Hey, I'm planning a backpacking trip out to Yosemite in late May after me and my friends are out of school for the semester. None of us have ever been to Yosemite, but after looking around I've done some research and I want to check with you guys and see what the best ideas would be. I'm planning on calling the wilderness center tomorrow to get more information as well.
Basic Info:
4-5 guys
Ages range from 22-23
3 of us are in good shape, the other 2 are slightly overweight. Just slightly however.
Using 8 days of vacation, with 5-6 days actually hiking
VERY rough overview of the plans:
1. Take a bus from LAX to Yosemite Valley (cheaper than flying to Fresno)
2. Either reserve an airbnb near the valley or stake out our spots in front of the wilderness center and wait to get a permit
3. Start the Ponoho Trail from Glacier Point and use 2-3 days to relax and really just stay up there for awhile
4. ???
5. On the last day, take a bus back to LAX for our flight and head home.
Basically #4 is where I'm stuck. I'm assuming we'll have to either hitchhike or take the shuttle back to another trailhead once we finish ponoho trail, but if there's any possibility of continuing straight onto another trail that'd be preferable to have 5 days of straight backpacking. Would it be better to start with a smaller trail that feeds into the ponoho trail?
Questions about the above plan:
1. I've heard mixed things about being able to fall asleep in front of the wilderness center (just to plan on caffeine intake). Should we plan on sending two guys to keep eachother awake?
2. How popular is the ponoho trail compared to the others? It's not really mentioned in the most popular lists, but the views from each point look amazing. Will it be easy to obtain permits?
3. From the map, it looks like a big chunk of the ponoho trail isn't available for camping until you get closer to the end. Are there better routes that keep the scenic views for backpacking?
Any advice is appreciated, thanks!!
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/06/2017 02:40AM by Veovis.