Cement mixer rolled and sparked a fire. Moving quickly. Stay safe out there. If coming today, find another way to the park

Wanted to follow up after my trip following my post last month (seen here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Yosemite/comments/1v2q576/6_days5_nights_at_yosemite_valley_lodge_itinerary/) after getting some help from the sub. I don't see as many follow ups, but there is a trip report flair available, so they must be more prevalent than I thought.

TLDR: Yosemite is unbelievably grand and beautiful. As much as you’d expect. It’s always crowded, not always easy to get around, and you can see the strain of park cuts.

The trip actually ended up being pretty close to what I originally posted, with some suggestions/changes from the comments. Long post on the way.

Day 1 - Flew into Fresno without issue. Picked up my rental at the airport and drove towards Yosemite. Stopped at Raley's in Oakhurst to grab some stuff. On the way in I did end up stopping at Mariposa Grove since it was right there. Did the Grizzly Giant 2 mile loop to check things out and I thought it was well worth the stop if you're coming in that way. Checked into the Lodge after making a circle around the Valley a couple times (unintentionally). Got settled in and then drove over to El Cap for sunset and the evening to watch people climbing before bed.

Day 2 - Up early-ish in a hot room to hike Yosemite Point. After filling up my water bladder, I see that it had a hole in it, so headed over to the market/gift shop to get a bunch of waters/Gatorades for the hike up, which was super convenient to have open that early. Quickly, I realized that what the weather apps seemingly say the temp is in Yosemite Valley is off by a bit. The entirety of the time I was there temps said highs of 70-79ish. But I found it much hotter (coming from the east coast with incessant heat and humidity). Yosemite Point is a bit of a slog. An unrelenting climb on mostly unsure footing past mile 1. But the payoff at Upper Falls and Yosemite Point is undeniable. No falls, but the small pool at the bridge was pretty cool. If I hadn't had the issue with my bladder I would've probably trekked up to North Dome to finish the hike off. The amount of people I saw on the way down without water, and/or spectacularly unprepared for what's ahead was a bit troubling, but foreshadowed the rest of the week. Spent the evening walking around Curry Village, where I picked up another water bladder (again, super convenient), and walked around the Mirror Lake trail.

Day 3 - Actually up early to take the Mamiya up to Tunnel View. Got there around 5:45 or so, and was probably the 3rd or 4th person/group. After that I continued up to Glacier Point to take pictures of all the stuff you've seen a million times already, but I still found it super cool. Walked around the area for a bit, hit the overlooks, then hiked Sentinel Dome to Taft Point, which I also thought rocked. The way you approach Sentinel Dome and think "no way they're letting people climb up that," just to see that they are in fact, letting people climb up that, is fun. Seeing Taft Point and putting 2 and 2 together after Dark Wizard was at once cool and sad. After finishing up there I got an early lunch at the dining hall, trotted around Lower Yosemite Falls, then walked over to Cook's Meadow for sunset, which was unbelievable.

Day 4 - On to Tioga Road! Got started late, maybe around 8:30 or 9:00. My goal was to drive to the Visitor's Center, then double back to Cloud's Rest, before sunset at Olmstead Point. I expected it to be a ghost town up here, and I was in fact very wrong. The inability of people to maneuver or understand the Tuolumne Visitor Center parking was very frustrating. I circled the lot a few times before finding a spot on the road and running in. I stopped at Pothole Dome and ran around that tall ass rock for a bit. Then hit Cloud's Rest, which was just as amazing as you'd hope. After Yosemite Point, I was happy to gain some elevation over a more reasonable distance. The views all around are exactly as wonderous and unbelievable as you'd think. Finally felt a bit of the solitude you'd hope to get. Believe it or not, the hike down is just as good as the one up. Sunset at Olmstead Point was again, unreal. Such a cool view of Half Dome and the valley.

Day 5 - My legs were a bit iffy at this point after around 36 miles and 8600 feet of elevation so I booked the shuttle up to Glacier Point rather than hiking up the 4 mile trail. Was pretty cool and seamless. I appreciated the trip. Hiked down via the Panorama Trail to Illilouette Falls and Creek, which rocked. The views of the valley and Half Dome are crazy up here. Then back up to Nevada Falls for lunch. Liberty Cap from this vantage point is so imposing. I wanted to make sure I got the full experience so I took the stairs down from Nevada to Vernal and back to Curry. Again, the amount of people completely unprepared is astounding to me. But a very impressive trail/structure/solution to what is obviously going to be the highlight of most people's trip. The falls are really, really cool. The walk back to Curry was fine. The lines, crowds, and process of getting food in Curry, on a Sunday, was a disaster. Talked to some really cool people while eating about their trips. A definitively different vibe on that end of the park.

