Yosemite is one of America’s most famous national parks, and rightly so, for its landscape is truly breathtaking. The iconic granite cliffs are seen throughout the valley, including the sheer face of El Capitan—a legendary challenge for rock climbers—to the majestic Half Dome. The park is also home to spectacular waterfalls, including Yosemite Falls, Bridalveil Fall, Vernal Fall, and Nevada Fall, which cascade into pristine lakes and lush meadows. We were thankful there was still water in the waterfalls. The last time Dave and I visited Yosemite in late summer, there was barely a trickle. I cannot imagine the beauty of the falls right after the snow melts.
Dave and I have hiked from the valley floor to the cables at the top of Half Dome (and when we were much younger – I do not think we could do that hike today), so we wanted to explore other areas. I asked Gemini, Google’s AI, to prepare a 4-day itinerary which included moderate hikes. I received a very detailed list covering the major regions of the park. I changed it slightly; to include one day with the few dog-friendly hikes within the park so Murphy could enjoy Yosemite too.
Dave had made reservations at a campground in Groveland, CA about 30 minutes west of the Big Oak Flat entrance to Yosemite. Luckily, I found a home-based doggy daycare for Murphy (thank you Rover app), just 10 minutes from the campground We had tried and tried to get a campsite within the park, but no luck. On one cancellation list, there were 2,000 others wanting the same days we wanted. Tough competition for sites. A ranger said this is one of the most competitive parks for campsites, due to the large population areas it is near. That makes sense!
For our first day, Dave and I drove to the Glacier Point area and hiked the Sentinel Dome and Taft point hikes. Once we arrived at the base of the dome, I was not sure I could hike to the top (my fear of heights kicking in, so Dave went on ahead. I watched others hike up and had a “you can do it” chat with myself; up I went. No problem! I did stay in the center once on top, but I did it! Gorgeous 360° views of Yosemite from the top.
We next stopped at Bridalveil fall on our way out from Glacier Point. The wind would change the direction of its flow.
The second day was Murphy’s day. We first enjoyed walking along a paved trail to the bottom of Yosemite falls. We then drove to Wawona about 45 minutes from the valley to the southern part of Yosemite. We parked at the Wawona Hotel and hiked a tree-lined loop around Wawona Meadow. Sadly, the 170-year-old Victorian-era hotel is now closed indefinitely for refurbishment. Oh, and of course, Murphy found water on our hike
Day 3 in Yosemite started with a delicious breakfast at The Ahwahnee Hotel. It was fun to walk around the hotel. I cannot believe the price of the rooms though…somewhere between $400 and $800 per night if you are lucky to get a reservation. As with Yosemite’s campsites, you must be ready at the exact second the reservations open for your requested stay and hit enter. We heard one lady uses her grandsons who are avid gamers to get the reservations she wants.
Next, Dave and I hopped on the shuttle and headed out to Vernal Fall, which is the first portion of the strenuous hike to Half Dome. It was a fairly steep hike, even to the base of the falls. Dave and I were at the back of the group that had just arrived on the shuttle and as we hiked up, one by one, our fellow hikers needed to stop for a breather. We were quite proud of ourselves as we kept walking!
Next, we headed over to Mirror Lake. I had read that if the weather is right, you can see Half Dome’s reflection in the lake. However, even in early summer, the lake was already dry. Dratz! It was a fun hike nonetheless.
On our schedule for day 4 was a drive to Tuolumne Meadows and vista points in that section of the park. However, as Dave had been driving for 4 days straight on twisty mountain roads, we decided to take a day off. Speaking of twisty mountain roads, the roads around Yosemite don’t bother me too much as the mountains are lined with trees. However, on our way into Groveland, we had to drive a short stretch on CA-120, “New Priest Grade Road”, which included somewhere between 5 and 8 miles (depending on which sign you read) of a twisty, mountain road with sheer drop offs. It “scared the bejesus outta me.” I can’t imagine what driving on “Old Priest Grade Road” is like; it is still in use for passenger vehicles. I am not looking forward to returning that way (there really is no other good option since we are pulling a trailer and heading west.) I had a good chuckle though. On the map out front of our campground, the one really twisty portion of road is conveniently covered with a CA-120 sign.
That’s a wrap for our trip to Yosemite. The weather was just perfect. Here is Dave’s Yosemite video.
By the time this blog is published, I would have made it over “that fun road”. Hopefully, I kept quiet and let Dave drive without too many squeals of terror.
Thanks for reading along on our 2025 adventure. We are off to another National Park!
Another majestic national park under our belt Brenda, Yosemite, no place like it Dave, and thanks for a day in Yosemite for me Murphy (but I did have fun in doggy daycare too!)