Yosemite is a place of lovely views and sceneries, tree lined skies and granite mountains, streams, rivers, waterfalls, and lots of refreshing OXYGEN. Yosemite National Park is in the northern part of California. It’s dense with pine trees and has a beautiful valley of gigantic granite rocky mountains ideal for hikes and rock climbing or even picnicking under them.
The Stay:
We stayed at the Curry Village in Yosemite Valley. I wouldn’t consider Curry Village as a roughin it up kind of place, it’s more of a luxury camping if you decide to stay here. The sleeping quarters are tent cabins, cabins that have no walls but they have a roof and a thick canvas material covering where you would normally have a wall. With that said, it’s ideal to reserve 6 months ahead of time for the summer place fills up pretty quickly. It’s a very family friendly place, with lots of accommodations for the kids, I have included all these below.
Curry Village provides:
• Food
o Café
o Buffet
o Pizza
o Bar/Pub
• Accommodations
o Large swimming pool
o Bathrooms with hot showers
o Towel service
o House keeping like bed sheet changes, more blankets etc…
o Night time Story telling at the outdoor auditorium
o Educational tours
• Snack and gift shop
o Ice
o Coal
o Camping gear for purchase
o Snacks
o Souvenirs
• Tour booth
• Rentals
o Rock Climbing gear
o Bicycle
If you choose Curry Village as your stay, pack light. Pack for only the hikes that you may go on. We made the mistake of packing for almost 3 picnics worth of food and a 2 day hike. We only hiked one day and 1 day of picnic, we went to eat pizza one night, and the next coffee. So as you can tell this place provides most of what you need.
Hiking:
We only have gone on day hikes. So I’m going to list things you can take (optional) and things you’ll definitely need. Some people go for 2-7 day hikes but you’ll permits and much more sophisticated things then I have ever used or needed on my hikes so I’ll leave the longer hikes alone.
Things to take with you for a day hike:
• Comfortable hiking shoes (very important)
• Back Pack
• Cap or hat
• WATER (at least 2 small bottles)
• GRANOLA BARs
• Trail Mix
• Sun Glasses (optional)
• Towel (optional)
• Extra T-shirt (optional)
• Sweater (optional)
• Fruit (optional)
More on hiking and routes:
We had taken the Mist trail up half to Half Dome 4.5 miles. It’s called “mist” because you walk past Vernal Falls and all the mist and water from the waterfall is spraying on the way up, YOU WILL GET WET (more so early summer than late). In my opinion this the most breath taking and beautiful route. After you pass Vernal Falls for another 30-60 minute hike and you get to another water fall Nevada Falls its worth to hike to at least the top of Nevada Falls (you’ve come this far).
Now once you get to the top of Nevada Falls you have a few choices. Go to Half Dome (4.5 miles of extraneous hike), Merced Lake (14 miles of moderate hike), or just head back down. If you decide to take the Half Dome hope you have food and water cuz it’s known to be 4 + hours hike. Merced Lake an easier hike (6 + hours) but be prepared to camp there for a night before heading back.
Heading back down straight from Nevada falls you have 2 choices. The way you came up Mist Trail route 2.1 miles back down, but remember you’ll get wet all over again. The other route is called Happy Isle 2.5 miles back, not as much of a watery route. More of a tree covered along side the granite cliffs route. Although in the beginning you get some great panoramic views of Nevada Falls, Half Dome and other surrounding mountains. Mostly you take this route because you don’t want to get wet and the route isn’t as steep as the Mist Trail. Just be careful on the Happy Isle trail this is also the trail they use for the horses and mules so there is a lot of poop on the ground.
The End:
Altogether this is an amazing trip that whole family could love and enjoy. If you love the outdoors and wildlife this really could be an all inclusive place. There are a lot of routes to take for hikes. Nice drives to see enormous Red Woods, nice clear skies for star gazing, and the pizza tastes great after a good hike. Send any questions you may have I’ll try to answer as best I could. Other than that hope to see you in Yosemite.
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