Yosemite National Park - South - September 3rd to 6th, 2024

Yosemite National Park is a very popular park. It can be tricky to get campground reservations inside the park, but we managed to snag reservations at two less popular campgrounds outside of Yosemite Valley the minute the reservations opened up. We stayed three nights in Wawona Campground, south of Yosemite Valley, and four nights in Hodgdon Meadow Campground, north of Yosemite Valley. This post covers our time in the Wawona Campground, concentrating on the southern part of Yosemite, including some of our time in Yosemite Valley. The next post will cover our time in Hodgdon Meadow Campground, concentrating on the northern part of Yosemite with some more time in Yosemite Valley.

Tuesday was a travel day from Pinnacles National Park to Wawona Campground in Yosemite National Park. After dumping and filling our tanks, we hit the road around 9:30 am. We drove through pasture lands, farmlands, orchards, and vineyards before reaching the mountains.

Ann was hungry so we stopped for an early lunch in Los Banos. During our travels in California, Oregon, and Washington, we’ve seen many Black Bear Diners. We’ve never been to one, so we thought we’d give it a try. We normally don’t stop at restaurant chains, as we like to try new things, but Black Bear Diner looked interesting.

Ann had the California burger with sweet potato fries, the same items she had at the Bayside Café in Sausalito (Portola Redwoods State Park, California - August 24th to 26th, 2024). Keith had something similar, eggs Benedict, but with grits this time instead of hash browns. Ann liked Black Bear’s burger better than Bayside’s. Keith enjoyed his eggs Benedict and fresh fruit, but didn’t care for the grits.

We would definitely stop at a Black Bear Diner again. The Diner doesn’t really feel like a chain. It has a friendly, relaxing atmosphere and an extensive menu. The chain started in Mount Shasta in 1995 and now has 160 locations, mainly on the west coast. There are even a few locations in Colorado.

Our only other stop was in Oakhurst, just outside of Yosemite, for laundry, groceries, and gas. Normally we hang out in Red Tail (our Winnebago EKKO) while we wait for our laundry, but temperatures were in the 100’s. We could have turned on the air conditioner as we can run it for several hours off our batteries. But instead we went into the McDonald’s next door where we bought drinks and enjoyed their air conditioning.

A Vons grocery store was just a couple of blocks away from the laundry and the gas station was on the way out of town. Vons is owned by Safeway, so it was very familiar inside. The Chevron had pretty high gas prices, but at least they gave us a discount with our Safeway loyalty card.

We reached the South Entrance Gate some time between 4:30 pm and 5 pm. The two lines to get in were not long, but we picked the wrong line. It took us 20 minutes to get through the line while if we had gotten in the other line, we would have been through in ten minutes. It all depends on who is in front of you in line, whether they already have a pass or have to purchase an entry pass. Just FYI, they only accept credit cards, no cash.

The Wawona Campground sits at a higher elevation than Oakhurst, so the temperature had dropped back down into the upper 80’s by the time we arrived. The temperatures dropped even further as the sun set.

After dinner, we walked the campground loops for exercise. The campground sits in between the park road and the South Fork Merced River. We could hear the traffic noise from the road, especially in our Loop A, but the traffic dies down at night. The river meant that there were mosquitoes. We didn’t put on any bug spray before our walk and the bugs seemed to like Ann, even though we kept moving and didn’t stop or stand still. We were sitting outside for dinner and didn’t have any problems with the bugs, but they like to come out around sun set.

We started Wednesday at Mariposa Grove. You park at the Mariposa Welcome Center and take a free shuttle to the trailhead. We chose a short trail, the Grizzly Giant Loop Trail, just 2.1 miles long with an elevation gain of 500 feet. We had a couple of hard hikes planned later in the week, so we wanted to take it easy the first two days in the park.

Not all the giant sequoias in California are in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. Yosemite has a few groves as well. Besides the Mariposa Grove, there are also the Tuolumne Grove and the Merced Grove.

