One of the most intensely beautiful spots in the world, with scenery as jaw-dropping as it is compact. The drive along Yosemite Valley has you straining your neck to look up out the window at the colossal Half Dome and El Capitan, whilst also enjoying the tranquil, picture perfect forests and streams on the valley floor. Picturesque doesn’t quite do it – this really is vistas on steroids, and that’s before you’ve even started hiking. Maximum Wow-factor score of ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ .
As we were on a turbo charged road trip around the Western States (see the individual Rapid 2 week roadtrip around the US West Coast States travel entry), we only had a day for this magnificent place and so had to pick which hikes to do. Other than generally wandering around the valley and soaking it all up, I would recommend the Four Mile Trail towards Glacier Point (centre of the south side of Yosemite valley) – you don’t have to walk the whole way up, the views after only after a short walk up are spectacular of El Capitan, Yosemite Falls and generally across the valley.
What a place. Wish I’d had a week.
