Back in 2021 we did a backpacking trip in Yosemite. On the hike from May Lake we ran into a guy who said we really needed to do the "Grand Canyon of Yosemite" and Glen Aulin. That idea fermented for a few years, with the thought to do it "someday". That someday arrived Summer 2026. We invited our good friend Martin, with whom we had hiked Nankoweap. And, in a credit to his bravery, he agreed to join us. So we had a tight group of 3.
Getting a backpacking permit in Yosemite is quite the journey. 24 weeks in advance, you visit recreation.gov and supply up to 8 alternate plans across 5 different start dates. A month later the NPS lets you know if you get one of those - or none. We were able to get our 3rd alternative - which had us departing the valley at Yosemite Falls and coming back in at Happy Isles. The start and finish were the same as our last trip, but we'd do a bunch of different stuff in the middle. Unfortunately we were not able to get a permit for Half Dome this time.
Grin and Bear It
One of the annoying things about Yosemite is that bear cannisters are required. They are big, bulky, and add weight (apx. 2 lbs). But they do keep the bears from eating all your food.
7 days of food needs to fit in a 750 cubic inch bear cannister
Tight, but it's all in there. Weighed in at 9.5 pounds packed. Ugh.
Now, all that stuff needs to go into that pack.
Somehow it all fits
Day -1
In 2021 we drove from Phoenix to Yosemite and entered the park at the Tioga Road entrance – 13 hours with another 1.5 hours to the Central Valley. This time we opted to fly into Fresno and rent a SUV. This drive was about 1.5 to the Air B&B in Yosemite West where we spent two nights.
Yosemite West is a small community of cabin homes within Yosemite National Park. It is still an additional .5 hour to the Yosemite Valley but this afforded us a kitchen and multiple beds and baths. Note: there are no stores or restaurants nearby so it was necessary to stop in Fresno to purchase groceries. And there is no internet or cell signal.
Before settling into our cabin we stopped just inside the park entrance to view the giant sequoia trees within Mariposa Grove. They are quite impressive!
count the rings 
big tree
Day 0
First and foremost today was picking up our permit from the Wilderness Office located in Yosemite Village. We headed into valley just before 7 AM and scored one of the very last parking spots. Summer weekend crowds are no joke. The ranger was friendly and asked many pointed questions about our bear canisters and food supply. We passed and we left with our "golden ticket" / aka: wilderness permit for 6 nights/7 days.
Martin had not been to Yosemite so we arranged to spend a day doing touristy stuff in the valley, before we strapped on packs. Once parked it is important to never leave your spot so we headed to the nearest bike rental location to pick up sweet single-speeds with riser bars, coaster brakes, and kick-stands.
We cruised out to Mirror Lake and then down to Yosemite Falls and then back around to Curry Camp. The freedom of two-wheeled travel certainly beat waiting in line for the shuttle buses.
Don't leave food in your car!
Bikes are the best way to get around.
Yosemite has some great meadows.
Mirror Lake was more like Mirror Pond.
Still reflecting.
Obata Art Weekend
Nancy discovered that this weekend the YNP was celebrating the extraordinary life of Japanese American artist Chiura Obata, including his watercolor and woodblock prints of Yosemite and his writings on "Great Nature." So after our bike tour we participated in a hands-on watercolor workshop in which we used special Japanese ink and brush.
Plein air water color class
Nancy's take. I won't even post mine...
Day 1
Our first day started with a 2700 foot climb up to the top of Yosemite falls. May as well get the hard stuff out of the way early.
Time to get down to it.
We gotta go way up there.
Into the wilderness.
Better get used to steps.
It doesn't take long to start getting great views of Yosemite Valley.
A nice respite from steps.
What the heck? Why are we going downhill?
First good view of the upper falls. Much less flow than our last trip in early June.
Back to stairs.
Yeah, it is steep.
A heck of a lot of work went into creating this trail.
It took us about 2.25 hours to do the 3.5 miles to the top of the falls. We took a break up on the rocks and went over to a couple of views of the very top of the falls.
Some nice pools above the falls.
The edge is right there.
More valley views.
Sketchy route to the top of the falls.
After a snack break it was back on the trail to our destination for the night. I had a general idea of where we would stop based on the park rules and looking at a topo map. No idea if there would even be legit camping spots there.
Sidebar:
Yosemite has some rules around where you can actually camp when in the back country. Usually it is about a mile from any roads or trailheads. Some trailheads it is 2 or 4 miles away. This made route planning really tricky. I wanted to do around 10 miles a day, but due to these rules (and the terrain) we ended up with a shortish first day and a VERY long second day.