Day 6 - Up and out. No Half Dome permit. I went 0-6 (including the general permit before the season). I was almost glad honestly. I would've gone ahead and done it, but I wouldn't have been happy about it, haha. I got all my stuff together and headed towards Valley View to take some pics of El Cap. From there I went back up to Mariposa Grove for one last time, then headed back towards Oakhurst and on my way to SEKI.

Takeaways

- I honestly don't know if my experience will be helpful. But I had some thoughts. Yosemite to me is a ton of compromise to make sure as many people as possible have an above average experience. And I think it suffers a bit because of it, I guess if you're like me. I'm talking mainly about the experience of getting around. The system for maneuvering vehicles around the Valley is a bit maddening. I've been to parks that basically require you to drive, and parks that also forbid it. And this somehow seems like the worst of both worlds. And as this is my first trip, I understand that it's impossible not to take into account the doing away of the entry system. There's not enough parking for the seeming expectation that you drive to certain hikes, on the roads or in the lots. And it's not always super clear if you can/should park in certain places. And the shuttle, just point blank, is not good enough to make up for this. I would've been more than happy to leave my car parked for the entirety of my time in the Valley if it felt like this was a logical step, but it just wasn't. And for me this takes away from the experience of being in the Valley, at least where I stayed. The best/most fun I had the entire week was obviously on Tioga and Glacier Point. The Valley seems primed for families on vacation and such, and that's totally fine. It reminded me a bit of the Grand Canyon South Rim in that way.

- The effect that the current administration has had on parks was incredibly apparent. The bathrooms were disgusting. By far the worst I've seen in any park I've ever visited. I couldn't imagine having this be your first impression of America or the park system and seeing that (also understand being the end of season might have something to do with it, but it was putrid). Likewise, the amount of trash that I found or saw was truly sad. I just don't understand what people think, or why they think it's okay. One of the people I talked to at Curry said he'd spend the last 3 days hiking 40 miles from Tuolumne to LYV and then back down to Curry and that he'd basically seen no trash for the first 30 miles, and enough to fill up his 45 gallon pack in the last 10. It's disheartening, and with the news of the possible land swap this past weekend, after the news about the roadless rule, and the parks in Utah being downsized, it's hard not to feel like things will continue getting worse for the foreseeable future (that doesn't even take into account the status of Phantom Ranch and the Grand Canyon). And again some of the people, like every overpopulated place, were unbearable. Whether it was fighting for parking, refusing to get out of the way or understand where you were on certain hikes, or being totally incapable of helping other people and being polite.

- With that said, almost unanimously, every single worker and person I talked to in the Park was INCREDIBLY nice and helpful and caring. People sharing food on hikes, helping with directions, taking pictures for folks, giving suggestions, etc. Really great stuff. And honestly, this might seem small, but I thought the prices at every single place that doesn't include the Curry Village Pizza Deck was super competitive. There wasn't really anything I couldn't have purchased at any of the convenience stores, and the food at the YVL cafeteria and Starbucks was basically normal food prices. The Ansel Adams gallery having film to purchase was really awesome. Truly terrible array of hats at every gift shop, haha. And great stories from long time workers and guides.

Support the Parks and the people that work in them so we can all continue to enjoy these majestic places. Included some of my favorite iPhone shots here while film is being developed.

Found this SD card on Saturday 8/29, direct message me with more details to prove you’re the owner and I’ll mail it to you! Sorry that I couldn’t post sooner, was without service until today. The pictured SD card is 32 GB SanDisk Extreme Pro and has photos on it, so let me know what to look for on the card to prove it’s yours, hoping to reunite you with it!

I do not want to post photos here from the card and will not share any details as I assume the original owner does not want this. Also let me know if there’s a better way to try to reunite the card with the owner such as another subreddit or site!

Will gladly take your site 9/11-13 if you are planning on cancelling. 3 times i’ve clicked on the email to book a site and it’s gone within 5 seconds.

First time visiting. Only had one full day in the park. So figured I’d try to see as much as I possibly could in one day. 14 hours and 17 miles later, one of the hardest days I’ve had. But man was it worth every moment. Most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.

Incredible one night trip to Ten Lakes Basin. Weather was perfect, not too hot during the day and not too cold at night. Found a great spot to set up our hammock and also did a short walk to find a beautiful view down into the grand canyon of the Tuolumne.

I will be out in Yosemite in October. I heard none of the falls will be flowing so what are the best hikes places to see in Yosemite during October? We also climb but only sport climb and I heard it’s mostly trad. Any recs for sport climbing that isn’t extremely hard?

Is there enough to take a dip anywhere up there?

Hay everyone. I intend to stay at this campground and I was wondering if anyone knew any spots near that I can go fishing in. I intend to get up early around 4 AM - 6 AM to catch some trout. Now I don’t expect anyone to give their secret spots away, but it will be my first time ever in Yosemite and I want to try and catch some trout. I won’t be fly fishing, but I will be using a basic freshwater rod with a 2 pound line and also follow CA state fishing laws (I do have a fishing license). Thanks to anyone who contributes. I appreciate the help and info!!

