Calling all Yosemite experts

[Hobbes]

the Valley is becoming increasingly congested.

Which is why the notion of hiking down there is sort of a whimsy. It's one of those things that sounds good, but quickly sours after you're reminded that you really "can't go home again".

My earliest memories of the Sierra are the Valley. My dad loved it there and would bundle us off every spring/summer for a couple of trips each year during the 60s. I know I was probably too young, but I still think I might have seen the last firefall.

California's population has essentially doubled in 50 years from 20m to 40m. All of these people still want to go to the "A list" spots, the Valley probably being #1.

[rlown]

I got Married there at the chapel, but it was February and we had to put on chains. Always pleasant with a foot of snow on the deck and a small amount still falling.

[AlmostThere]

California's population may have doubled, but more than half the folks I run into when we do go are from other countries. There are lots and lots of those big tour busses rolling up the highway into the park during the summer. Most of those folks hardly leave the roadways, so yep, it gets real busy in the valley.

[Scouter9]

Yeah, after decades away from the valley, it was a little disorienting to see the crowds and traffic. Notably, the saggy pants gangsters on the mist trail... I guess I'm stoked they have interest, but cutting switchbacks and mad dogging my 15 year old made for a different flavor . I have a saying about how one can take a guy out of the city but not the other way around ( and then I drive downtown to work, but like what-ever).

That said, an early arrival to Half Dome made for a quick scoot up the cables and the valley is still nice if you just crop everything below ten feet. Ho ho

If you're looking for an overnighter loop to/fro Tuolumne, here's an alternative: take the freebie bus over to Murphy Creek trailhead at Tenaya Lake, hike northerly to Glen Aulin for a refreshment and swim, then back up and out of Glen Aulin going toward Tuolumne. Just after you crossover double bridges, there's a great set of campsites 500 feet north of the trail and you can come back down to the pools there to fish or swim.

Day two, you return to Tuolumne through excellent meadows and can take the cutoff to emerge at Soda Springs, where your wife meets you at the lodge there. You bust out the tiny bottle of Torani syrup in your pack and make sparkling soda drinks from the spring, then cruise on into car camp for steaks and the evening edition of ,"chase the bear while banging pots" game.

[AlmostThere]

then cruise on into car camp for steaks and the evening edition of ,"chase the bear while banging pots" game.

We watched rangers with a dish and a paintball gun chasing the bears... that was far more amusing.

[oleander]

I'm bookmarking this thread, because there are so many creative ideas presented about Yosemite overnights.

Karl, I've taken a number of relatively inexperienced people backpacking in the past few years. I have to admit, when I read your post, a number of red flags come up. Wonky knees? A reluctance to train? Backpacking loads that might be a bit on the heavy and/or untested side? (No prior gear shakedown trip?)

I'd be reluctant to pick a one-way route that ties everyone to completing a set number of miles, and especially, anything over 8-10 miles/day, and especially, anything with a lot of knee-pounding descent.

With my (relative) newbies I've had to pare my expectations waaaaaaaaaaaaaay down. Way down. I pick an out-and-back to a lake that is maybe 4 miles, maximum 6. If they are still feeling energetic when they get to camp, they can go do some more exploring or perhaps bag a peak after we set up camp. (And to be honest, most people are beat after 5-6 miles, so "further exploring" rarely happens.)

One of your brothers is a runner? He may rock the 15-mile days. Or, not. Many of the (relative) newbies I've taken out are runners and/or triathletes. What I've noticed is that running fitness does not necessarily translate into physical readiness to do the backpacking miles. I can't tell you how many trips I've done with fellow athletes where we end up making one mile an hour and end up reaching our day's destination too close to sunset for comfort. To be fair, a lot of that is sitting down and smelling the roses along the way...Are you certain that your brothers are up for "pounding the miles" at the expense of sitting down and looking around every once in a while?

So, if I were in your shoes...

Twenty Lakes Basin is an optimal destination. No advance permit required, and you can get away from some of the crowds by camping off-trail. In an average year, I would tend to want to go there in early July to fully enjoy the scenery there, but this year, the optimal timing in that basin might very well be August.

Young Lakes (out of Tuolumne) is another good one, as is Glen Aulin. (If we're talking about out-and-back routes from Tuolumne, I'll mention that I'm not a fan of the walk to Vogelsang.)

Green Lake TH (on the east side of Hoover Wilderness) to East Lake is a terrifically beautiful one that I took some newbies to, on the advice of someone forumers here.

Once you reach camp and set up, those among you who still have energy can go bag a peak or visit the string of lakes up the way. If you get an early start to Glen Aulin, you can drop your packs there and hoof it to Waterwheel Falls and back.

Oleander

[Hobbes]

Hey, how was the desert? You and/or J gonna post some pics?

I think what will happen with Yosemite is either a hike from Tenaya to Clouds Rest, spend the night and head back. Or, go thru Lyell to Evelyn, spend the night, then come back via Rafferty.

Everyone is sort of jonesing to get up there, so I think we'll head out first we hear that the TM campground is open.

[Hobbes]

What are the Yosemite experts' thoughts of going up to the Valley May 11-14 (Thurs-Sun to Mother's day)?

My wife is going with some girlfriends up to the SLO wine country and won't be back till Sun night, so I'll have a few days to get out. BlueWater and I were originally planning on hiking over Bishop into Dusy, but we ran into a scheduling conflict.

I don't want to snowshoe/hike into the back country by myself, so I only have a few choices to stay near civilization. One option would be to hike up the standard trail to Whitney, spend the night @ Trail camp and see if I can make it up the Chute. (I don't have the mountaineering skills to do an alpine MR without a guide. By standard trail, I mean it will be completely covered by snow above the N Fork branch.)

The other would be to hike up to Duck pass/Purple lake out of Mammoth, but that adds an extra 2 hours to my drive. Finally, if Onion was open, I could hike up to the Kearsarge lakes, maybe take a look @ Glen, and then come back.

As for the Valley, I recall Daisy mentioning on another thread that if I got an overnight permit, I could stay at one of the backpackers campgrounds. That would be a nifty trick Thurs night if the regular campgrounds were full - I'd then be able to wait list bright & early Fri am.

The other option of course would be to actually hike somewhere. Any thoughts on what would be a fun & interesting hike from the Valley floor up? I could take all my regular alpine stuff ie axe, boots/crampons or runners/spikes, 0-10 degree clothing/tent/bag if it was worth it.

It looks like another major storm is supposed to roll in this Sat and clear by Thurs, so there might be a fresh layer. How would that alter plans if the snow was unconsolidated?

[balzaccom]

Snow level right now is about 6500-7000 feet, so the rims on both sides are going to be full of snow. North Rim is always easier, because it gets more sun, and melts sooner. You really only have a few trails to choose from; Yosemite Falls will have the most traffic, Snow Creek is even steeper. Rockslides should be accessible from Big Oak Flat Road, once that opens (today, I think?)

Note that except for a few spots, there are not great views from the trails on the North Rim. So a lot of the hiking is in forest.

[maverick]

How about North Fork Big Pine or Little Lakes Valley Hobbes.