Headed into the woods - north, toward Tioga Road.
Really nice trail here.
Starting to see some rocks.
Out of the woods.
Yosemite creek looking very inviting. It was getting pretty warm.
Could use some trimming here.
Miracle of miracles. The place I chose for us to stop was actually a legit area to camp.
Nancy brought her travel watercolor kit and did a painting each night.
Chilling in the afternoon. Those chairs weigh just over a pound and are the best luxury item to bring on any trip.
Supper time!
We always chose a place away from the tents to eat. Cause bears and marmots and chipmunks and squirrels.
8.7 miles, 4000 ft climbing, 930 ft descent, 5 hours
Day 2
This day was going to be a humdinger. We wanted to make it to Pate Valley, which we heard had decent camping. The last 12 miles of the day would be downhill - increasingly steep downhill. So we figured there would be no camping spots. Turns out we were wrong, but glad we did what we did.
Plenty of water out there.
only 15.2 miles to go. Oof. My preference is 10 miles in a day.
We were told the trails had been cleared of blowdown. So far, so good.
Into a burn area. Turns out there are many of those in the Sierra Mountains.
We were lucky to be there when flowers were in bloom.
So much for blowdown being cleared...
This is after we crossed Tioga Road. Many miles to go.
Some nice smooth trail through the woods. Was really wanting my bike in here.
Lukens lake.
Nice combo of flower colors.
After the first 4 miles we started down. First gradual...
...then less so.
Heading down into TRC
Sidebar:
The primary goal of this trip was to go through what they call the "Grand Canyon of Yosemite". Having spent plenty of time in the real Grand Canyon, that name is not appropriate. It has its charm, for sure, but is no where near the size of the real thing. Anyhow I'll be referring to it as the Tuolumne River Canyon (TRC).
The NPS has not totally cleared this trail.
This descent had a steep initial section, followed by a moderate section along the canyon wall, then aggressively down. It was getting pretty hot as we headed down the second part. At one point we could hear Morrison Creek parallel to the trail, but it was difficult to get to. I knew it crossed the trail at some point, so this was our goal for a lunch break. Unfortunately it paralleled the trail for about 1.5 miles before being accessible - taunting us the whole way. We did find a possible campsite on the way down that had access to the creek. We briefly considered it, but decided to move on to Pate Valley.
Switchbacking down, down, down.
That green below is our destination.
But first, more descending.
Lunch and glorious, cool water.
Getting there...
but it won't be easy.
Closer.
Down in the canyon at last, but still a ways to where we will call home.
Not the most appetizing looking water.
Some nice trail on the canyon floor, along the river.
Home for the night.
Our private beach.
Legit place to spend the night.
16.5 miles, 2200 ft climbing, 4900 ft descent, 8 hours
Day 3
This day would find us hiking up through most of the canyon. I knew we'd gain about 3000 feet of elevation as we went, but somehow thought it would be gradual. I was way wrong. There was a hump in the middle that accounted for about 1000 feet of climbing and the end was pretty steep.
We are headed to somewhere between Glen Aulin and Waterwheel Falls.
Well, this is going to be easy.
So many waterfalls and features along this trail.
You said this was going to be a "walk in the park"
Steps ahead. Prepare to suffer
Big 'ol rocks everywhere.
A little side waterfall.
Top of the big hump in the middle of the day. Now we have to go back down to the river.
But, damn, look at that view.
Back down to river level.
This is just so cool in person.
Size 9 pine cone.
Yawn, another waterfall.
Looking back down the valley.
That's a heck of a water slide.
As we neared the place that I thought we'd stop for the night, it became clear there was no where to camp. Nancy stopped a couple of other hikers to get some info on potential places for us to pitch our tents. At the time we were climbing up some pretty steep sections and light rain had started. The info from the hikers was a bit misleading, but Nancy did manage to find a small spot that was alongside a powerful section of LeConte waterfall. The rain lasted no more than an hour and was not heavy enough to be annoying. Later in the trip we talked to folks who got drenched in the more southern areas that night. Good karma?
This would be our local waterfall and (loud) white noise generator for the night.
Camp is up above the rocks.
Nancy hanging out on the rocks.
The view downstream.
Chilling by the falls.
This was actually a nice little spot. The trees kept most of the rain off us.
Dinner with a view.
Night 3 watercolor in process.
12.8 miles, 4400 ft climbing, 1500 ft descent, 7 hours.
Day 4
The day began with more climbing. We still had to exit the canyon. We'd go through the Glen Aulin High Sierra Camp and through Tuolumne meadows. Lunch at the grill (non-dehydrated food!). Then more climbing up to Upper Cathedral Lake.