The Grizzly Giant is a big sequoia tree, the second largest in the Mariposa Grove, with a lot of character. It is the tree where John Muir camped with President Theodore Roosevelt.

The Grizzly Giant Loop Trail also passes by the California Tunnel Tree. The large tunnel was carved into the tree in 1895. It was a stunt to promote tourism in the area. The California Tunnel Tree was the second tree to be tunneled in the grove. The first one, the Wawona Tunnel Tree, was cut in 1881 and fell in 1969.

From the Mariposa Grove, we drove over to the Wawona area. After parking in the lot by the gift shop, we walked over to the historic Wawona Hotel for lunch. Restoration of the hotel’s roof was in progress, so the front of the hotel was covered with scaffolding, but the hotel and dining room were still open.

Ann enjoyed a grilled caprese chicken sandwich while Keith had the grilled portobello burger, both with side salads. Keith never had grilled portobello before and wanted to try it. Our waitress made sure she we knew that the grilled portobello burger had no meat with it. They must have had disappointed customers in the past who didn’t realize it was a vegetarian option. Keith thought it tasted pretty good.

For dessert, we had cheesecake, one with caramel and one with strawberry compote. They both were delicious, not too sweet and not too rich.

After our lovely lunch, we wandered through the Pioneer Yosemite History Center. The center has half a dozen or so historic buildings from around the area. Most of them were moved from other locations to the center. There was also a covered bridge, an old barn, and historic carriages on display. On the other side of the parking lot was the Chinese laundry building. It was the only building that was open while we were there. Signs were on the other buildings saying they were closed due to recent thefts. Hopefully they will re-open them in the future. For us, we had to be satisfied with just peering into the windows.

While we were checking out the buildings, Ann managed to get stung by some kind of bee or wasp on her thumb. It seemed like it stung her twice, on both sides of her thumb knuckle. It was very painful, so she scurried back to Red Tail to put ice on it. Before she reached our rig, the pain started to subside. After melting an ice cube on her thumb, it felt much better. In fact, in less than half an hour, the pain was completely gone and there were no marks on her thumb. Everything was back to normal. Ann’s been stung several times before in her life, but this was the most painful and the only time the sting disappeared so quickly. That was weird.

The rest of the day we hung out at camp. It was a rather hot day, but we stayed comfortable in the shade of Red Tail. We had enough clear sky at our site to put out Starlink, but we also had a really good Verizon signal so we just used that. Starlink doesn’t take a lot of effort to setup, but it does take longer than just turning on our Verizon hotspot.

There was supposed to be a 7 pm ranger program in the campground amphitheater that evening. However, when we walked over there, a hand written sign was posted indicating it had been cancelled. On our walk back, we met and talked with some other couples who were on their way to the program. One couple was John and Nancy from Indiana. We chatted with them for a while. They recommended going to the Wawona Hotel in the evening to listen to Tom Bopp. Tom is a pianist, singer, and historian who performs in the hotel lobby in the evening and is a wonderful story teller. We made plans to go the following evening.

Thursday we checked out Glacier Point. The parking at the end of the road was a little less than an hour’s drive from Wawona Campground. The road runs parallel to Yosemite Valley, but to the south of it, at a higher elevation. Concerned about getting a parking spot, we were up at 6:30 am and breaking camp by 7 am. We reached the main parking lot before 8 am, stopping at a couple of overlooks along the way. There were still plenty of parking spots left.

Since we were hiking to Sentinel Dome, we could have parked at the Sentinel Dome parking lot, a couple of miles before reaching Glacier Point. There were still spots available when we drove by in the morning, but it was full when we drove by afterward our hikes. However, we also wanted to see Glacier Point. The trail to Sentinel Dome from Glacier Point is slightly longer and more elevation gain than from the trailhead, but we didn’t have to move Red Tail in between.

