United States
Yosemite National Park
May, the falls at full.
Season
- January●●●●●Valley in snow, Tioga long closed
- February●●●●●Horsetail catching the last sun, valley parking full
- March●●●●●Snowmelt starting, falls back to life
- April●●●●●Dogwoods budding on the valley floor, falls thickening
- May●●●●●Falls at peak, dogwoods through the valley
- June●●●●●Tioga opens late month, high country still snowed in
- July●●●●●Falls thinning fast, crowds thickest in the valley
- August●●●●●Yosemite Falls dry, climbers on El Cap at dawn
- September●●●●●Crowds easing, granite cooling at night
- October●●●●●Dogwoods turning crimson, Tioga closing soon
- November●●●●●First snow on the high country, valley quieting
- December●●●●●Snow on the granite, the high country sealed for winter
Location
Curated places
Mist Trail to Vernal Fall
Trail · 180 min · Free
The canonical Yosemite trail — three miles round-trip from Happy Isles, a thousand feet up to the top of Vernal Fall. The second half is the granite-step section in the waterfall's spray — rain gear in May, refreshing in July when the fall has thinned to half. Past Vernal, the trail continues to Nevada Fall (3.5 miles more); most turn around at the top.
Glacier Point
Sight · 180 min · Free
Thirty-two miles from the valley floor up Glacier Point Road (open late May through October), the rim view above Yosemite Valley — Half Dome ahead, Vernal and Nevada Falls right below. Sunset is the photographer's moment; dawn is the quieter one. The road closes at the first heavy snow.
The Ahwahnee Hotel
Stay · 720 min · ────
The 1927 Gilbert Stanley Underwood grand hotel — granite and timber, six stories on the valley floor with Half Dome in the back windows. NHL-listed. The Dining Room hall (six-story ceiling, hanging iron chandeliers) is the room; the upstairs guest rooms are smaller than the rate suggests. Book thirteen months ahead, exactly.