23 Oct A Weekend in Yosemite National Park

Living in the state of California, most of the international students at SFSU I’ve spoken to, have already been to or are planning a trip to the state’s most famous national park, Yosemite. Having had the pleasure of visiting this past weekend, I thought I’d share some of the hikes/walks we did. 

If you are up for a long and reasonably strenuous hike, I would definitely recommend taking the ‘Four Mile Trail’ from Camp 4 right up to the top of Sentinel Dome, which stops at both Union and Glacier Point along the way. This hike is noticeably steep at several points and will take you the best part of three hours to complete – not including stops! However, the views you get are more than worth it. Not only do you receive THE most incredible view of Half Dome upon reaching Glacier Point, which is located 4.6 miles into the trail, (where there is also a gift shop and café) but the walk offers great views of the valley all the way along. Further to this, if you are feeling particularly active, you can walk an additional mile and a half from Glacier Point to Sentinel Dome, which offers unbelievable 360 views of the national park – and is a remarkably quieter and more peaceful place for both views and pictures, as, unlike Glacier Point, this location is not accessible via car. If you are completing this hike, make sure to pack a big lunch and lots of snacks to keep you going and be sure to take extra care on the way down as the steepness can make the path quite slippery! 

We also hiked up Vernal Falls one day, we were recommended this particular waterfall as many of their main ones have stopped flowing at this point in the season. This walk was not too long but was fairly steep, I’d recommend leaving two to three hours to complete this there and back. 

If you happen to have chance to drive a little further south of the main Yosemite Valley, I would suggest you visit the Mariposa Grove, which is inhabited with an abundance of giant Sequoia Trees, which are quite remarkable to look at. You can also do a medium hike around this grove to Wanowa Point, a really peaceful point with great views and photo opportunities. 

Other tips; be sure to take in all the scenery as you drive around the park – there’s so much to see out the windows! Also, look out for bears – they’re not just a myth – we happened to see one only about ten meters from the main path on Four Mile Trail. And, lastly, be sure to bring layers – the mornings in Yosemite are really cold, but the midday sun can be rather hot, especially on top of those mountains!