Yosemite National Park - Family of 12
- drobinson145
- Jul 28
- 9 min read
(Itinerary overview, links, and tips for Yosemite National Park)
Yosemite National Park is one of the oldest National Parks in the country, second only to Yellowstone. First protected in 1864, it officially became a National Park in 1890. This past summer, I had the privilege of visiting it for the first time with my family. Out of the twelve of us, only my parents had been there before, but not since the early 1970s.
Our vacation started in Lake Tahoe, and from there, we drove 4 hours south to the Rush Creek Lodge just outside of Yosemite. Friends of ours recommended this place and I’m glad they did! It is a new, eco-centered, full-service lodge that caters to pretty much every need you might have while in the California wilderness, including its own General Store, where you could stock up on whatever you might need for the day in Yosemite. The rooms were comfortable and simple, the pool area and nature-inspired playground were perfect amenities for families after a long day of hiking and exploring the area.
There is so much to do there, in fact, that you could spend the entire day just playing at the resort property. Rush Creek has a system of their own hiking trails surrounding their property, as well. Our only complaints were about the quality of the food and the housekeeping services. However, given that we were visiting during the pandemic at an extreme period of employment disruption, I’m not sure I could give them a fair assessment. It seemed almost everywhere we went on this particular vacation was suffering from lack of staffing. The service industry truly suffered during the pandemic, and we witnessed it firsthand.
If you want to stay IN Yosemite, there are three hotels, but they book up very quickly. The other option is camping in your own tent or staying in the permanent canvas tents or cabins at one of 5 campsites. I can’t speak from personal experience, but I do not think I would recommend those tents. They appeared to be in rough shape. Long overdue for a remodel. It’s also extremely hot in the valley in the summer and those tents have no AC and extraordinarily little air flow.
DAY 1: Our first full day in Yosemite, we woke up early to beat the crowds through the entrance gate. We were coming in through the Big Oak Flat entrance on the West side of the park. It takes less than 5 minutes to get to the park entrance from Rush Creek, but it’s an additional 35 from there to the valley center. You should aim to get to the gates before 9:30 am if you want to avoid sitting in a lengthy line to enter the park. Rush Creek also has a sister lodge, Evergreen Lodge, which is to the North and leads to the Hetch Hetchy entrance. We were told that if you get to the gates at peak times, you could be sitting in line for an hour or more. In normal times, the YARTS bus is a great option for traveling in and to Yosemite, but unfortunately, it was not running this past summer.
That brings me to a quick sidenote. The best time of year to visit Yosemite is May and September. We were there at the beginning of August, which is basically the hottest and driest and most crowded it gets. We still had a wonderful time, but if I were to go again, I’d probably try to plan for the end of May or beginning of June or September. By August, all the snow melt has dissipated which means many of the lakes and waterfalls have dried up. It was still an amazing trip, but I would have really enjoyed seeing more water features.
On our very first day, we made a point to drive around the valley a bit to get our bearings and take some pictures of quintessential sights. We walked a simple trail to see Yosemite Falls first and then made our way over to park at Curry Village and walked to Mirror Lake. Many things were closed because of COVID, most notably the park shuttle. It required us to walk much longer distances just to start our hikes. What should have been an easy two miles out and back, turned into more like four. Mirror Lake was completely dry, which made it possible to stand in the middle of the lake and take in the view of Half Dome directly behind us. We walked from there to the historical Ahwahnee Hotel and had lunch. It was beautiful, but it seemed like the experience was significantly diminished by the COVID limitations in place. We chose the walk to Yosemite Falls (and later to Mirror Lake, mistakenly assuming that was also short and flat) because my mom has a bad knee and needed to stick to flat trails. The whole thing is paved, which also makes it accessible for mobility impaired.
This brings me to Tip #3: For multigenerational travel, choose some activities you definitely want to do together, but be flexible for the needs of everyone in your group. There may be places or activities that the very youngest or oldest in your group will not be able to go to or do. That’s ok. It may take a bit of getting used to, but it will make for an overall happier experience for everyone. (For the first two tips, see Lake Tahoe blog.)
DAY 2: My parents decided to take our 4-year-old niece so the other nine of us could do a longer, more strenuous hiking day. We started out early so that we could drive to Glacier Point and do the hike there before the heat of the day caught up with us. That was the right call, also because of the crowds that arrived after we had completed our hike. Glacier Point is one of the most iconic views in the park. The overlook is simply breathtaking. Our crew hiked about 4.5 miles down to Union Point where we were afforded an excellent view of Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls from a distance, and then we hiked back up. While we were on this trail, we spotted TWO BOBCATS! It was pretty incredible. They were just off the path in the woods on the side of the mountain.
For Tip #4: Have a well-stocked backpack when hiking, especially with children in tow. Always bring: enough water to last you the entire hike, tissues or napkins for bathroom emergencies, a small first aid kit, a cell phone, hand sanitizer, and snacks. Snacks are the proverbial carrot for the horse on your adventure. Dangle them before your children as an unabashed bribe to keep them motivated to push on. (Most days when we hike, we pack a lunch to carry with us so that we can eat whenever we get hungry.)
