13 places to explore beyond Yosemite Valley

More than 3.6 million visitors venture into Yosemite National Park every year. Most of them head straight to Yosemite Valley, and for good reason. The narrow valley, bisected by the Merced River, is renowned for its towering granite walls and the rushing waterfalls that spill over them. There’s also a visitors center and access to some awe-inspiring viewpoints for those who don’t intend to hike or who have limited mobility.

But the 7.5-square-mile Yosemite Valley is just a tiny slice of the park, which sprawls across 1,169 square miles. Outside of the valley itself, there are many things to do in and around Yosemite National Park.

Near the southern entrance, Mariposa Grove is home to a majestic stand of sequoias. To the east, Tuolumne Meadows’ maze of high-country dells are ringed by dozens of snow-clad peaks, and to the northwest, Hetch Hetchy Reservoir covers a gorge that once rivaled Yosemite Valley in its beauty and grandeur.

We’ve rounded up some of our favorite stops outside of the valley, grouping them based on their proximity to the 5 park entrances. The newly updated AAA Yosemite National Park map makes for a terrific guide to the park, and it’s available for free at your local branch.

From mid-June to late September, a shuttle (daily pass, $10 per adult) provides service between Tuolumne Meadows and Olmsted Point and includes stops at the Cathedral Lakes Trailhead and Tenaya Lake. Note that the Tioga Pass (Highway 120 East) is closed from October/November to late May/early June, depending on conditions.

This pristine subalpine meadow fits the ideal of Yosemite’s high country. At 8,600 feet, Tuolumne sits at more than twice the elevation of the Yosemite Valley, while attracting only a fraction of the people. It’s still a hub of activity, though, with a visitors center, campground, lodge, ranger programs, and the Pacific Crest and John Muir trails that lead into Yosemite’s rugged backcountry.

Lembert Dome, at the eastern end of the meadows, provides excellent views for hikers who make the short but steep climb to the top.

Experienced mountaineers who scale this peak will be rewarded with impressive views of Tenaya Lake, Tioga Road, and the Echo Peaks. Hikers should allow for 4 to 6 hours to complete the 7-mile round-trip hike on Cathedral Lakes Trail.

Named for Yosemite’s Chief Tenaya of the Ahwahneechee tribe, this lovely alpine lake is surrounded by glacier-polished domes, including the imposing 9,790-foot Polly Dome. The easy-to-reach lake has a sandy beach, making it popular for picnicking, canoeing, and swimming.

This roadside overlook offers views of Tenaya Lake and the 9,926-foot Clouds Rest, an arête (thin granite ridge) formed when glaciers carved out Tenaya Canyon. From this viewpoint, visitors also get a unique perspective of Half Dome’s massive granite face.

Congress protected this grove of about 500 trees in 1864. Most celebrated is the Grizzly Giant, believed to be 1,800 years old and standing more than 200 feet tall with a base diameter of 30 feet. The Mariposa Grove Trail passes the Grizzly Giant and continues through the Upper Grove to Wawona Point, where hikers are rewarded with the best views of Wawona Valley. Guided nature walks are also available.

A free shuttle provides service from the Mariposa Grove Welcome Plaza to the Mariposa Grove from late spring through no later than November 30, depending on conditions. If you’d rather walk, it’s a 4-mile round-trip hike to the grove.

Nearby, the recently installed Chinese Laundry Building, housed in an old wood-shingled building, commemorates the role Chinese workers played in the park’s formation. The laundry room looks as it would have a century ago, complete with an iron stove used to boil water for washing clothes.

At the Yosemite History Center, also near the hotel, you’ll see an 1857 covered bridge, old stagecoaches, and farm equipment. A park information station at Hill’s Studio features work by landscape painter Thomas Hill.

This 1-hour narrated train ride transports passengers through the scenic National Sierra Forest on historic narrow gauge steam locomotives. Special excursions include moonlight rides, a jazz train, and even a dinner train ride with a show.

At the depot, located about 4 miles south of the park entrance in Fish Camp, visitors can also enjoy a rail museum, a café, and gold panning at Gold Rush City, complete with sluice boxes and a prospector’s cabin. Adult ticket for 1-hour ride, $28. Open April through November.

The Tamarack and Cascade creeks originate in Yosemite’s high country and meet in a spectacular fashion at The Cascades. Also known as Cascade Falls, this multitiered waterfall drops more than 600 feet, flowing under the Big Oak Flat Road.

About a quarter mile to the west, visitors can find the photogenic Wildcat Falls, notable for its rocky outcroppings and mossy grotto. Smaller and narrower than The Cascades, Wildcat is one of the park’s lesser-visited gems. For the most impressive water flow, visit in the late spring or early summer.

The section between Briceburg and the park’s Arch Rock Entrance winds along State Route 140 through a canyon past rock falls, forest trees, giant boulders, and remnants of man-made structures. Open year-round, this beautiful drive—designated as a California Scenic Highway—offers a glimpse of what Yosemite Valley might have looked like before its glacial evolution. In early spring, poppies and other wildflowers carpet the hillside slopes.

Gems and minerals from California and around the world are on display at this museum, including a nearly 14-pound crystallized gold nugget. Models of a mine tunnel, a stamp mill, and an assay office illustrate how such a nugget might have been found and processed. Open year-round, Thursday through Sunday; adults, $4.

Founded by local climber Ken Yager, this 1,200-square-foot museum has displays about the history of climbing in Yosemite, historic photos, and a cool collection of artifacts.

Many of the objects were donated by rock-climbing stars, including shoes worn by Lynn Hill during her historic first free-climb ascent of The Nose of El Capitan and a spike used by George Anderson, who made the first recorded ascent of Half Dome in 1875. Open year-round; closed Mondays. Suggested donation, $5.

Highway 120, which leads to the Big Oak Flat entrance, was expected to be closed until at least mid-June 2023 due to cracks in the road. If you’re heading out this summer, check road conditions before you embark on this route.

The Dead Giant Tunnel Tree—the area’s first attempt at a tourist attraction—is the most well-known landmark of this small grove of giant sequoias. In 1878, a “tunnel” was cut through the burned stump of a giant redwood so visitors could ride through on wagons. Access the tunnel tree via the Tuolumne Grove Trailhead; the 2.2-mile round-trip hike has a steep elevation gain on the return trip. Open year-round.

Once a canyon that rivaled Yosemite Valley in beauty, Hetch Hetchy became a reservoir site when Congress in 1913 authorized the city of San Francisco to build O’Shaughnessy Dam. Towering cliffs and high waterfalls are visible from a walkway atop the dam.

To the east—accessible by trail only—lies the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne River, with its massive granite walls above the bright green river. A 5-mile round-trip hike includes spectacular views of both Tueeulala Falls and Wapama Falls. Open year-round, although the narrow, winding road is subject to closures and chain requirements in the winter.