After our adventurous hike the day before, we decided to take it easy and walk around the valley to see sights that were easily accessible. At this point, we were both struggling to walk so a leisurely stroll is what we were signing up for that day.
You have a few different options when you want to see Yosemite. You can head down to the valley, which is where we spent our time, up to Tioga Pass, or to Mariposa Grove. At the time of our visit, Mariposa Grove was closed due to construction through the year so we weren’t able to visit. This was kind of disappointing because this is where you can see the GIANT Sequoia trees. Maybe next time!
The other option we had was to head up to Tioga Pass. This was appealing but considering the amount of work we have made the Tahoe due at this point we figured we wouldn’t make it climb up a giant mountain. She needed a break.
By staying around Yosemite Valley we were able to see an abundance of amazing sights. The bottom of Yosemite Falls was our first stop for day two. You can take an easy stroll down a paved path to get to the falls which is lined by a lovely river.
After hitting the falls, we moved into the actual meadows of the valley. They are very particular about staying on the designated trails, for good reason, so we followed the rules. From the meadow you can all of the great sights from a distance including Half Dome, Yosemite Falls, and El Captian.
From the meadows, we made our way to Mirror Lake Trail. We had our bikes which made this a quick 2 mile ride to the lakes. Given the temperatures for the day, it was full of folks looking to cool off. We didn’t spend a ton of time here, just enough to snap a few pictures and then move on.
At this point, I would have to say Yosemite has been the grandest sight we have witness on this adventure. It’s sheer beauty and size is quite amazing.
