For the first hike of my summer ‘22 road trip, I began with an awesome moderate loop through the lowcountry of Yosemite National Park. Located in the southern Wawona area of the park, the Mariposa Grove is the largest Giant Sequoia grove in Yosemite, and the trails through it are some of Yosemites most accessible, and most enjoyable!
I had actually hiked here before. On my first ever trip to the mountains in 2013, we hiked Mariposa Grove as a family, and the majesty of these trees left a lasting impression, and even though the terrain here isn’t nearly as dramatic as the Yosemite High Country, it was by far the most mountainous terrain I had ever seen! That first trip to Yosemite was definitely a formative experience, so safe to say, it was time for a return trip!
Miles/Elevation:
6.2 miles
1,213 feet vertical gain
About Yosemite National Park:
Think about purchasing the America the Beautiful Pass if you’re visiting Yosemite!
Located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California, Yosemite National Park is one of the largest and most popular parks in the entire National Park System.
Steeped in history, Yosemite has played a major role in the development of environmentalism and conservation in the United States since the late 1800’s. In 1864, President Lincoln created the Yosemite Grant, which did not make Yosemite a national park, but did set the precedent that would lead to the creation of Yellowstone National Park.
Yosemite was ceded to the State of California and ran by the state for much of the late 1800’s. Eventually, in 1890, Yosemite National Park was created, and stronger protections were put in place to preserve the park.
Beyond the National Park Service, the legendary naturalist John Muir is perhaps best known for his advocacy in favor of preserving Yosemite National Park. A giant in the history of conservation, Muir, who fell in love with the mountains after a serious industrial accident, became arguably the most influential figure in preserving the natural landscapes of the west. His relationship with President Theodore Roosevelt and the expansion of federally protected lands may be the greatest achievement of this era of conservation!
Getting To Yosemite:
Located in Central California, Yosemite is fairly remote, but can be reached from a number of major cities. The closest large city is Fresno, and Fresno’s airport is the best choice if you are flying in. Other cities located within a three hour or so drive with major airports include Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, and Sacramento.
From these cities or any others, you’ll then likely need to drive to the park. There is a regional public transit system called YARTS (Yosemite Area Regional Transit System), and can be useful if you are trying to get to Yosemite Valley. However, I generally advocate having your own car when exploring the mountains. It just makes it easier to explore and get around.
Once you’re in Yosemite, there is a transit system that can get you around the park. Go to the Yosemite NPS website for more information on public transit in Yosemite. When it is running, the public transit can get you to many of the major trailheads in the park.
Getting To The Trailhead:
Always be sure to follow the 7 Leave No Trace Principles when in the outdoors!
The trailhead to access Mariposa Grove is located at the Mariposa Grove Welcome Center. You almost always will need to take a bus from the welcome center to the actual trailhead as the trailhead parking area is tiny for how busy this place gets.
From Yosemite Valley, follow Wawona Road south towards Wawona. Continue through Wawona until you reach a roundabout just inside the south entrance station. At the roundabout, turn left and park at the welcome center. From the southern entrance, the only difference is a right at the roundabout!
Tips:
- During peak months, be sure to reserve a Yosemite Day Use Pass ahead of time.
- This is an extremely busy area, arrive early to guarantee parking.
- Hike into the Upper Grove to get away from most of the crowds.
- From July to October, be aware thick smoke is a real possibility
The Mariposa Grove Trail:
The Lower Grove:
After getting out of the bus at the lower grove, make your way through the throngs of people and begin on the Big Trees Loop. Almost immediately, you will pass the giant remains of a fallen sequoia. Known as the Fallen Monarch, this tree gives you an immediate sense of scale and an idea of what this forest will look like!
Continuing on, you will pass tons of sequoias, including the Bachelor and the 3 Graces, but the real attraction of the Lower Grove is the largest tree here, the Grizzly Giant. After .6 miles, you’ll take a hard left, and this massive tree will appear directly in front of you!
Yosemite is bear country so make sure you’re bear safe!
At 34,000 cubic feet, this tree is the largest in the Mariposa Grove, and the 26th largest living sequoia in the world. Once thought to actually be the largest tree in the world, the Grizzly Giant is still the largest tree in Yosemite (though not the world), but perhaps more astonishingly it’s estimated to be 2,995 years old! This thing was 1,000 years old at the height of the Roman Empire!
Typical of mature sequoias, the Grizzly Giant isn’t actually all that tall. Sequoias can easily reach 300 feet in height, but this one, the largest in Yosemite, is only about 209 feet tall. The reason for this is damage done to the upper reaches of the tree. Wind, lightning, and fires can all contribute to the destruction of parts of the tree, and when you’ve been around for 3,000 years, you’ll experience your fair share of natural disasters! Most old sequoias lose parts of their upper trunks and branches over time.
Always follow basic trail etiquette when you’re hiking!
The Grizzly Giant earns its name from its absolutely enormous girth. Like seriously, the branches on this thing are thicker than some of the mature trees in this grove. It’s kind of hard to believe it’s actually all suspended up in the air, but there it stands!
Passing around the Grizzly Giant, you’ll reach another of the main attractions of the Mariposa Grove, the California Tunnel Tree. As its name implies, this tree does in fact have a tunnel going through it!
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Cut in 1895, this tree was designed to allow for horse drawn carriages and buggies to pass through as a tourist attraction. There are a number of sequoias and redwoods that feature walk through tunnels, but this one is certainly one of the more famous due to its prominent location in Yosemite!
