If you have a mac book or seen its original desktop background then you have seen a picture taken in Yosemite. Only this fact tells that its an extraordinary place. Imagine, people lived here for 8000 years and first white people found it only in 1848! Tourism started fast after that but it’s hard to imagine how long the trip should take going with the horse.. Pretty dangerous paths! Now, of course all the roads are great.

So I was lucky enough to spend 2 days in there and now I am ready to share my experiences and tips!

How to get there?

You can visit all seasons and they are different! In the end of March is the beginning of spring, when the waterfalls are the fullest, grass is becoming green, bears a waking up.. Yes, bears. Californian flag is with a bear not without a reason! Most important thing I would say is how to get there. Most of the roads are closed and the one is open is to get to Yosemite valley – 140 highway. It is a beautiful road that comes from Mariposa town. Tioga road that crosses the Park is closed during the winter (mid May- October). All road conditions check here.

Where to stay?

There is a possibility to camp in Yosemite that is a great idea when nights gets warmer. You can book and check information about it in here. I strongly suggest to book it ASAP because during high season it can be sold out weeks before the trip..

You can also get a hotel inside the park that is a bit more pricey. But of course beautiful and historic and worth it.

Another option is to get a motel close to the park so it is cheaper but close. That is what we did, we booked a Cedar Lodge motel that is only 25min drive to the valley. It’s really not that bad, rooms are spacious, there is an inside and outside pools, BBQ area that we used very happily. Just no Wifi, that is actually good to feel nature better and kinda challenge yourself as we are so used to having Wifi anywhere we go.

Activities in Yosemite park

The park is huge, but during this period you can see only a small part of it. But trust me, it is enough. There is a nice list of all hikes in Yosemite valley in here. We chose easier walks and enjoyed it a lot! To go to the upper falls or similar you will really need to go very steep all the time. And the time I visited, there were still plenty off snow in the mountains. If you are for one day – first thing – visit Tunnel view! It’s one of the most amazing views and it’s right next to parking lot. On the other side of the road there is not so known Artist hike that is no that steep and also beautiful.

Brindeveil falls and Lower Yosemite falls are super easy and it would be a sin not to see those if you are in the area!

Another hike we did was the mirror lake one, its a bit longer and you need to take a shuttle bus (easier as there are not much parking there). If you take full loop around the lake is 8km but if you just go there and back is maybe 3km.. Anyways, it’s flat and its beautiful there! Just one thing – you can see mirror only few weeks during the spring when there is the most water.. So if you are there in Autumn I don’t think it’s worth going..

Other than that, you can rent bikes, go fishing, have picnics and many other things. more 

P.S. Don’t worry about the bears. If you don’t go too far from the main areas where people are – you won’t see them. They will never approach you, maybe your food if you leave it without guard. So better use special boxes to lock food and don’t leave it in a tent or car.

Ask me in the comments if you would like to know something specific!

After Yosemite, my road lead to Sequoia national park.

Yosemite National park in Spring @ Fly Mild - Fly Mild - Find best deals and tips for your trip