Sidebar:
The High Sierra Camps in Yosemite are a less strenuous way to see some of the cool places. They have such luxuries as canvas tents, potable water, bear boxes, toilets and even (very expensive) meals. But good luck getting a reservation.
Up we go!
There was water flowing all over these rocks. Very cool.
A little vid of the falls
Nice rugged trail.
"Trail?"
It is hard to capture the fury and noise of some of these in a picture.
Big waterfalls = big hike to the top.
The water is perfectly calm here - before it heads down.
ferns!
We finally made it to some relatively flat ground.
But more climbing, and falls ahead.
Glen Aulin High Sierra Camp
Firckin' luxury!
The falls at Glen Aulin.
For anyone wanting to experience the best of the waterfalls in TRC, with relative ease, the best way is to get a reservation at Glen Aulin. Do the 6ish mile hike in from Tuolumne Meadows. Have a nice dinner and breakfast. Do a day hike down into the canyon. Then head back the next day.
Tuolumne Meadows is our destination for lunch.
More falls, more climbing.
Cool how the bridge uses that rock in the middle of the river.
So calm up here.
The meadows of Tuolumne Meadows.
The little structure is to keep livestock out of Soda Springs.
CO2 bubbling up from the earth.
Lunch time! I did pair with a double cheeseburger and potato wedges.
Grill and general store. Backpackers' paradise.
The worst stretch of the entire week. Borrrrring.
Keep Moving. "You've Got Plenty of Daylight."
While we were in civilization (if you consider no WiFi or cell signal civilized). Nancy went to the backcountry office to see if we could get a permit for Half Dome. They said there were none on the route we were going over to Cathedral Lakes. She also discovered that an idea we had been entertaining - to stay at the Tuolumne Meadows backpackers camp and simply chill the rest of the afternoon was not allowed. We were required to hike at least another 4 miles.
This said, the ranger did offer Half Dome permits if we were willing to take an alternate, longer route. After some discussion, we decided to stay the course because we wanted to stay at Cathedral Lakes and to climb Clouds Rest. So up, up and away we went from the meadows.
Back on trail. Lumpy trail.
Yep. Did I mention the up part?
.Big 'ol rocks everywhere you look.
This is how the High Sierra Camps get their supplies.
We made it to Upper Cathedral Lake.
The water felt soooo good after a hot day of hiking.
And you can't beat the views.
Home, sweet home.
Nancy hanging out on the rock.
There is no better place to be.
Duck!
Our kitchen for the night.
Those are Echo Peaks - in the Cathedral mountain range.
15 miles, 3700 ft climbing, 1400 descent, 9 hours (including a leisurely lunch)
There was much discussion this evening about our next steps. Since we didn't get a Half Dome permit the plan for the last 2 days was very short. The first suggestion was to spend an extra day at the lake and combine the last two days into one push. The lake was beautiful and we could climb around on the local rocks or visit lower Cathedral Lake.
However, after looking at the map for a bit, Martin suggested another option. Detour from the original route - to go to Echo Valley after Cloud's Rest, then back to the Yosemite Valley. That would make each of the last two days somewhere around 9 miles. Easy peasy - and would be some new stuff. We were in.
Day 5
This day would take us to our highest point, Cathedral Pass. Just shy of 10,000 feet of elevation. Then we'd head down to the Sunrise High Sierra Camp. From there we'd climb up to, and by, the three Sunrise Lakes. Then down and up to the shoulder of Cloud's Rest.
One last look at the lake.
We are now on John Muir trail.
Some nice, easy trail.
The high point - Cathedral Pass. 9936 feet. Martin declined to climb up some rocks to get 10,000.
So awesome out here.
Marmot!
Looking back toward Echo Peaks.
Even the backpackers camp looks luxurious.
Of course there is potable water right as we are about to climb way up to three lakes.
Upper Sunrise Lake
Filtering water at lower Sunrise Lake at the very site we had (temporally) camped in 2021.
Sidebar:
Water is life. Most people don't think about that on a daily basis. However, when you are in a place where potable water is not available and is is very hot and dry - that becomes top of mind. When possible, we camped near water. In order not to get sick we had to always filter the water we got from various lakes or creeks. We each had our own Sawyer squeeze filter, but it still took time to get a couple of liters. It was a good time to take a break.
Given that water weighs 2.2 pounds per liter, we had to think about how much water weight we wanted on our backs versus where the next possible stream or lake would be on our route. It was a delicate balance.
Deserted mid-day, lower Sunrise Lake is a very popular destination to camp.
