannot get over…read morehow incredibly LARGE and beautiful this park is! I left Yosemite completely in awe. The views were absolutely incredible, and every hike we did , from easy trails to some that were challenging, was amazing in its own way. There is truly something for everyone here. One thing I really appreciated is that you can drive into the park, and there is parking available, which made exploring much easier. Yosemite is also a very family-friendly park. We saw everyone from babies and young children to elderly visitors enjoying the trails and taking in the scenery. There are SOOO many beautiful spots throughout the park to take pictures, so definitely bring a camera! We visited in October, and there hadn't been any rain, so some of the waterfalls were still flowing. They weren't as strong as they might be during other times of the year, but they were still beautiful to see. Yosemite has so much to do that I honestly wish we had stayed a couple more days. There are hiking trails, scenic areas, waterfalls, museums, historical and cultural sites, dining options, and so much more. I also noticed that the park has campgrounds, as well as glamping tents available for reservations, which I thought was pretty cool. We were told that you have to reserve up till a year in advance for those. The park also has a shuttle system that regularly takes visitors to different areas, so you don't have to walk everywhere. We definitely utilized the shuttles, and they were very easy to use and navigate. The buses were air-conditioned, and the drivers were friendly and helpful. They let you know which stops are available and where you can get off to explore different parts of the park. There is also a museum, a Native village, several places to eat, plenty of bathrooms, and water stations where you can fill up your bottles. We even came across employees who had displays with different artifacts and were explaining their history and significance. And one of the craziest things we saw was a man who showed us the skin of a bear with the actual claws still attached! Please make sure you follow the park's safety guidelines and pick up after yourself. There aren't a lot of trash cans along the trails, especially because of the wildlife and bears. We didn't see any bears during our visit, but there are signs throughout the park explaining what to do if you encounter one and what to do if there is a sighting. The park does a really good job of keeping everything clean and well maintained. The bathrooms we used were clean and fully stocked, and overall, the entire park felt very organized. Yosemite is definitely busy, but because the park is so enormous, it never felt like there wasn't room for everyone. There is a really great system in place for managing the number of visitors while still allowing people to enjoy the beauty of the park. I honestly cannot wait to go back! If you're planning a trip to Yosemite, make sure you bring the proper hiking gear, comfortable shoes, plenty of water, a camera. And give yourself more time than you think you'll need because there is sooo much to see and do! Yosemite is definitely a new favorite, and I already know this won't be my last visit.

Fantastic drive up over Hwy 120 (from US 395)..east gate heavy snow. Drove through to west gate…read morewhere it was mid 80's and sunny. Excellent customer service at both gates. Great roads, lots of scenic pullouts, clear signage, beautiful and clean, ample bear proof trash bins, what a wonderful surprise to get the first snow and the Indian summer fall weather, all in the same day.

Like Nevada Fall, Vernal is a gorgeous waterfall but it was a little small when I visited due to…read morethe lack of rain. Nevertheless, an amazing site and experience. Please come and create your own adventure.

The journey it took me to get here was crazy and I almost gave up twice, but that VIEW? All of the…read morenature and smell of the trees was breathtaking. The water was insanely cold, but felt really ~ refreshing ~ to jump in. Added years on my life and made me think about life. Great 5/6 mile hike, but expect lots of elevation and prep with the stair master! Bring your bathing suit and shoes that can get wet because it gets misty and rainy up there... I'd come back again! Parking is a bit rough, but just keep circling around because people are constantly leaving and arriving. Bathrooms are available right before the trail and halfway through the hardest part of the hike.

Finding a place to park for this hike was a struggle! We failed the last time we visited but…read moremanaged to figure it out this time. We parked at Yosemite Valley Trailhead Parking, took a short walk to Happy Isles and where the restrooms were, then took the free shuttle, got off after one stop at Mirror lake! And going back to the parking lot, we took the shuttle one stop again and it was a short walk back to the parking lot. This hike reminds me of the Little Yosemite hike in Sunol, CA in the Bay Area! It's paved for most of it and there's restrooms at the beginning and about midpoint of the hike. The fall foliage was beautiful, but the lake wasn't full since its fall. There was still some water in it since it rained and snowed not too long ago.

