Here's my trip report on an early season weekend trip up Clouds Rest from Happy Isles Trailhead. We base camped in Little Yosemite Valley. My buddy Albert joined me. I posted snow conditions, photos, and my story below.
Snow Conditions:
The snow-line was at 8900’ on southern-facing slopes. On northern-facing slopes, the snow-line was around 7200’. Overall, I found the snow was condensed and easy to walk over with microspikes.
Thursday April 19:
We departed Oakland at 7pm, drove up Highway 120, and camped along Evergreen Road. The sky was clear and I initially slept outside cowboy-style under the stars. I later awoke shivering. A freezing fog poured into the valley; ice crystals filled the night air and sparkled in the moonlight. It was a magical sight, but it was also too cold for me to sleep outside. I climbed into the back of our SUV and quickly returned to sleep. Albert, in his tent, snoozed through it all.
Friday April 20:
We awoke to clear skies and bird song. We drove into the national park, well ahead of traffic, and easily found parking at the Happy Isles trailhead. While we sorted our gear, a parade of vehicles filled the parking lot. I’m glad we arrived early!
We started hiking at 10:00 and slowly climbed the Mist Trail. I’ve never been up this route (rather, I’ve always taken the JMT). It was thrilling to walk near Vernal Falls, but the trail sometimes felt claustrophobic with the crowds passing, especially on the narrow sections. True to advertising, the amount of mist was incredible; water pooled on our backpacks and dripped down our jackets and soaked our shoes. We ate lunch above Vernal Falls, dried our gear in the sun, and fell asleep like lizards on warm granite.
Later in the afternoon, we continued up the mist trail. I appreciated the forest shade along the upper switchbacks. Above Nevada Falls, the crowds disappeared. I finally felt like we arrived in the backcountry. We soon reached Little Yosemite Valley and pitched camp.
In the evening, we hiked further along the Merced River and explored a bit. The forest here burned (in 2014?), and I am impressed with the recovery four years later. The forest floor is now sprouting native grass, wildflowers, baby juniper, and pine. Woodpeckers hammered at the charcoal stags, and a chorus of frogs filled the meadow.
The sun sunk below Half Dome and the temperature dropped. Wood was abundant and we built a small fire. We warmed ourselves by the flames, ate hot noodles, and drank tea. We listened to the frogs. It was practically perfect.
Saturday April 21:
It was a slow morning. We drank tea, reviewed maps, enjoyed the abundant bird song, and finally — at 10:30 am — we decided to climb Clouds Rest. The climb was uneventful. We passed a few other groups, but they all turned left at the trail junction towards Half Dome. (Question: the Half Dome cables are still down for the season, why are all these people headed to Half Dome?).
We reached snow at 8,900’ and strapped on microspikes. The snow was condensed and overall easy to walk across. I post-holed once. We followed good foot prints up southern slopes, and two descending parties passed us in good spirits. They smiled and reassured us the summit could be reached.
200 feet below the summit, I was relieved to find the granite stairs snow-free. I removed my microspikes and I cruised to the top in my running shoes. On the summit, there were patches of open flat-top granite alongside deep snow drifts. The NE ridge route (i.e., from Tenaya Lake) looked like a knife edge of snow and that route seemed dangerous, to say the least.
This was my 9th summit of Clouds Rest. The views were spectacular, as usual. It was a treat to see the Sierra Crest covered in snow. Down in the valley, spring runoff drenched the domes and cliffs; the granite walls shined like glass in the afternoon sun. We celebrated our summit with instant coffee, cheese, and salami. Another hiker joined us, and he explained his plans to sleep overnight on the summit. It sounded like a very cold idea to me, but he seemed to have all the necessary layers and bivy gear. We wished him luck and then we started our descent.
After many switchbacks, and several hours, we returned to Little Yosemite Valley and found a dozen new groups had arrived in camp. We enjoyed another night beside a fire under the stars. Even with the crowds, LYV was relatively quiet and chill.
Sunday April 22:
We enjoyed a quick breakfast: hot tea, dried fruit, and energy bars. After some campsite L.N.T. cleanup, we collected our gear and started the descent to Happy Isles. The hiking was uneventful. We avoided the drenching on the Mist Trail, and instead we climbed the cutoff to Clark Point and then descended via the JMT. My knees appreciated this gentle grade compared to steep stairs on the Mist Trail.
Back at the footbridge, we passed literally hundreds of day hikers, seemingly from all walks of life. Rather than complain about the crowds, I’ve come to realize that I'm one of them too. Yosemite is a natural wonder of the world, and I feel lucky that I am physically able to transcend the crowds and climb to world-class vistas like Clouds Rest in just one weekend.
- Vernal Falls from the Mist Trail
- Tranquil vibes along the Merced River in Little Yosemite Valley
- Night scene at our camp
- Hiking over snow with microspikes, at approximately 9,000 feet.
- Looking south from the forested slopes of Clouds Rest
- On the Clouds Rest stairs, looking towards Half Dome. Note my buddy hiking up the snow ramp below.
- Climbing the stairs on the SW ridge of Clouds Rest
- Panorama southeast from Clouds Rest summit
- Panorama northeast from Clouds Rest summit
