It’s the end of summer — at least when it comes to hordes of vacationers.
That is especially true when it comes to Yosemite National Park ,once the calendar passes Labor Day.
There isn’t a better time to make your first excursion to the crown jewel of the Sierra or a repeat trip for that matter.
And it doesn’t need to be a full blown multiple-day vacation.
A day trip will do.
It’s because you neither have to contend with massive crowds, seriously cold weather, or scorching high 90 temperatures in the place where 95 percent of the 4 million or so annual visitors never stray far from — Yosemite Valley.
The park is 1,169 square miles. The valley is 7 square miles.
Four million people. Seven square miles. You get the picture.
Reservations are still needed to enter on Saturdays and Sundays through Oct. 27 as well as Labor Day and Indigenous People’s Day (formerly Columbus Day.)
It is a big reason why a day trip on a Monday through Friday is ideal.
Right up there with less crowds in the park is less traffic up and back on Highway 120.
And if you opt to go for a day trip, take a hike out of the valley and keep your wanderings on the valley floor at a minimum.
I’d also opt not to access concession areas — aka food service et al.
It takes time away from your day.
You can bring your own food but I’d only do so for your backpack.
The bears channel Yogi Bear and his nose for “pic-a-nic baskets.”
But unlike Yogi, they can inflict damage to vehicles. They’ve been known to peel the roofs of Chevy Suburbans back like a sardine can lid by using their claws to track down the source of an enticing aroma.
Granted, the odds are a bear breaking into your vehicle is small. Keep in mind you’d better have comprehensive coverage on your car if you accept the odds and keep food, candy, gum, etc. in your vehicle if you are out hiking.
However, heeding the park rangers’ warning about leaving food in your vehicle and just bringing hiking or driving snacks is a great excuse to stop in Groveland for dinner or even El Jardin in Oakdale near the Cowboy Museum.
A short side trip into Jamestown for dinner at the National Hotel or other options is a nice way to cap the day.
On a weekday this time of year you can leave Manteca at 6 a.m., park your car in the valley before 9 a.m., take a hike, make a couple of quick stops in the valley afterward using your car, and be on your way home before 5 p.m.
The hike for first-timers that serves as a great introduction to the charms of Yosemite is the Mist Trail.
It is “the” hike for most Yosemite visitors.
I’d agree if you only had time to knockout one hike in your visit to Yosemite as it packs a lot into the 7 mile round trip to Nevada Fall (1,900 feet of gain) although you can make it a 3 mile round trip to Vernal Fall (1,000 feet of gain).
I’d be lying if I said it was my favorite hike given it doesn’t end above 10,000 feet on a mountain summit. That said, this is my sentimental favorite. It is where I fell in love with Cynthia.
It hit me perhaps halfway up the wide steps carved in the granite leading to Nevada Fall. And just as I went to steal a kiss, a vibrant rainbow arced across the Merced River from the mist creating by water falling to provide a backdrop as I closed my eyes.
It was magical and romantic. Most people who tackle the Mist Trail get the magical part.
At the top of the climb there is a huge granite plateau that nature created that’s perfect for basking in the sun as you dry off. The Mist Trail lives up to its name during the spring runoff.
That said, you might want to pack a rain jacket. Even in the late summer and early fall when the Merced River has lost some of its roar, the winds can kick up mist as you ascend near Vernal Fall.
This is as a good a time as any to remind you rocks along a river, creek or water fall in Yosemite can be dangerous at any time but especially during the spring runoff.