I had not done my research and was taken aback that mirror lake was completely empty when we came…read morein late September 2025. I was hoping to show my husband the lake for the first time to get the beautiful reflection but not this time. It was still fun to walk around in the lake bed and hike the surrounding trail and picnic here, but a real bummer not to get the reflection.

Yosemite Lodge Lower Falls was definitely a different experience than I expected. I've visited…read moreYosemite before, but I had never seen the waterfalls completely dry. I was honestly a little sad when we arrived because seeing the falls flowing is such a beautiful part of the Yosemite experience. Unfortunately, this visit was very different, and I think the timing of the year made a huge difference. If you're coming specifically to see the waterfalls, I would definitely recommend researching the best time of year before planning your trip. Yosemite itself is still absolutely beautiful, but I don't think I'll ever come this late in the year again. I'll definitely plan a future visit earlier in the season when the waterfalls are more likely to be flowing.

This is probably one of my favorite hikes as I love the view of the waterfall, how close the view…read moreis, the large rocks you can climb if you'd like and the walking bridge. If you are looking for a short and fairly easy hike, I'd add this one to the list. There are also man made seesaws from logs right outside the trail which are fun to check out!

This bridge is in half dome village, our one day guided tour stopped here for a short while to…read moreappreciate the stone bridge and Merced river underneath. The views on both sides of the bridge are the same beautiful. But the busy traffic on the bridge makes it hard to cross over so it's best to stay on the same side where you park. Often you can see the half dome reflection in the river too. We took time to enjoy the gorgeous views and took some real nice photos. A little red boat was passing through the river and it made the view look like a vivid oil painting! For some reason I really liked this stone bridge and the surrounding views especially the beautiful Merced river underneath. I suggest drive by or park somewhere to enjoy the gorgeous views of sentinel bridge and everything around!

Upper Yosemite Falls trail was definitely the hardest hike I've done. It was about 7.2 miles…read moreroundtrip, took exactly 7 hours starting at 10:40am and finally making it down at 5:40pm (5 hours going up, 2 going down), and was 2,700 ft of elevation gain. The terrain is mostly rocks and goes up most of the way, so it's an insane leg workout that left me sore for a couple days after. Going up was exhausting, but there's plenty of spots to sit down and take breaks. About halfway through, we stopped and ate snacks. Going down felt more difficult on my knees, but it was a lot faster. It also started to rain so we had to be careful about slipping. The views were absolutely beautiful and worth it every step of the way. I constantly stopped and took photos and admired it all. Once you get up to the top, you can get really close to upper yosemite falls on a narrow path along some rocks. If you're afraid of heights, you might be a bit scared. It was super chilly when we got up there. Almost everyone we encountered on the trail was super friendly, and it was fun to see familiar faces when we got up to the top and overhear people exclaiming how proud they are of themselves. Going in May when the weather was still cold (about 40° when we were here) was definitely helpful. I don't know if I would have been able to do it if it were hot outside. I get lightheaded pretty easily and there were times I felt like I was going to pass out, but I did it!! Definitely take breaks, don't rush yourself, drink plenty of water, and bring snacks. Make sure you have hiking boots!!! If I didn't have hiking boots I probably wouldn't have been able to do it.

It gets super busy in the area, but its worth checking out if you love waterfalls. the hikes are…read moregreat, it's worth it, the waterfalls are breathtaking, and hiking is hard but worth it.

Review is for the Merced River Trailhead near Briceburg, this is very south of Yosemite but I…read moredidn't want to make a new review page just for this small trailhead. If you are taking 140 south leaving Yosemite you'll drive right next to the river and you can stop here. You can get under the freeway underpass for some nice variety but the main attraction is the River. There are small tributaries throughout this area and the kids enjoyed building dams with the rocks here. There are also some nice flat stones closer to the water if you want to teach the kids how to skip stones. There is a bridge you can hike over to for a higher view of the scenery, cars and trucks did drive in this smaller bridge so we didn't cross it all the way. Overall, it was a nice stop with plenty of parking and no one else there when we went, it's much more secluded than some of the more popular Merced River stops closer to Yosemite.

