Head on up to touolome meadows and enjoy a calmer but still majestic area. you will love the meadows.....
This is definitely one of more stunning drives in the country reaching pretty high elevations and passing through some alpine streams/ lakes etc. I feel this is a must-do when visiting the park but a lot of visitors stick to the valley and end up missing this experience. We stopped at a few turnout points/ picnic places along the way and we thoroughly enjoyed the drive. The only downside is that there are no places to purchase food along the way, so better pack your food. Highly recommend.
Tioga pass is such an incredible journey to drive/hike/slackline/climb through. Tuolumne Meadows is my absolute favorite portion of YNP. There are some really challenging hikes and some really simple hikes that can still take your breath away. May Lake (Easy) is insanely gorgeous.. Elizabeth Lakes (Moderate) never gets old for me.. North Dome (Moderate) is spectacular! Glen Aulin (Moderate) is breathtaking. Honestly, just driving through it is incredible. Although I would encourage being a bit more adventurous than that, it still works! I personally love driving all the way to Mono Lake and driving back to Yosemite Valley. Sure, it's not the shortest drive, but it sure rocks! (No pun intended)..
The drive through the park to get here was amazing and then seeing the sign you're leaving the park is a sad moment but at 9,900 feet and amazing views on the way down - it was well worth the drive through. One of the most spectacular places we have ever travelled to! Drive through the park! You will not regret it!!
I have spent hours, many days, enjoying the (hidden) gem of the Summer flowers of the Granite and Gaylor small (hidden) basin.
I truly loved the Tioga Pass. The nature changes a lot, from very green to almost silver mountains. Don't forget to stop at Tenaya lake to have lunch there, very idyllic! Also weird that the temperature dropped with 20 degrees celsius within an hour. Very pretty and not to miss!
The unique scenic drive allows you to look through mountain pine forest, alpine meadows, lakes and creeks. Granite rocks and domes on highest peaks landscape. Beautiful trails all difficult levels. And all of at the level 3000m over sea. The most impressive point is Olmsted, the smooth granite rocks plateau, where you can see Half Dome - the highest peak of Yosemite Valley - from above.
Great way to enter the park from Nevada. We liked the variety of terrain, hiking trails and panoramic views.
When planning and researching our trip to the US the views and scenery seen on this drive was what we both had been imagining, we were not disappointed. This place is awe inspiring with the road winding through forest and plains with mountains as the back drop. The weather was warm and sunny when we drove through and the blue skies just added to the beauty of the place.There are plenty of places to stop and admire the views and take your piccies and to get out and just walk in an area of outstanding beauty.Yosemite National Park is an amazing place and the drive through this pass is right up there.Plan you trip here and take your time, you will love it. The road is well maintained and not difficult to drive.If you stop at the rest areas the toilets are basic so if you want a luxury loo be ready to be disappointed but at least it beats going behind a tree.
Beautiful scenery! If you like driving down very steep Mountain roads I am not a fan however so it was not enjoyable for me. We used this exit from Yosemite heading NE out of the park from our stay in Yosemite Valley. The drive took us over 4 hours due to a landslide in July. View was amazing while we waited even got out of the car for a quick hike up a small roadside mountain side, but be ready for quite the drive if you enter or exit here. Road and pass are closed in the winter months for a good reason. Enjoy!