Re: Best 3 night 4 day hike in Yosemite?

Hey Folks,

My wife and I are intermediate backpackers and plan to spend 3 nights / 4 days backpacking in Yosemite in early October. We have never been to the park and are looking for route suggestions. Our tentative plan is to hike the North Rim of Yosemite Valley but we would love to hear others' suggestions. We are both fit and not afraid of a workout. Any ideas? Thanks!

njd

I had a fabulous overnight on Mt. Watkins 2 years ago - it's a fairly easy hike (starting at Olmstead Point), and has incredible views of the Valley and especially of Half Dome, which is directly across Tenaya Canyon from there. You need to venture off the trail a bit, but it's very easy to find if you have a reasonable sense of direction. No water up there, however, you would want to pack up about 5 liters (10 lbs.) each. It's about 4.5 miles to get there, with around 600' elevation gain. You could continue around the North Rim from there. Shouldn't be too hard to get a Wilderness Permit for departure from Olmstead Point, especially if you go mid-week.

Suggestion: (From the Toulumne Meadows area)

Rafferty Creek trailhead to Vogelsang, then to Merced Lake by either of two routes (Emeric Creek or Vogelsang Pass and Lewis Creek), then to Sunrise HSC and Longmeadow area, then out via Cathedral Lake trail. Overnights would be at Vogelsang, Merced, and Sunrise backpacker's camps unless you prefer less crowded off-trail areas, although it will not be crowded that time of year, just rather cool. Given the altitude there is a possibility you could run into snowfall although I'm not that familiar with the area in early October.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/2010 04:35PM by tomdisco.

There are many good 3 night, 4 day hikes in Yosemite. It's all good. You'll get several replies here, but you might also want to get a good guide book. Like Tomdisco said, be mindful of the weather. You might want to have several hikes in mind, and go with the one that's most suitable for the weather at the time.

I just returned from a 5 day hiking trip in Yosemite. It was COLD... far colder than is usual in mid-September in the park. So make sure you plan on layering your clothes and if you hike in the high country, expect very cold morning temps.

First night: hike in to the Vogelsang area. Camp.
Day hiking/exploring.
Final day: hike out.