If You Have One Day in Yosemite

Right now, early October, is the best time to hike in Yosemite – day hikes, long hikes, one hour hikes in the morning or afternoon. For the next ten days, temperatures are expected to be in the high 70s during the day and in the mid-50s at night, although both will start sliding a couple of degrees cooler every few days. It will be dry because the rainy season hasn’t yet started, and I’m hoping for a really wet winter because there’s been a long drought. There aren’t many people in the valley now and it’s really quiet.

You could hike for several weeks and not cover all the trails in and around the valley, but if you only have one full day in the valley, and you want to see a lot, this is what I’d recommend. 

Start off before dawn in Leidig Meadow and watch the stars give way to the orange and yellow colors of dawn. You will see deer and probably a few coyotes. Sunrise is at 7 a.m. and sunset at 6:30 p.m. so you have a maximum of 11 ½ hours to hike. As soon as it is light enough to see the trail, maybe 6:30-45 a.m., head for the top of Upper Yosemite Fall, pausing at Columbia Rock halfway up the wall to take in the view, as well as to catch your breath. 

Arriving at the top two hours after starting off, walk to the bridge that crosses the creek, look up the river channel to see the landscape that gathers the water, then walk to the fall's overlook and watch the river shoot out over the valley and shimmer as it heads for the valley floor. Even with the drought there should still be a thin stream of water. Notice how the Lost Arrow attaches to the wall, and scan the crest of the Sierra Nevada range stretching along the horizon. Head back down and arrive on the valley floor around 10:30 a.m.

One optional sidetrip at this point would be to walk to the base of Lower Yosemite Fall and view it from below. In spring you’d be pummeled by water hitting the rocks and shooting off horizontally. It probably won’t be doing much now, but you can see how the force of falling water has polished the rocks at the bottom.

Hike across the meadow to Sentinel Bridge, pausing to look at Half Dome to the left and Sentinel Rock rising up straight ahead. Continue on to Curry Village and follow the path to Happy Isles and head up the John Muir Trail toward Vernal Fall. It will now be around 12:30 p.m. A short way up, a bend on the trail has a clear view of Glacier Point and reclusive Illilouette Fall. Shortly after the footbridge with its great view of Vernal Fall, the trail splits with the Mist Trail going left and the John Muir Trail going right. Take the Mist Trail to the top of Vernal Fall and look for rainbows. Notice the Emerald Pool and the Silver Apron just above Vernal, and continue on to Nevada Fall. At the top of Nevada, have a late lunch in the sun, look carefully at the jointing in Liberty Cap and Mt. Broderick and wonder why the glaciers didn’t break them down and carry them away with all of their fracture lines. Notice how different Half Dome looks from the backside. At 2:30 p.m. head back down, taking the John Muir Trail this time with its view of Nevada Fall from a higher elevation.

Arriving back in the valley around 3:30 p.m., take the shuttle or drive your car and head for El Capitan. From El Capitan Meadow let the grandeur of this granite monolith overwhelm you. Look for climbers on the rock; they are the colored dots. You can drive around the bend to Bridalveil Fall and walk up to its viewpoint, as well as drive up to the Inspiration Point parking lot and gaze up the length of the valley and take in the wonder. But by all means, make sure you drive to Glacier Point in time to watch the sunset color the mountains in the rose and purple of alpenglow. Half Dome will be right in front of you.

You do have to prioritize what you do, and if you want to linger at certain places, by all means do so. This trip is for you. You may only want to do one hike and then drive up to Glacier Point. Or just walk through the meadow, sip coffee at Degnan’s and drive to Glacier for sunset.

The best single hike is the Vernal/Nevada trail. And if this is the only hike you are doing, you will have time to explore the area behind Half Dome. When you come back down, walk across the valley to the Indian Caves. A large flat rock near the main cave has holes worn deep into it where the Ahwahneechees ground acorns for food. Walk on to Washington Column and the Royal Arches, looking for climbers going up, and visit the grand Ahwahnee Hotel. Another grinding rock is along the trail by the parking lot. If you want to watch deer, the meadow by the Church Bowl is a good place to sit.

A quieter alternative to the rush of all this activity is to find a couple of natural settings that appeal to you (like Happy Isles, Mirror Meadow, and the bend on the river by Rixon’s Pinnacle) and stay in each place for a couple of hours, watching the valley change around you as the sun moves over the mountains. Discover what animals and birds call each part of the valley home. Feel yourself drawing close to nature.

And really, just to be in Yosemite and breathe the pine and oak-scented fresh air, is worth the trip. There is nothing that you need to do but sit back and let the majesty soak in.