This article describes the eight best backpacking trips in Yosemite, from the core between Yosemite Valley and Tuolumne Meadows-including Half Dome-to the John Muir Trail, the Clark Range and southeast corner, and the vast wilderness of northern Yosemite. Wander into the park’s vast backcountry and you will find some of the very best scenery in Yosemite-along with a surprising degree of solitude. Mark Fenton scaling Half Dome’s cable route in Yosemite. And the average length of backpacking trips is just two nights.Ĭonsequently, he said, “There are areas of the park where you will see very few people.” Little Yosemite Valley alone accounts for almost 20 percent. I once interviewed a retired backcountry ranger who’d worked for 37 years in Yosemite, 25 years as wilderness manager, and had hiked every trail in Yosemite “probably about 10 times.” He told me that only about 10 percent of the park’s hundreds of miles of trails-from Happy Isles to Donohue Pass (mostly the John Muir Trail) and the Sierra High Camps loop-accounts for about 80 percent of all trail use. Click here to learn how I can help you plan your next trip.īut most of the park’s backcountry isn’t crowded. Click here for my e-guides to classic backpacking trips.
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Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside. Yes, Yosemite Valley sees insane numbers of tourists, and a few of the park’s trails-like the Mist Trail and Half Dome-are among the most popular in the country. Yosemite exceeds expectations in many ways, including this truth: Its reputation for crowds just doesn’t square with the reality of backpacking throughout most of the park. And Yosemite’s backcountry harbors such an abundance of soaring granite peaks, waterfalls, lovely rivers and creeks, and shimmering alpine lakes-plus, over 700,000 acres of designated wilderness and 750 miles of trails-that you can explore America’s third national park literally for decades and not run out of five-star scenery. After more than three decades of exploring all over Yosemite on numerous backpacking trips, I’ve learned two big lessons about it: First of all, few places inspire the same powerful combination of both awe and adventure.
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