When we visited Yosemite National Park, we wanted to take our family on a hike they would not soon forget. We planned to take a one way journey from the awe inspiring Glacier Point down to the Yosemite Valley, traversing both the epic Panorama Trail as well as the spectacular Mist Trail. But since the shuttle system was not running, we had to jump through some serious hoops to make this happen.
CONTENTS
00:00 Intro Teaser
00:42 Map and Overview
01:27 Ride to Glacier Point 5 AM
03:27 Glacier Point 10:30 AM
04:30 Panorama Trailhead 11 AM
06:48 Illillouette Falls
07:28 Difficult Climb
08:34 Begin Drop to Valley
10:38 Nevada Falls
11:27 Down the Mist Trail
14:28 Vernal Falls
17:32 John Muir Trail
18:02 Water Replenishment!
18:43 Vernal Falls Bridge 3:30 PM
19:35 Curry Village 5 PM
After parking at Curry Village, we would take a 30 minute bus ride to El Portal, followed by a one hour privately chartered van ride - just to get us to Glacier Point so we could take our planned epic hike back down to Curry Village.
As the journey ended, we took note that a water fill up station is not available until 9 miles or 4 ½ hours into the hike. Under moderate conditions, plan to take at least 72 oz of water per person. That’s 16 oz per hour - and more than the 40 oz we had. The hike, however, was everything we hoped for: from insanely picturesque views to hugging legendary waterfalls, this is how to experience Yosemite. But make no mistake: this mostly downhill trek has a strenuous uphill portion and tricky, wet downhill steps. But the rewards are truly epic!