2/21/2024 0 Comments Half dome vs clouds rest![]() When I attempted this trip a few years ago, you had to talk to a ranger in person to get permits in the Valley. In the morning we woke up, ate breakfast and went to go pick up our permits at the Yosemite Valley Visitors center. My wife and I both nervously laughed off the Irony. So I quickly hit the skip button to go to the next song, and the next song that started playing was called "Avalanche" by James Arthur. I am not really superstitious but the last thing you want to hear when driving into Yosemite Valley before a 3 day winter backpacking trek is a song called "Landslide". As we drove into the valley with nervous excitement and music playing in our jeep, the first song that played was "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac. My wife and I decided to drive up to Yosemite and stay at the Yosemite Valley Lodge the night before. Arriving At Yosemite Valley and Obtaining Backcountry Permits The Caltopo map above can be downloaded and viewed here. Say goodbye to forgotten gear and hello to seamless planning for your next outdoor adventure Our app simplifies trip planning with personalized gear lists, a community gear locker, pack weight statistics, and calorie tracking. The next morning we headed back the same way we came at about 8am.ℹ️ Pack smarter, not harder, with Don't Forget the Spoon. We had about 4 other folks camping out on the top but everyone is spread out. We didn’t have that much wind and felt safe in the tent. We set up camp at the edge of the peak, which is not as scary as it looks especially after some whisky courage. You can’t beat it at sunset!! You can enjoy the spectacular views of Half Dome, Tenaya Canyon and surrounding mountains. ![]() Honestly, we think this might be the best view in the Yosemite. Once we got to the base, we decided to drop our packs to walk the remaining few hundred yards to the top and check it out. Be sure not to miss it!Īfter incredible views on both sides going up, we arrived at the top at about 5:30pm. This is actually the easiest part of the hike and only the end is a bit steep but not nearly as much of a sweat as the first part of the hike with the switchbacks.Ībout half a mile from the top on the right, you will see this beautiful view. We left Sunrise Lakes at about 2 or 3pm and headed back to the sign juncture to continue on the Cloud’s Rest path. The first and third lakes are right on the trail, but the second lake will be off to your left, about a hundred meters off the trail. From the juncture, it is about a 0.5 mile to first lake and the other two are each spaced another half mile apart afterwards. However, if you if you are staying the night or there at an early hour (before noonish), we would definetly recommend taking a detour to Sunrise lakes. If you want to go straight up to Cloud’s Rest then continue straight and it is about 4.7 more miles to the top. Once you get to the top of the steep hike up, you will see a juncture with signs to a few different paths to Clouds Rest, Yosemite Valley, and Sunrise Lakes. Given we were staying overnight up on Cloud’s Rest, we left a note on the car that said “hiking for the night” just in case.įirst part of our hike was about 2.7 miles, which actually is the most strenuous part of the hike with steep switchbacks up to the Sunrise Lakes and Cloud’s Rest juncture. There should be parking here on both sides of the road but it gets pretty crowded on weekends. ![]() We got out pretty early on Saturday morning to avoid getting caught in crowds and parked at the trailhead around 7:30am. We headed down on Friday night and stayed the night in Tuolumne Meadows. The fastest way to hike Cloud’s Rest starts from the Sunrise Lakes trailhead on Tioga Road near Tenaya Lake on the southwest end and 7 miles west of Tuolumne Meadows.
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