We hiked Sentinel Dome first. The trail is a steady climb up to the dome. There are views of Half Dome and El Capitan along the way. Sentinel Dome is at an elevation of 8122 feet. From on top of the dome, there are 360 degree views of the surrounding area. Plenty of people were there enjoying the views with us, but the dome is large, so it didn’t feel too crowded. We sat down and enjoyed a snack along with the views.

From the dome, we headed back to the parking area and over to Glacier Point. Glacier Point is a short walk from the parking lot. We’re glad we did Sentinel Dome first. Although the views from the dome are spectacular, the views from Glacier Point are even better. You are closer to Half Dome and can see down to the bottom of Yosemite Valley. We could see Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls, where we planned to hike the following day.

Our total hiking distance was 3.6 miles with an elevation gain of 1119 feet which we completed in two hours and 40 minutes. It was our 57th hike of the year.

There is a gift shop and snack bar near the Glacier Point parking lot. We stopped in for drinks and a couple of ice cream novelties which we took back to Red Tail to enjoy with our lunch. Temperatures had started to warm up, but we were comfortable sitting inside our rig with the fans on while we ate our lunch.

In the afternoon, we hung out at camp. Taking showers helped us feel more comfortable in the heat. We cooked an early dinner, cleaned up our dishes and headed over to the Wawona Hotel around 6:30 pm.

Tom Bopp started playing at 5:30 pm. John and Nancy were already there when we arrived. For some reason, the hotel dining room along with the bar was closed. John and Nancy had picked up their dinner over at the general store. We walked over to the store to buy a couple of drinks to enjoy while listening to Tom Bopp.

Tom was very entertaining. He’s an excellent piano player along with having an extensive knowledge about Yosemite. He has been playing at the hotel since 1983. Tom was friends with Wawona Washburn, the daughter of the hotel manager, who was born in the hotel. He would play some and talk with the guests some. About half of the people there were regulars, very familiar with the place already. One couple was saying they remember listening to him play on an upright piano. Yes, back in the 1990’s, when the grand piano was taken away for repairs. We were probably the youngest people there.

We had a wonderful time and learned quite a few stories about the area. It was a lovely way to spend an evening, relax listening to some old music, enjoy a drink or two, and learn some history. Thank you John and Nancy for the recommendation!

Unfortunately, the Wawona Hotel closed indefinitely on December 2, 2024. Apparently they found something during the roof replacement project and are conducting a comprehensive assessment of the hotel’s condition. We couldn’t find any more information about the closure nor any predictions of when or if the hotel may reopen. Tom Bopp is currently looking for another venue to perform in (Tom Bopp’s Schedule).

Friday we moved from Wawona Campground in the south part of Yosemite to Hodgdon Meadow Campground in the north part of the park. In between, we spent the majority of the day in Yosemite Valley which was in-between the two campgrounds.

Like the day before, we were up at 6:30 am and packed up by 7 am. We wanted to make sure we had a place to park in the valley so we could go on a long hike. The plan was to hike the Mist Trail up to Nevada Falls. The park ranger at the Wawona Visitor Center recommended trying to get a parking spot at Curry Village and walking to the trailhead from there, so that’s what we did.

We arrived at the parking lot before 8 am. It is a large lot. There were a lot of vehicles parked there, but there were still spots left. Then we sat there in the lot, having our breakfast and coffee, before getting ready for our hike.

The parking lot is about a mile or so from the trailhead, so that turned the 6.4 mile hike into an almost 9 mile hike. Thankfully the extra mileage was pretty flat and easy terrain. There was another parking lot about a half a mile closer to the trailhead, but it does not allow RV’s. It also looked like it was full when we walked by.

The Mist Trail is steep, as it follows alongside the Merced River. They call it the Mist Trail because during the spring and summer, you get wet from the mist of the river. However, this was the beginning of September and the trail was bone dry.

