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Clouds rest trail head12/6/2023 The trail from here climbs for a short distance through an evergreen forest.īear R 3-way junction. (It runs yearlong, representing a possible water source). From here, the trail loses about 300 feet of that hard-fought elevation.Ĭross a small creek. Leave the Sunrise Trail and follow the trail sign to Clouds Rest. Spur option: Turn left and walk 400 feet through trees to picturesque Tenaya Lake.ĭuring the next mile, climb 1,000 feet up switchbacks with granite steps and cobblestones.īear R Y-junction. Continue on the shady, worn trail that is lined with large granite boulders. No water is available at the trailhead except Tenaya Lake.īear R Y-junction. Trail FactsĪt the Sunrise Trailhead, hike south on a paved path. CA-120/Tioga Road is a seasonal road that closes in November and reopens on May 21. After 30.8 miles, follow the road east to Sunrise Trailhead on the south end of Tenaya Lake. After 0.7 miles, turn right onto CA-120 and continue for 40 miles. At 1.7 miles, make a slight left to stay on Kelley Grade/Marshes Flat Road and continue for 2.2 miles. TO TRAILHEAD: From Groveland, CA, head northeast on Kelley Grade/Marshes Flat Road. MORE INFO: Yosemite National Park, (209) 372-020 nps.gov/yose/ Soak it all in and then backtrack to the trailhead. Even better: you’ll likely be looking down on Half Dome (8,836 ft.). 360-degree views stretch for hundreds of miles. All the glacier-carved wonder of Little Yosemite Valley and the surrounding peaks unfolds at the top of Clouds Rest (9,926 ft.). Hug the eastern edge of the mountainside and muscle your way through the 500-foot climb to the summit. The back end of Cloud’s Rest appears to the west. Climbing along evergreen stands, isolated, alpine lakes and the eroding curvature of Tenaya Canyon, you may begin to feel you’re the only person left in the world.įive miles in, the route steadily ascends to a ridgeline. Don’t worry about throngs of summit-hungry hikers: Clouds Rest lacks the crowds that nearby Half Dome attracts. Then, let the climbing begin.įrom here on, you’ll gain nearly 1,500 feet over 4.5 miles and climb, literally, into the clouds. Hop on the Sunrise Trail for a flat, 1.6-mile warm-up to the glittering azure of Sunrise Lakes. Be careful not to sprain your shutter finger at Tenaya Lake, a beautiful, crystal-blue tarn gouged by glaciers eons ago. I would definitely do this route again if I visit Clouds Rest.Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members!įew peak-bagging efforts begin with a photographing frenzy, but this 6-mile hike to Clouds Rest starts right off with can’t miss photo-ops. For a 9-hour hike and not having to do any driving (which is about 80 miles round-trip from the Valley), I found it to be a great itinerary. The total distance was 17 miles, or about 5 miles longer than the round-trip hiking from Sunrise Lakrs Trailhead. I arrived at Happy Isles just before 7pm. Continuing on the JMT one can reach the Valley either using the JMT the whole way or taking the Mist Trail just before Nevada Fall. One turns right onto the JMT and about 1/2 a mile later, intersects with the Half Dome trail. After about 1/2 a mile, there’s a junction where one heads to the right.Īfter another 3 miles, the trail joins the JMT. If one wants to hike to the Valley, there’s actually a separate trail from the top of Clouds Rest. After enjoying the top (and it’s the best view in Yosemite even having done Half Dome), I started heading down around 2:00. The bus ride cost $14.įor me, I got to Clouds Rest around 1:30. Although Sunrise Lakes Trailhead is not an official stop on Tioga Road, the driver said she could make a drop off anywhere one would like along Tioga. The bus picks up at Curry Village at 8:00 and from Yosemite Lodge at 8:10. While the bus is not offered 100% of the time when Tioga Road is open, it operates a good majority most of the time. I personally did this route by using the Tuolomne Meadows hiking bus, which is offered once a day in the morning. The nice thing about this is that hiking from Clouds Rest down to the Valley is all downhill. This obviously requires driving or getting some form of transportation to the trailhead.Īnother route, for those originating from Yosemite Valley is to hike one-way from the same starting Sunrise Lakes trailhead, going over Clouds Rest and then hiking down to the Valley floor. This hike is about 6.2 miles one-way or 12.4 miles round-trip. Most people who go to Clouds Rest do it as a day hike round-trip from the Sunrise Lakes trailhead on Tioga Road. I just wanted to add a tidbit which might be helpful to that I haven’t seen before. There’s lots of great advice from Redditors on Clouds Rest.
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