Clouds Rest | The Mountains Are Calling!

Offering the most spectacular and mind-blowing 360-degree panoramic views of the entire Yosemite Valley and beyond, Clouds Rest is a must-do for hikers and photographers seeking peak experiences. While bagging the world-famous Half Dome is a far more popular goal for many hikers (done it!), Clouds Rest sits 1000ft higher, making it the best spot for iconic shots of Half Dome.

There are two ways to get to the summit of Clouds Rest: A 7.2-mile hike from Tioga Pass Road via the Sunrise Lakes Trailhead or a 9.4-mile hike from Happy Isles by way of Little Yosemite Valley. Both hikes are great, really just depends where you want to start. This time round, we chose to do the Tioga Pass route – a challenging and gorgeous hike. At times, the trail and altitude will push you. But, if you keep going, just one step after the other, you will be rewarded with a new sense of self and an awesome view, from the top of the world. Clouds Rest is a memorable experience, to savor upon, all the way back down the mountain.

ROUTE

Sunrise Lakes Parking Lot > Tenaya Lake > Clouds Rest > Tenaya Lake > Sunrise Lakes Parking Lot

STATS & FACTS

Parking Fee: $30 Yosemite National Park entrance/parking fee, good for 7 days.
Distance: 14.5 Miles
Hike Style: Out & Back
Elevation: 9,926 ft
Elevation Climb: 1,775 ft
Hike Level: Strenuous
Yosemite National Park website
Yosemite Wilderness Trailheads map

Trail Notes

Begin at Sunrise Lakes Trailhead
Tioga Pass is a picture-perfect “summer holiday with the family” road, winding through green forests and giant slabs of granite. Driving in from San Francisco, we entered the Pass from Crane Flat. The well-paved road seemingly goes on forever. A bright yellow rumble strip/road divider keeps you alert! The Sunrise Lakes parking lot is about 30-miles in, and though it is a popular destination there is zero signage to guide and assure you that you are close, or not close. GPS did not work. Lucky for us, we stopped at Tuolumne Grove and took a picture of the map below.

The Sunrise Lakes lot fills up early. We got there at 8am, and still found we had to park out on the road and walk back to the trailhead, which is a wooden path, close to the non-flushing style bathroom. From there, just keep following the signs to Tenaya Lake.

The map that will save you much stress.

And so it begins… along this wooden path.

Tenaya Lake to Clouds Rest Trail
This first mile-or-so part of the trail is sweet, mellow and easy. At this point, You’ll be hiking with a gaggle of fellow happy hikers from all over the world, just as eager to answer the call of the mountain as you are. The crowd thins out some right at the stepping stones that take you across the river. It was not deep at all, in late September. But, it can get knee-deep in spring time, in which case bring extra shoes, socks and or small towel.

After you cross that little body of water, you’ll enjoy another easy mile through the woods. After that though, be prepared to start climbing close to a thousand feet, all within a mile. This strenuous uphill path is made up of rocks and boulders. Best to keep your eyes on your feet as you negotiate each step. Won’t be long until you start sweating and that coat/hoodie comes off! You’ll see some patches of snow here and there as you get further up the trail. As you get higher, the views become a total wow factor. As such, be prepared to work around the Instagram-ers posing for the perfect shot. The uphill workout goes on for about 2.5 miles and then finally levels out at the junction that directs you to Sunrise Lakes Trail or Clouds Rest. Yay, only 4.7 miles to go! This junction is a great spot to chill out for a bit. Have a snack, drink some water and be glad that the hardest part of the hike is over.

The river crossing at about mile one.

Climbing Up To Clouds Rest & Back Down Again
The last 4.7 miles up to Clouds Rest is not as arduous as the first half. But, there’s still plenty of uphills to tackle before hitting The Ridge. For some, The Ridge portion of the hike is the scariest part. Certainly understandable if you have a fear of heights. Clouds Rest is an arête, a thin, almost knife-like, ridge of rock formed when glaciers eroded away solid rock to form Tenaya Canyon and Little Yosemite Valley.

Once you make it past The Ridge, you have arrived at your destination—the summit of Clouds Rest! Take off your backpack, you made it, take it all in. Take a Clouds Rest. Relax, stay a while.

The return journey down the mountain was quiet and meditative. The same path we had come up on, now in late-afternoon lighting, seemed completely different. And now that we were relaxed, and not so much on a mission, we saw all of the beauty we had missed on the way up. Be sure to check out the slideshow below to see the entire hike. On the path home, our fellow Clouds Rest hikers smiled and nodded at each other in recognition. A sense of connection and camaraderie.

Running up from base of ridge