Beyond the Tunnel Tree, the trail begins climbing up and out of the Lower Grove. From the Tunnel Tree you can easily loop back to the trailhead and make a really nice short and easy loop, but for the full Mariposa Grove Experience, continue up the 500 foot climb to reach the Upper Grove!
The Upper Grove:
The Upper Grove begins when you meet an intersection that leads in at least 5 different directions within sight of the Galen Clark Cabin. Take a really hard right at this intersection to follow the outer loop of the Upper Grove.
Along this trail, you will have some peaks out through the forest at the foothills and ridges beyond your immediate surroundings in the forest. The best views of the hike are still to come, but it is nice to get some glimpses out over the surrounding terrain.
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The Upper Grove doesn’t have any trees that approach the scale of the Grizzly Giant, but there are still tons of impressive mature trees. Among these mature living examples, you will pass the Telescope Tree, a burnt out standing shell giving you views from the ground all the way up to the stars through the trunk (like a telescope), and the Wawona Tunnel Tree, a fallen example of a tunneled through sequoia.
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The real prize of the Upper Grove actually isn’t a specific tree, nor the entire grove itself. To me, the best reason to come up here is the incredible view from the Wawona Vista Point. From the Upper Grove loop, follow Mariposa Grove Road for the final half mile to the viewpoint. This rough road isn’t as bucolic as the trail through the forest, but it’s worth it for the view at the end!
Upon reaching the Wawona Vista Point, you will be greeted with one of the best views in the southern reaches of Yosemite National Park. Before you, the region of Wawona is laid out in the valley below. Filled with green forests and meadows, surrounded by pine covered hills, this is truly a wonderful scene! Through the valley runs the South Fork of the Merced River, and if you look really close, you may be able to spot some of the buildings that make up the community of Wawona.
You should seriously consider hiking the Mist Trail, Yosemite’s best moderate hike!
There are some really cool spots at the viewpoint that get you right to the edge, and this makes for an incredible place to stop for a snack and take it all in. It’s also the top of the climb, so you’ve earned a break by this point!
Hiking Out:
From the viewpoint, it’s a downhill hike back to the trailhead. While you could return the way you came up, I would recommend making a loop. There’s no real reason to hike the same trail twice when there are so many other great, easy, options right here!
Check out our list of Yosemite’s best easy hikes!
I followed the road back down to the Galen Clark Cabin near the base of the Upper Grove, and then branched off onto the westernmost trail descending down to the Lower Grove. On the way back, you’ll miss the biggest trees of the grove like the Grizzly Giant and the California Tunnel Tree, but there are still really big trees to see! You’ll pass Clothespin Tree, a naturally hollowed out sequoia, as well as the Faithful Couple, a pair of trees that have fused together over hundreds and hundreds of years!
Before long, you will arrive back at the trailhead and the bus station back to the parking lot. This is a truly special walk in the woods, but there aren’t many walks in the woods with trees like this and a big time view at the top, awesome hike!
Topdown Lifestyle Rating: 9/10
Usually when you do a sequoia or redwood hike you get amazing forests but no big views. This is a notable exception to that. In just 6 miles, you’ll see one of the largest living things on the planet, dozens and dozens of mature sequoias, and a fantastic panoramic view of Yosemite’s low country. While this hike may not offer exposed trails or sheer drop offs, it has just about everything else you could ask for in a 6 mile hike!
Pros:
- Great combination of amazing forest and panoramic views
- The best Sequoia Grove in Yosemite
- Very well made trail
Cons:
- Super busy
- Bus ride required to reach trailhead
- No real dropoffs of exposed sections of trail
Alternative Hikes:
The Sentinel Dome and Taft Point Loop
When To Hike The Mariposa Grove Trail:
Hiking in Yosemite is a three season activity. Winter usually brings quite a bit of snow, and the entire park is liable to experience winter storms. While lower elevation areas of the park may be hikable in winter, I really wouldn’t say Yosemite is a four season hiking destination.
Purely in terms of weather, fall and spring are the best times of year to hike in Yosemite. Summer can get extremely hot, and hiking in 95 degree heat isn’t fun for most people! The one issue with fall is that fire season can either close down areas of the park, or more likely will blanket the park with smoke. In good years, it’s hardly an issue, but some years it’s harmful to even be outside.
It is also worth considering when Yosemite is busiest. This is one of the busiest parks in the country, so be ready for crowds if you visit in peak season, namely summer. Some people are really turned off by the crowds, and I agree if you only visit the valley, but there are always places to get away from the big crowds. This can cause issues with finding campsites in the park though.
Overall, I would say that late spring is probably the best time of year to visit the Yosemite lowcountry and the Mariposa Grove. The temperatures are comfortable, rain is rare, and the crowds are lighter than summer. Late autumn is also a great time to visit as spring may still have snow lingering on the trails.
The last thing to consider when planning your visit is that the high elevation roads through the park close for snow. Tioga Pass and Glacier Point Road both close from winter to whenever the snow melts (usually May or June but it varies). Spring will limit where you can go in the park, so if you really want to explore the high country, wait at least until late June!
Links For Further Reading:
Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias – Yosemite National Park (U.S. National Park Service)
Yosemite Hikes: The Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias
Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias Trail | Map, Guide – California | AllTrails
Lower Mariposa Grove Loop (Yosemite National Park, CA) | Live and Let Hike
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