The Mist Trail route is the shortest and most scenic, and deservedly the most popular. The Muir Trail route is about 1. It might also be preferable if you're hiking at night during peak runoff season - getting soaked with spray is way more fun during the day, when you'll dry out quickly. The Muir Trail route starts from the same trailhead as the Mist Trail, departs from it almost a mile into the hike just after you cross the bridge that gives you your first glimpse of Vernal Fall - the turnoff is well marked , and rejoins it again at the top of Nevada Fall.
The Glacier Point route has less climbing than the previous two routes, but, due to its length, is probably still more difficult. It also means you'll be ending your very long day with a couple miles of uphill switchbacks as you climb to Glacier Point from Illilouette Falls , a prospect you're likely to regret.
Hiking Half Dome from Tenaya Lake in one day isn't a realistic option unless you're in marathon-caliber condition, but hiking in from Tenaya Lake is a possibility if you're staying in the Little Yosemite Valley campground the night before you climb Half Dome. Last call at the Ahwahnee Bar is 11 p. Where depends on two factors: how many miles you're willing to hike on the day you climb Half Dome and how long a drive you'll endure to get to the Half Dome trailhead.
If you want to cut your mileage down on the day you climb Half Dome, spend the night in the Little Yosemite Valley campground , a mile beyond the top of Nevada Fall. This way you won't have to climb the Mist Trail the morning of your hike - a savings of about 4 miles 6. You'll be a couple hours ahead of the midday hordes of Half Dome hikers, and you'll get to the cables before it gets too crowded.
However, this is a backpackers-only campground with no road access, which means that you'll need to pack all your camping gear up the Mist Trail the day before: tent, sleeping bags, food, cooking gear, framed Ansel Adams prints, manicure kit, etc. And unless you can stay two nights, you'll have to pack up and haul it all down the Mist Trail after climbing Half Dome. If you're out of shape, staying in Little Yosemite Valley Campground probably won't help you much unless you can convince someone else to carry your pack for you; the best reason to stay here is to beat the crowds up Half Dome.
If you're not a backpacker and you can't be trusted behind the wheel before 6 a. Anywhere in the valley will mean a short drive to the trailhead - less than 5 miles 8 km in all cases. Staying in El Portal isn't bad, either; it'll give you a minute drive. If you're a morning person and by the way, no one wants to hear what a beautiful sunrise it was , you've got no worries.
Anywhere in Yosemite except the eastern end of Tioga Road will get you to the valley in less than an hour, and you won't be hitting any traffic jams at the time you'll be driving.
It's possible to depart from Oakhurst pre-dawn and be on the trail inside an hour and a half. This all assumes that you're starting from the Yosemite Valley trailhead. If you're taking the longer route from Glacier Point, your closest overnight option and the only one on Glacier Point Road is the Bridalveil Creek Campground, 8 miles 13 km from the trailhead.
Little Yosemite Valley lies upstream from Nevada Fall, at an elevation of 6, feet 1, meters. The hike-in campground here is a little under 4 miles 6.
It's the closest starting point to Half Dome, so if you're determined to beat the bottlenecks at the cables, spend the night here and get an early start the next morning, and you'll have a two or three hour head start over the crowds hiking up from the the Happy Isles trailhead in Yosemite Valley.
You do need a wilderness permit to camp in Little Yosemite Valley, but you don't need a campground reservation - if you've got the wilderness permit, you're allowed to camp here. Wilderness permits are free sort of - more on this in the next paragraph , but, for this area, extremely popular, and doubly so since the institution of the Half Dome permit system. The park service allows 60 percent of the wilderness permits for any particular trailhead to be reserved up to six months in advance, and holds the other 40 percent back to give out to lucky hikers the day of travel or up to 24 hours in advance.
The wilderness permits office in Yosemite Valley next to the post office in Yosemite Village opens at a. If you know well in advance when you're planning to climb Half Dome, you want to camp in Little Yosemite Valley, and you prefer to get your drama from actual outdoor adventures rather than from trying to make logistical arrangements, reserve your wilderness permit ahead of time.
