We did Kirkwood one day last year and the road to it, even late in the season, was hair raising. We typically go to Northstar (and just booked a fabulous place for the whole family in Feb).
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We loved northstar but if you have non-skiers in the group itâs not as good for them as heavenly. The northstar shuttle is fabulous (if you are staying within northstar itself).
Several years ago on a trip to Yosemite some of my family (I stayed back with the younger kids and we rented bikes and swam in the pool) took the Glacier Point first thing in the morning and took the Panorama Trail (8.5 miles) down. It took them all day and was apparently quite strenuous. You can also take the switchbacks down which I think is 4 miles.
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Yes we have stayed in Northstar before. I tried to find a place in Heavenly (havenât skiied there so was hoping to add that) but couldnât find a place big enough for all of us. The place I found is on the call shuttle (a little over a mile from the slopes). The non-skiier will have her one year old so can take the shuttle to the base and walk around the shops. Heâs too young for the skating rink! The house has a hot tub so hopefully this will all work out!!
Thatâs a good hike from Glacier Point if you do the Panorama Trail to the JMT. The Four Mile Trail is just relentless downhill. The photo above of Nevada Falls is where the Panorama Trail joins the JMT.
Assuming you arenât going to Vernal and Nevada Falls on a separate hike, then I would recommend the one-way bus as itâs really good to go across to Nevada Falls but a very long way back (including a big climb) from there to return to Glacier Point.
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I was hoping my husband would warm up to the Cloudâs Rest trail, but itâs not sounding promising :(.
Maybe if it were a little cooler, but itâs going to be warm next week.
Whatâs the status of the rangers? Are there enough?
OP Here -
What weâve done so far in Lake Tahoe, for anyone who may read this later.
We were a little surprised to find that parking for many of the nice hikes or beaches is 10-12 bucks, so you may not want to do too many in one day.
Hiked to Eagle Lake and then down to Emerald Bay (Lake Tahoe) and back up on the Vikingsholm Trail (or something close to that). Could do them both from same parking lot. 5ish miles total
Hiked to Maggieâs Peak, through Granite Lake, which was 1700+ elevation gain, and then did the Cascade Falls Hike. 7ish miles or so.
Went to the Truckee/Donner Pass area and did tiny museum, drove up Donner Pass, and walked through several of the old railroad tunnels. We considered rafting, and would have done it if our (adult) kids were with us.
Went to Sand Harbor, but to park before 10:30 you needed a reservation. I had a pre-planned âplan Bâ so we parked 3 miles away and did the lakeside walk back to Sand Harbor and back. Parking cost us $28 for 5 hours, but it was worth it not to stress about it. There are a couple of beaches you can access from the lakeside walk, including Hidden Beach. You had to pay $2 bucks each to access
Went to Castle Rock, and hiked along the Tahoe Rim Trail. This was fine, but less spectacular than the other things weâve done.
Tomorrow we may go to Spooner Lake or do the Rubicon Trail, or something we havenât thought of yet.
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On the Nevada side, Secret Harbor is nice (you walk down a couple of miles to it). Limited roadside parking though.
We saw that yesterday, and I remembered youâd suggested it, but there was no parking available.
DS and family were just in Yosemite briefly while at a weekend Berkeley camp of some sort. They said they saw El Capitan and half dome but the waterfalls were dry.
Youâve visited some of my favorite Tahoe places. We tend to hike past Eagle Lake on that trail, which gets much less crowded farther up. Have not done Maggieâs peak/Granite Lake so will check that out.
Sand Harbor is lovely, but as you note parking is a challenge. I remember being at Hiddle Beach with our nieces and kids many years ago.
Enjoy the rest of your trip!
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OP again - last hike we did in Tahoe was on the Tallac trail. We only went as far as Cathedral Lake (we didnât plan to go to the top - apparently it is pretty difficult and weâre heading to Yosemite tomorrow). We had nice views of Falling Leaf Lake and Floating lake on our way. Cathedral lake wasnât anything special, but the views on this path are some of the best Iâve seen, especially on the way down.
I have done almost no planning for the Yosemite part of our trip, and weâre driving there tomorrow. We may just drive all the way, and have more time in the park, but TBD.
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Well, the Yosemite part of our trip isnât going so well.
We did a short-ish hike yesterday (Lembert Dome) and discovered my husband has more issues with heights/instability than heâs had previously.
I woke up in the middle of the night with a gastro issue of some sort, so we skipped the plan to go to the Mist trail very early.
Hopefully Iâll be feeling much better and we can just take the shuttle there later today, and do the 7 mile hike. Parts of the trail are closed during the week.
I never booked the trip to Glacier Point on the bus, so we will likely drive there ourselves, but wonât be able to hike down the entire trail from up there.
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I rallied yesterday and we hiked the Mist Trail, through Vernal Falls and to the top of Nevada Falls. Then we came down the John Muir trail, for a total of 11ish or so miles. Today we drove to Glacier Point and hiked down the Panorama trail about 2.7 miles, past another waterfall and to a bridge, and then hiked back up. The drive to Glacier Falls from Yosemite Valley was a little scary, with no guardrail and a long drop off the road.
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We got home from our trip Wednesday evening.
Iâm glad we went to Yosemite, but I may not make it back again. The Mist trail is only open on weekends, and itâs very crowded. We paid a fair amount to stay at the Lodge, and it was just OK. Yosemite Falls was totally dry (we knew we wouldnât see spectacular falls because of when we were going). Our final day we went to Mariposa Grove, and it was fine, but part of the trail we did was closed for maintenance also.
Overall, I think we liked Tahoe better, which really surprised me.
Thanks especially to @Twoin18 - my husband specifically said âTell your friend thanks for the directions (to Yosemite), and your suggestions were particularly helpful.
Yosemite is spectacular, for sure, but with lots of other places to see, we can live without seeing it again.
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We thought accommodation in Yosemite was very overpriced for what we got, but we went in spring which I think is a more enjoyable time of year - we really enjoyed it and would go back, but likely not in summer.
Zion in Utah reminded us a little of Yosemite, but with much more value for money accommodation at Zion Lodge! (I think it cost us about half of what the Awahnee did and the rooms were way nicer)
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We have gone to Yosemite in November. It was very pleasant and uncrowded. Some parts were closed but my BIL, who lives in Bay area was pleasantly surprised at how uncrowded and pleasant it was because he normally goes during school breaks (when his D can get away from teaching school). It was cool temps too. We stopped at Hatchache reservoir too.
I much prefer Sequoia/Kings Canyon to Yosemite in the summer precisely because itâs so much less crowded. And the accommodation in the park is way better. The only issue is that there are fewer spectacular day hikes. Though since I mostly backpack, thatâs less of a problem.
If you enjoy hiking but donât want to carry too much, then some of the pack trips (guided trips with mules carrying all your gear) in Sequoia are a good option. Or look at the High Sierra Camp loop in Yosemite.
If you liked Tahoe then another option is to stay in Mammoth, which has both lakes and great mountain hikes.
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