Hello folks! I’m planning a short overnight backpacking trip from sunrise -> clouds rest -> sunrise. I saw the tuolumne mdws forecast shows lows around 0 degrees C, and I’d like to know if this is considered the start of shoulder season

there are lots of wilderness permits still available but all are for areas I'm not familiar with. up for an out and back or loop with 10-15 miles and some climbing each day. what would you suggest?! experienced backpacker just not familiar with most of Yosemite.

First time visiting the park :)

I'm aware the waterfalls may be down to a trickle by this time. If I bring a long a water bottle with filter, will there be places to gather water on most of the classic hiking routes? Streams and such. Thanks!

Has anyone done the hike starting at curry village -> up the mist trail -> across the panorama trail to glacier point -> to the top of sentinel dome -> and down the four mile trail to the street ?

I did it last Wednesday 8/26/26 and want to know how my stats are…

Gonna be staying in the wawona area for about a week with a group of 5, I was wondering if the grocery prices at the village store were fair enough that we could just buy the majority of our frozen/fresh food there instead of traveling further somewhere else, any advice is greatly appreciated!!

We went to Yosemite for the first time and stayed at a hotel in Oakhurst, the nearest town. Next time we decided to go strictly with an RV. Amazing place

Camped two nights at North Pines campground.

Half Dome from Glacier Point this morning.

I finally got around to backpacking from Tuolumne Meadows to Yosemite Valley starting at the Cathedral Lakes Trailhead after having it on my bucket list for a long time, and wow! What an amazing experience and mix of lakes, clouds, sunsets, views, wildlife, meadows, inclines/declines, and people. Since I had no time constraints and only work demands waiting for me back home, I purposefully took a slow pace and spread the trip out over 6 days/5 nights from August 20-25. Below is recap of my trip, along with some information I did not easily find floating around the interwebs while planning that may be helpful for others. 

