The Best Way to See Yosemite In 2 Days SVADORE travel blog taft point mariposa sentinel dome panorama trail mist trail glacier point hikes

Perfect Itinerary: 2 Days in Yosemite National Park

How much can you see with just a day and a half in Yosemite? You’d be surprised to know that we conquered a vast majority of the valley! Here’s how.
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How much can you see in 2 days in Yosemite National Park? You’d be surprised to know that we conquered a vast majority of the valley! Here’s how.

Following our trip to Norway in May, Pat and I got on a hiking kick. So we made it our priority to make sure we put in at least one hike everywhere we went. Aside from hiking along the coast of Big Sur, we HAD TO, OF COURSE, add Yosemite National Park to our list, even if it was for only 2 days in Yosemite. So we hopped into our car and drove 4 and a half hours from Carmel to Yosemite. The drive was easy and scenic and the temperature changes were…well drastic to say the least. We left with down jackets and long jeans, but as soon as we reached Mariposa, the last town before entering the park, we had to swap into shorts. It was 95 degrees and humid. It was September, which in our opinion is one of the best times to visit Yosemite. The crowds are less dense (even though there still are a lot of people) and it’s not too hot to hike outdoors all day.

We stopped by a shopping center in Mariposa to grab lunch and buy groceries before heading into Yosemite park. We found this cute small sandwich shop called Shortstop Sandwiches tucked away in the corner of the parking spot. The place may look small, but it packs a punch. It has an adorable outdoor patio area shading you from the scorching sun and the owner is accommodating and friendly. I honestly wasn’t expecting much, I thought it was just another sandwich place, but the reasonable price, amazing flavor and ambiance made it such a gem! I had a tuna wrap while Pat had a custom grilled chicken sandwich. The sandwiches were fresh and spot on…highly recommend this place to all!

We bought groceries for the next 2 nights since we were staying in Yosemite Scenic Wonders Condo 20 minutes from Yosemite Valley on the top of a mountain. The grocery stores in Yosemite Valley are limited and a lot more expensive so we decided to stock up in Mariposa. 40 minutes into the park, we finally made it to Yosemite Valley. When you arrive, you’ll have to pay a park entrance fee that is $35 per car and lasts a week. We got to our condo around 4PM on Tuesday. The place was perfect! It had satellite TV, wifi (which is impossible to find in Yosemite!), our own private balcony, a kitchen with pots and pans, a dishwasher, bed and couch and more! We dropped off our stuff and decided to head out for our first hike of the day.

TIP:

important thing to note is that there are NO GAS STATIONS in Yosemite, so you NEED to fill up your tank before heading into the park at Mariposa. 

Day 1

1. Taft Point

A small storm passed, it was the first in 3 months, so we started our hike for Taft Point at 5:30PM. For more details on the hike, read on at A Short and Easy Hike in Yosemite: Taft Point. The hike took about one hour total, between us walking there, taking pictures and walking back. The road is pretty well-marked and the trail is short—1.1 miles or 1.7 km in each direction (roundtrip 2.2 miles or 3.4 km). The path leads to an overlook over Yosemite Valley alongside rock fissures and bordering pine forests. Taft Point is NOT for the faint of heart. I am terrified of heights as you all know, so getting me to go to the top of Taft Point took a lot of persuasion on Pat’s behalf. I almost cried…no joke. There is a small bar wrapped around the point, so it’s safe for people to climb to the top and look out. The view was stunning, but I didn’t have the courage to look down, so Pat did it for me. There are also cool fissures that offer amazing nature views and a thousand foot drop! As it nears sunset, you won’t find crowds in this area since everyone is heading to Glacier Point. You’ll just run into one or two people, which makes the trek even more worth while.

2. Sentinel Dome

As we made our way back to the parking lot, we decided to sneak in one more hike before sunset. We took the path on the right of the parking lot towards Sentinel Dome and were off. For more details on our hike and the  views, read The Best Sunset in Yosemite: Sentinel DomeThe trail was 1 mile in each direction (2 miles roundtrip). The tricky part about Sentinel Dome is that at one point the trail cuts off and you think you’ve made it to your destination. That is not the case! You will come across a flat and rocky area and see a dome like mountain next to you. This is not the end of the trail, you need to continue and climb the TOP of that dome to reach Sentinel Dome. The view at the top is beyond rewarding. Miles and miles of unobstructed views in every direction—360°. We made it just in time to watch the sunset and there were barely any people here since they were all at Glacier Point. I honestly think the view from here was better than Glacier Point so I highly recommend you all do this instead! This was the start of an amazing trip, we already were liking Yosemite more than any other destination we visited in so far in California and the feeling wouldn’t stop there.



Day 2

3. Panorama Trail

The next day we had a full day to explore the park at our disposal. We decided to take on a long and intense hike around the park, to see the best of everything. The trail we did was called Panorama Trail and it’s a 10-mile long 3,200 foot elevated hike with sensational views at every corner. If you only have 2 days in Yosemite, this is the trail to do. This trail allows you to see EVERYTHING in Yosemite. It’s aggressive, but all encompassing. I recommend you only do one way given how strenuous the hike is, so we took a bus up from Yosemite Valley to Glacier Point and went from Glacier Point down to Yosemite Valley. Along the way we stopped by Illilouette Falls and Mist Trail (Nevada and Vernal Fall). It was stunning and took us about 5 hours. By the end, our gluteus were killing us and every time I saw a waterfall I thought to myself “this is never ending!” But it was so worth it and I would do it all over again.

4. Mirror Lake

Once in Yosemite Valley, we took the ground floor bus to a lodge and devoured a well-deserved sandwich. If the 10-mile hike wasn’t enough, now that Pat and I had eaten we were getting a thirst for more sights and hikes. We decided to end the day at sunset walking to Mirror Lake. It hadn’t rained in 3 months so the lake was well…non-existent unfortunately! But we got that gorgeous sunsetting and touching the canyons and glaciers. It looked like something straight off of an Apple computer desktop. For more on our experience at Mirror Lake, see What to Expect at Mirror Lake in Yosemite Valley.

That night we went home, cooked ourselves a big pot of pasta, poured ourselves a glass (or more like 2 or 3!) of red wine and raved about the amazing day we had. Yosemite was definitely going to be our favorite destination in California. We are not hardcore alpiners or climbers, we are not campers, and I’m afraid of heights. But we do love reach stunning destinations after a hard and rewarding journey. Standing around Yosemite, I felt small and insignificant next to these enormous glacier rocks. It reminded me that I am just a small person compared to the rest of the world. The experience allowed for some time of self-reflection, made me feel closer to our earth, and more appreciative of mother nature overall. I would DEFINITELY go back.

>> Next: Hidden Hikes in San Francisco: Lands End Trail

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