Beautiful river that feeds into Yosemite Valley…read more If you are entering the valley from the west which we did, you will be driving along the river for a while before the entrance of the park. The water is beautiful and clear and lots of people fish in the river. Tubing is also a fun activity to do. Take photos, enjoy the view!

10/10 would do it again! doors open at 8 am , it's not to long of a hike about 5-6 miles total…read moregoing and turning back! definitely take water & sandwiches!! make sure to take ur trash ! leave the trails clean !!!

4.28.18 Please note…read morethat the Gate to Hetch Hetchy opens from 8:00 am - 7:00 pm, so you can't start your hike earlier. A ranger will open the gate usually spot-on at 8 am and then you'll drive a mile or so to pay for entering Yosemite National Park. From there you'll have a 15-20 min drive to parking. For a day hike its in your best interest to not park in the backpackers parking campground but to continue on the road another mile to park literally right next to the dam. I started my hike at 8:35 am. The hike is fairly easy with lots of rolling hills and switchbacks, ups and downs. You'll come to Wapama Falls in about an hours hike. In the early Spring water is flowing at its peak. I came here 3 weeks ago but couldn't even make it to Wapama Falls because there was so much water running off the mountain that there were so many new waterfalls spilling onto the trail. A ranger came by as I couldn't get past one of them and told me that they need to rescue some Boy Scouts via boat because they camped up ahead and can't get past Wapama Falls because the bridge is covered with water. So three weeks ago I turned around and did a much smaller hike nearby. Wapama Falls is nice, a few bridges that provide views of the falls and much needed mist. You'll always have great views of Kolona and Hetch Hetchy because the trail is always on the North side of the mountain. Continue on for another 1:15-1:30 or so and you'll reach Rancheria Falls. You'll first see what appears to be a long water slide, don't stop there keep going and you may come across some backpackers and tents. Keep going... another 10 minutes or so on the trail. It will split, but stay RIGHT for another few minutes. There you will see the Rancheria Falls bridge and have a great perspective. This is an awesome spot to break for lunch. You can head back down and make your way to the river that flows into Hetch Hetchy, there are some pretty good spots to chill. Started my hike at 8:35, made it to Rancheria Falls bridge at 11 am. I took lots of videos and photos on my way up. I had lunch at the falls and left at 12:00 and arrived in the parking lot at 2:15. This is a long hike at 13 miles total.

Our tour guides were absolutely amazing (John and Mia) and they were very knowledgeable and helped…read moreanswer all of our questions (about Yosemite in general, specific famous features on our hike, and even random questions about birds and plant life). The hike is as advertised (in terms of ratings and what features you will see). They always put safety first and even offered to help carry our back packs when we got tired or were crossing a small stream! They treated us like close family/friends, were encouraging us along the way, and adapted to our pace and schedule. Our group ranged from age 6 to adult and we couldn't have made it to the end of the hike without them! Book them for your tours and have fun on your Yosemite Vacation!

Will definitely be booking again with John and Y Explore!!! Honestly when we booked the guided half…read moredome hike I went into it thinking we were just utilizing the purchased permits as hadn't won the lottery ourselves but as the day progressed I became more and more grateful for the wisdom and knowledge of our guide. From breathing techniques and tips for ascending and descending the cables to the order of of our group and perfectly timed rest breaks this was worth every penny as we had not only a successful summit but an overwhelming positive experience! Hubby and I are excited to travel again to more destination with Y Explore in the near future!

We had an excellent day with David. We booked a private tour for my wife and me. We are not so…read moreyoung so David tailored it to our pace and abilities (still made it to the top of Sentinel Dome- well worth the effort!). Literally went from the valley floor to the peak of sentinel dome. His knowledge of the park is outstanding. He picked us up at our lodge and dropped us there at the end of the day- even gave us the picnic we couldn't eat during the trip because clouds blocked the astrophotography portion. He even apologized for the clouds! An all day adventure; we were happily exhausted when we got back to Evergreen Lodge. Highly recommend.

Dave is AMAZING! We had the best day with him on our private tour of Yosemite. He is so fun,…read moreknowledgeable, a great conversationalist and made the day fabulous. I had the best time and felt like we got to really see Yosemite and get to know the park. I would 100% recommend booking with him and his company. Hands down the BEST!!