• Day 1/Night 1: I arrived in Yosemite Valley and picked up my permit, hopped on and off the Yosemite Valley Shuttle to enjoy the sights, parked my vehicle at the Yosemite Valley Trailhead Parking Lot near Curry Village (it is separate from the dirt parking near Curry Village), and set up camp for the night at the Backpacker’s Campground Yosemite Valley. Parking at the Yosemite Valley Trailhead Parking lot is recommended for overnight backpackers and does not require any sort of displayed permit. The parking lot has bear boxes for long-term storage, and is about 1 mi from the Backpacker's Campground. No Yosemite Valley Shuttle stops best serve the route between the parking lot and the Backpacker's Campground. The payment instructions at the Backpacker’s Campground are insanely complicated to pay via the Recreation.gov app (you must have your car license plate, permit number, and Recreation.gov reservation number readily available) and there wasn't much information available beforehand to explain the process other than that you can’t pay with cash. It turns out you can still pay the $8 site fee in cash and that’s the way to go. There’s a temporary (15 mins) parking lot near the Backpacker’s Campground for unloading gear, accessible by driving through the North Pines Campground entrance. The Backpacker’s Campground filled up by late afternoon and hikers came and went throughout the entire night.
• Day 2/Night 2: I took the 8:00 AM Tuolumne Hiker’s Bus that cost $17 with pickup from the Ahwahnee Hotel (you must call in advance to set up pick up from this location, otherwise it only picks up from the Yosemite Valley Lodge). So this bus route is literally a “tour” with the nice driver sharing touristy facts about Yosemite and many stops in between Yosemite Valley and Tuolumne Meadows. On the giant mostly empty bus were only myself and one other couple, but we still stopped at every planned location and it took about 2.5 hours to arrive at the Tuolumne Meadows Visitor Center. Taking a YARTS bus is another option to get to Tuolumne Meadows from Yosemite Valley, but it has later departure schedules at 11:15 AM and 3:15 PM and is slightly more expensive. The Tuolumne Meadows Visitor Center is about 0.8 miles from the Cathedral Lakes Trailhead. The hike from the trailhead to Upper Cathedral Lake is mild and short (4.77 mi/+1,357 ft) and I crossed only one flowing stream for water in between. I camped on the west side of the lake with a fantastic view of Cathedral Peak and next to a group of four, including a couple who were getting married the very next day at the lake! That night was a top five sunset experience and I saw incredible cloud formations.
• Day 3/Night 3: The hike to Lower Sunrise Lake is again mild and a bit longer (6.38 mi/+896 ft). There were no flowing streams in between, but potable water is available at the Sunrise High Sierra Camp. Most of the camp sites at Lower Sunrise Lake are on the west side of the lake and I found an isolated pocket with no one else around. I spent the day swimming and climbed up the adjacent rocky hill to get epic views of the lake and the distant landscape.
• Day 4/Night 4: The hike to Little Yosemite Valley Campground (LYVC) via Clouds Rest is strenuous (10.06 mi/+1,343 ft) and the only water sources I noticed in between were a small muddy lake about one-third of the way to Clouds Rest and then a lightly flowing creek at the Clouds Rest Trail/JMT junction. The overall incline was manageable, but the decline from Clouds Rest to LYVC was intense (-3,802 ft). It was my first visit to Clouds Rest and it lives up to all the hype. I had planned to camp at the Clouds Rest Trail/JMT junction, however I wasn't too stoked on the setup or the light stream flow, so I decided to push on to LYVC. I later heard from other folks in the LYVC that there was an active bear hanging around the Clouds Rest Trail/JMT junction causing trouble. The LYVC is very busy and sites filled up quickly later in the day. I camped near the Merced River that is the main water source (there is no potable water at the LYVC), features a relaxing beach area to hang out and swim, and is located along the southwest edge of the LYVC. There is a bathroom structure with four vault toilets along the western edge of the LYVC, so finding a site near both the toilets and the Merced River is ideal. I met a lot of really friendly people coming and going and a ranger patrols the camp to educate and enforce rules. A very active bear cub roamed the LYVC during the two days I spent there, so it was crucial to closely monitor all food, toiletries, etc., and secure them in bear boxes when not in use.
• Day 5/Night 5: I departed the LYVC around 8:40 AM for the strenuous (9.01 mi/+2,849 ft) roundtrip hike to Half Dome and it took me around 5 hours to complete at a decent pace. There were no water sources between the LYVC and Half Dome. It is all uphill from the LYVC and starting from there instead of the Clouds Rest Trail/JMT junction added roughly another +900 ft in elevation gain. A ranger checks for Half Dome permits at the start of the switchbacks leading up to the Half Dome cables. I'm not going to lie, when I first saw the Half Dome cables I was a little shocked by how steep and long the route to the top is. Even with the permitting system in place it is very busy, with people of all capabilities (some questionable) attempting to reach the top. For me, the most challenging part is that you don't control the pace while waiting for others and you might linger on the steepest section of the cable route without knowing how long it will take to move again. Some people use a waist harness system to secure to the cables, which also created pacing issues for others and necessitated passing them. Going up actually requires some level of strength and fitness to feel stable and secure. The top of Half Dome is expansive to walk around, and it's hard to comprehend the scale of what you are standing on. The views are obviously great, but in my opinion, they are second to what you experience on Clouds Rest. Going down the cables seemed easier and the key was walking backward, which was more efficient for leveraging your weight and maintaining strength. It took longer to get down than go up perhaps because it was a busy time of day with many people descending and unsure how best to proceed, or taking their time to soak up the view from a different perspective. A group in front of me was very inconsiderate of others around them as they descended and it was quite rewarding watching one of them drop their phone and seeing it tumble down the length of the cables into the abyss (I do agree, it is unfortunate that the phone now becomes nature's problem). Gloves with rubber gripping are essential for navigating the cables. Back in the LYVC I spent the rest of the day lounging around the sandy beach area along the Merced River.
• Day 6: The hike to Happy Isles is again mild (6.58 mi/+648 ft) and mostly all downhill. I knew there was a closure along the Mist Trail because trail repairs near Vernal Falls are ongoing (it is closed for a stretch Monday through Thursday from 7:00 AM to 3:30 PM through October 2026), but I wanted to hike down the grand staircase section so I went anyway, not realizing I was setting myself up for a climb back up to the JMT to join the detour route. Not much else to say as everyone knows this trail and I always enjoy saying hi to people from so many different areas of the world along it. Parking at the Yosemite Valley Trailhead Parking Lot paid off as it is only a short walk from the Happy Isles trailhead.

Image Captions:

• Image 1: View of the eastern edge of Upper Cathedral Lake, Cathedral Peak, and the coolest space ship lenticular clouds I've ever seen
• Image 2: View of the northern edge of Upper Cathedral Lake bursting with colors at dusk
• Image 3: View of the southern edge of Upper Cathedral Lake and remnants of the lenticular clouds
• Image 4: Closest view I got of Cathedral Peak
• Image 5: Farthest view I got of Cathedral Peak along the meadow near Sunrise High Sierra Camp
• Image 6: View from above Lower Sunrise Lake
• Image 7: Enjoying the view of Yosemite Valley from Clouds Rest with a friend
• Image 8: Sizing up the Half Dome cables
• Image 9: View from the top of Half Dome looking back at Clouds Rest and beyond
• Image 10: Beach area along the Merced River near the Little Yosemite Valley Campground
• Image 11: Obligatory stop at Tunnel View
• Image 12: Pre-backpacking trip anticipation
• Image 13: Post-backpacking trip satisfaction