Fortunately, there was a way around this.
We knew we wanted to camp close to the approach of Cloud's Rest. We had seen some good spots about a mile from the top from our previous trip. The only problem is that there was no water nearby. So we had to fill up with as much water as we could carry in a creek before making the climb to our camp spot. That meant we each carried almost 10 pounds of water up a long, steep climb to where we would camp. And did I mention it was hot? Ugh.
Camp at about a mile from the top of Cloud's Rest
9.5 miles, 1700 ft climbing, 2000 ft descent, 5.75 hours
Day 6
Up we go to summit Clouds Rest.
On the rock spine of Cloud's Rest.
Watch your step.
Top of the world!
Half Dome in the distance.
Looking south.
Toward Yosemite Valley
Let's go over there.
Not so wild life.
Big descent down.
Sketchy descent.
Getting closer to Half Dome.
.
There is a thin white line on the right side of Half Dome. That is where people ascend the rock.
A zoomed look of people going up Half Dome. The black dots on the white line.
Down, down, down...
We are headed out there somewhere.
Feel the Burn
After the big descent from Cloud's Rest we turned onto the John Muir trail for some climbing. Turns out this section of JMT goes through a burn area. There was a good amount of overgrowth and blowdown. Not nearly as nice as the section of JMT we were on the day before.
Nice to see some of the blowdown was cleared.
Ugh, overgrowth.
Not all logs were cut out.
On the plus side, lots of flowers.
Mini Half Dome. Micro Dome?
We head to about 2 miles short of Merced Lake
Darned Mountain Whitethorn. That is the trail.
Finally, the brush relented.
Looking back toward Half Dome.
We'll be down in that valley tomorrow.
If you look close, you can see the trail we'll take next day down on the other side of the valley.
Down into Echo Valley.
Filtering water at the local creek.
Supper time.
Evening chill and paint time.
10.5 miles, 1600 ft climbing, 3900 ft descent, 6 hours
Day 7
Today we'll head from Echo Valley to Lost Valley to Little Yosemite Valley to Yosemite Valley. Pretty much a day of descending, following the Merced river the whole way.
Yep, more granite.
You can see where the ginormous rock cleaved from the side of the cliff. Bet that made some noise.
Plenty of water.
Heading down into Lost Valley.
Looking back upstream.
Well armored trail.
I really wanted to slide down this.
Unfortunately Lost Valley was a burn area. So, limited shade.
baby rattle - juvenile Northern Pacific Western rattlesnake
Since Lost Valley was a burn area, that meant copious underbrush. Of course there was some Mountain Whitethorn, but not nearly as much as the other place. There was a whole lot of other plants here though. Some, quite interesting.
Sierra Gooseberry (Ribes roezlii)
Sierra Currant (Ribes nevadense)
Blue Elderberry (Sambucus nigra ssp. cerulea, formerly Sambucus caerulea)
As much as I hate to see burned forest, it is part of the natural cycle
Its a jungle out there.
Getting clear of the thick foliage.
Little Yosemite valley was more meadowy.
The trail had remnants of blacktop here. Clearly we were near the Little Yosemite campground.
Always love to see Aspen
We took a short break in Little Yosemite campground. This is an "at large" campground where many folks going to Half Dome spend the first night. Then they day trip up to the Dome. This campground can get very crowded. This also kinda marked our return to civilization - or at least people. From here we'd start to see more people, then way too many people.
Starting down the Mist Trail
Quick, steep descending.
Nevada Falls
Even at reduced flow, it is pretty impressive.
The steep descent into the valley are marked by lots of water falling.
The descent down Vernal Falls was absolutely choked with people. Partly due to it being Saturday and partly due to the JMT being closed and partly because it is a pretty dramatic trail.
The most annoying part of the trip.
But Vernal was quite a sight.
Half Dome from the valley.
Packs off backs. Trip successfully completed.
Celebration time
11 miles, 824 ft climbing, 3600 ft descending, 5.5 hours
Postscript
I can't emphasize enough how awesome this trip was. Yes, it was hard. Yes, the mileage was more than I planned. Yes it was hot. But the scenery was amazing, the company was outstanding, the mosquitos were on vacation elsewhere, we only briefly got rained on and no one got attacked by a bear. While our previous trip to Yosemite was outstanding, this one was even better.
There are certainly easier ways to see some of the super cool stuff we saw, but then what fun would that be. Nancy and I are so glad that Martin came all the way from PA to do this adventure with us. He is an outstanding adventure partner in addition to being a great long time friend.
total stats for the week:
84.5 miles, 18,500 feet of climbing and descent.
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