Yosemite NP/Mammoth Lakes, July 2021

Yosemite National Park

Mar 6

Written By Mallory Weston

West Coast road trip continued! After spending a few days in Sequoia, Alex and I drove North toward Yosemite. This was our first time in the park and we decided to drive from East to West on Tioga Pass Road to get to where we would be camping in Mammoth Lakes. It was a massive detour, but worth it for the scenery. We spent a few days hiking in and around Mammoth and then went back into Yosemite for a full day. Here’s a few of the highlights:

Little Lakes Valley to Gem Lakes (9.8 miles)
Tuolumne River Loop: Dana and Lyell Forks (3.9 miles)
Vernal and Nevada Falls via the Mist Trail (9.0 miles)
Rainbow Falls via Devils Postpile (4.6 miles)

My favorite was the Little Lakes Valley Trail, a short ride South from Mammoth. It really satisfied my itch to see an abundance of stunning alpine lakes. I also got to geek out during our day in Yosemite because I was able to -touch- the John Muir Trail and Pacific Crest Trail. By this point, I was so deep into my hiking obsession, I was already plotting to come back and hike it next summer. We did a gentle little loop around Tuolumne Meadows, which coincidentally would pass over the foot bridges where Leslie and I would stop for a swim almost one year later. After that, we drove down into Yosemite Valley to do the Mist Trail, this trailhead also doubles as the terminus of the JMT. So even though I wasn’t able to get a permit to hike the JMT from Happy Isles a year later, I was able to at least hike those first few miles during this trip.