Just after the first bridge that crosses the Merced River, there are flush bathrooms and a water fill station. We had about three liters each with us, but Keith topped off his water bottle as extra insurance. Just after that, the John Muir Trail splits off to the right. We stayed on the Mist Trail.

When Vernal Falls comes into view, the trail turns into steep steps all the way to the top of the falls. The Emerald Pool and the Silver Apron water fall sit just beyond the top of Vernal Falls. Another trail splits off to the right, heading up to Clark Point and the John Muir Trail. Again, we stayed on the Mist Trail.

After getting a glimpse of Nevada Falls, the trail begins a long series of steep switchbacks before reaching the John Muir Trail. There is another bathroom, but not flush toilets this time.

If you turn left onto the John Muir Trail, you will reach the Little Yosemite Valley Campground and the trail that leads up to Half Dome. We passed several backpackers, both going up to and coming down from the campground. Backpacking and taking the trail up to Half Dome both require permits. Not only is the Half Dome Trail very physically challenging, it is also very dangerous. Some of the deaths were due to slipping on wet rock. Even if we were physically able to do it, we wouldn’t attempt it. That’s a higher risk than we are willing to take for a physical challenge. We can get similar views from other vantage points.

After sitting down and enjoying our lunch, we turned right onto the John Muir Trail to head back down. The top of Nevada Falls is not far from the junction with the Mist Trail. We should have waited to have our lunch at the top of the falls. It is a lovely, spacious area with spectacular views. Some people were wading in the water above the falls. But be careful. Being swept over the falls would not result in a good outcome.

There are quite a few great views of Nevado Falls as you descend down the John Muir Trail. It is rather dramatic, as you make a turn on a switchback, and the falls pop into sight again … and again. Not far beyond Clark Point, the trail turns into a seemingly unending series of long switchbacks to descend down where it rejoins the Mist Trail.

At the water fill station near the first bridge, we topped off our water. We probably could have made it without topping off, but we were feeling pretty tired and didn’t want to add running out of water to our discomfort.

By the time we returned to Red Tail, we had gone 9 miles with an elevation gain of 2385 feet in six hours and 12 minutes. That was probably the hardest hike we’ve done so far this year. It was hike number 58 for 2024. We also counted it as hike number 44 of our 52 Hike Challenge National Park Series.

After dumping our gear off at our rig, we walked over to Curry Village. Ann had spotted Jennie’s Ice Cream on the map the day before and was looking forward to having some at the end of our hike. She was so disappointed when she saw the sign that said Jennie’s closed for the season on September 2nd. Bummer! Instead, we popped into the general store for soda and ice cream novelties. They didn’t have It’s It, so Ann had to settle, yet again, for a Nestle’s ice cream cookie sandwich. And, like so many of the National Parks we’ve visited this year, they only had Pepsi products and not Coke, so we both had a Dr. Pepper.

From Yosemite Valley to Hodgdon Meadow Campground, it was about a 45 minute drive. It’s a little longer when you miss a turn in the valley and have to loop around again. Most of the roads in Yosemite Valley are one way, forming a big loop around the valley. There are a few of crossover points, to short cut the loop. We found it rather confusing to figure out our way around, even with Google Maps turned on. Of course, being exhausted from our hike didn’t help us any.

By the time we set up camp, it was about 6 pm. Luckily our plans for dinner were rather simple, brats with kraut on rye bread with a side of applesauce. However, that meant getting the Blackstone (paid link) out, which Keith reluctantly did.

After nourishing our bodies, we got Starlink out. There wasn’t much of a cell signal at the campground, so it was worth the effort of setting up Starlink. Of course, we didn’t really feel like doing that, but it was worth the effort so we could relax while watching some YouTube videos.

During our time at the Wawona Campground, we worked around the crowds of people. Getting up early was the key to finding parking spots where we wanted to visit. It also had the advantage of hiking during the cooler part of the day.

Check out our related video: Yosemite National Park - South

(Ann)