On our way back to Rush Creek, we made a stop off to hike down to the Merced Grove of Giant Sequoias. Even though my four-person family (and my parents) was continuing to Sequoia National Park, my brother and his family were not, and therefore wanted to at least see these giants in real life. Unfortunately, COVID restrictions made visiting Mariposa Grove (the more popular location for seeing Sequoias in Yosemite) nearly unfeasible. We weren’t ready to commit an entire day and a 9-mile round trip hike just to see the trees. However, I will also say that the Merced Trail was extremely underwhelming. I think while my brother and his family are glad they could at least say they’ve now seen Giant Sequoias in person, it isn’t worth the 3.5 miles roundtrip just to do it. My expectation is that now that the park is less restricted, and the shuttle is running again, going to Mariposa Grove will once again be a highlight for many families.
DAY 3: The following day was my brother and his family’s last day in Yosemite, so we decided to spend it all together. We once again went back down into Yosemite Valley but this time with the plan to rent bikes. You can rent bikes in Curry Village, Yosemite Village and Yosemite Valley Lodge. The valley is relatively flat, with about twelve miles of designated bike paths.
When we arrived at the rental station, we soon discovered that not all body types and sizes are conducive to non-adjustable bike seats. My poor mother, being vertically challenged as well as suffering with a knee injury, was not able to find a bike that was suitable. We decided to rent a motorized scooter for her instead so that she didn’t have to miss out on the adventure. She wasn’t able to go quite as fast as the rest of us, but we still had an awesome time just zooming around the valley, taking turns staying back with my mom. Our lunch this day was pizza in Curry Village while my mom’s scooter recharged a bit. It was still not quite enough to make it all the way back to the rental station, but they told us not to worry because they picked up scooters around the park every day. For our last night together, we had dinner at Evergreen Lodge, the sister site of Rush Creek. This particular property had been able to retain their head chef through the pandemic, and the difference in food quality was significant.
On our travels to and from the park and the surrounding areas each day, past evidence of wildfires abounded. The Park also employs controlled burns to reduce the amount of fuel on the forest floor so that a wildfire will not wreak the havoc it could. It was fascinating to learn about the conservation methods and natural process of wildfire management. (A bit more about that in my next post about Sequoia National Park.)
DAY 4: On our fourth day in Yosemite (Day 8, overall), my parents and our family of four drove the hour and a half from our hotel to Tuolomne (Tu-AH-lo-me) Meadows. This section of the park is quite different from the valley in terms of flora, fauna, and climate. The temperature here in the summer is about 18 degrees cooler than the valley. We were told to wear pants and jackets but didn’t quite believe it until we actually got out there. Being such a flat, open space also allowed the wind to whip through as well. James and I and our two boys hiked up Pothole Dome, which proved to be quite an adventure as we accidentally went up the steeper side of the dome than we were supposed to. Lesson learned!
We listened to a Ranger-lead talk so that both of our boys could earn their Junior Ranger badges. It was definitely worthwhile. I know some people might be worried about having your kids stand and listen to a “lecture,” but I really encourage it. Even if they only pick up on a few things, there’s nothing quite like the situational learning that’s possible on trips like this. I’m always pleasantly surprised by how much the kids do remember, though. The Rangers are also very well-equipped to make things interesting for kids. It’s ok to do things that are not implicitly “kid-friendly.”
Tip #5: Make your kids do the educational experiences, the informational videos, the “lectures.” They might complain, but they will learn so much and so will you. Ultimately, it will increase everyone’s appreciation for the place you’re visiting or activity you’re participating in.
After a lunch of potted meat, yogurt eaten with coffee stirrers, and hummus with carrots (thanks, pandemic closures!) we headed back to Evergreen Lodge again for dinner followed by a sunset tour on their property. Both Evergreen and Rush Creek have extra excursion options which are led by their knowledgeable staff. There is an extra fee, however.
DAY 5: On our last full day in Yosemite, my husband and I decided to really push our kids on a challenging hike. We already knew they could make it longer distances if we added in breaks, so we decided to hike a part of the John Muir Loop up to Vernal Falls and Clark Point. And when I say up, I really mean up. The hike has a total of 1551 feet in elevation gain. That’s quite a lot for kids. We were so proud of our boys, though, and more importantly, they were proud of themselves. We had a few expected bumps in the road from an unnamed child who complained for the first 15 minutes and a few scattered times throughout, but overall, it was an experience we’ll never forget.
Because of park closures, we had to walk an additional mile each way from a parking lot, which made our total distance 7.5 miles. One portion of the trail has 650(+) steps to be climbed, but we stopped halfway up and had lunch with some little squirrel buddies. (Some very FAT, squirrel buddies. They were clearly taking advantage of their proximity to so many gullible humans.) After our ascent up to Clark’s Point, the rest of the hike is all downhill. We rewarded the kids for their impressive effort with ice cream. That makes it all worth it, right?
Tip #6: Download a hiking/trails app. I like AllTrails, but I’m sure there are other ones out there. It has a mawww.recreation.govp of all the trails in each park, and includes details like elevation gain, difficulty levels, and topographical map options. It also GPS locates you on the trail, which is much easier to follow than trying to locate yourself on Google or Apple maps.
One sidenote regarding Half Dome. If you are interested in climbing the cables on Half Dome, you will need to put your name in the lottery. See Recreation.gov for details. James put his name in but did not get chosen. He was pretty disappointed. I was not, however.
And that concludes our time in Yosemite! We continued on to Sequoia National Park which I will cover in my next blog post. Thanks for sticking with me! If you want help planning a trip to Yosemite, I’m your girl! I’m happy to plan day by day and assist with all reservations, give you a basic itinerary, or just offer suggestions.
You have kids (or maybe not) … Now, travel!