You can do this from the National Park Service website or by calling You can get permits for groups of up to 15 people. Given that some people camp multiple nights in Little Yosemite Valley and that the park service also issues permits for other trailheads that are part of multi-day swings through the Half Dome area, plan on sharing the campground with about a hundred other campers on any given night.
One more thing to keep in mind: Half Dome is probably Yosemite's most strenuous day hike, and although camping in Little Yosemite Valley allows you to spread it over multiple days, it also means you'll have to do all but the section from LYV to the top of Half Dome while packing a tent, sleeping bag, and other creature comforts on your back - it's about 4. So unless you've got a personal sherpa, this option isn't overwhelmingly easier than doing it all in one day.
The primary advantage of overnighting in Little Yosemite Valley is being able to get to the cables before the crowds arrive. On your way up the trail you'll find this sign explaining why not. Since , permits have been required every day of the week. Without a permit, you can hike only as far as the base of the subdome, which is where a series of switchbacks begin about a quarter mile before the base of the cables see this photo.
Permits are awarded via lottery - see the next topic for more information. In addition to a cable-route permit, you'll need a wilderness permit if you want to camp out somewhere along the trail instead of doing Half Dome as a day hike. If you're getting a wilderness permit, you can get a Half Dome cables permit at the same time without having to make additional reservations.
Half Dome permits are awarded via lottery. Entry for the main lottery permits per day takes place during March, and throughout the summer the park service also awards another 50 or so permits per day two days in advance, again by lottery. You can apply for these permits online or by calling The number of extra permits awarded will vary depending on their estimates of how busy the trail will be.
Here's the park service's explanation of the extra permits:. The daily lotteries will have an application period two days prior to the hiking date with a notification late that night. We couldn't find an existing Roadtrippers account using that service.
Please try signing in with another option or create a new account with Roadpass. We need your email address to send you trip itineraries and other updates. By Anna Hider. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Flipboard Email. Half Dome from Glacier Point Road Photo: Shutterstock Luckily, the hike today is a lot quicker, thanks to the installment of braided steel cables.
And that, my friends, is why a permit is required to hike the famed trail. The view of the cables from the subdome Photo: Shutterstock Permit lottery opens March 5 Given that the hike is crazy popular, especially on certain days and weekends, permits are given out via a lottery. Half Dome preseason lottery applications by day of the week last year. Daily Lottery success rate for was 25 percent.
Preseason lottery success rate for was 19 percent. Meet the Author. Related Articles. Related Articles Latest Articles. Sep 7th Ditch your car to experience Isle Royale, the least-visited national park in the contiguous U. Aug 24th Living stars and lost luggage: Exploring the overlooked beauty of Northern Alabama Read. Aug 11th Great Outdoors , Partner Content.
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Nov 10th Get the most inspiring stories from the road sent directly to your inbox. Subscribe now to receive our weekly roundup of offbeat, exciting, and extraordinary road trip stories. You can unsubscribe at any time. Plan your journey, find amazing places, and take fascinating detours with our app. Log in to your account. Soon, you will need to use your Roadpass to log in. The daily lotteries have an application period two days prior to the hiking date with a notification late that night.
So, to hike on Saturday, you would apply on Thursday and receive an email notification of results late on Thursday evening. Results are also available online, or by phone the next morning. The application period is from midnight to 4 pm Pacific time. In general, your chances of success are higher on weekdays especially beginning at the end of August. To apply for a permit, visit Recreation. Two separate fees are collected.
This non-refundable fee, which is per application not per person , is charged by Recreation. This fee pays for park rangers checking for Half Dome permits and providing Half Dome visitors with hiking and safety information. Still have questions? If you want to camp in Little Yosemite Valley or elsewhere on the way to Half Dome, you should apply for a wilderness permit that includes Half Dome rather than using the process described on this page.
If you want to camp or stay in a hotel before or after your hike, you should make a camping or lodging reservation as soon as possible.
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