Four Mile Trailhead — Attraction in Oakhurst

Hey everyone! I hope you enjoy these photos. A few were taken on Four Mile Trail and the rest coming down Panorama Trail. I did the hike solo on 10/4/2022. I recommend putting this on your hiking "bucket" list. If you only have one day in Yosemite, this is the hike to do. I camped at Tamarack Flat which is about a 45 minute drive from the valley floor and the Four Mile Trail trailhead. I find the air quality much better in the higher elevations because of less camp fires. There are only 52 total campsites available at Tamarack Flat. This is one of the reasons I chose to camp here, not to mention the fact that finding a valley campsite on short notice is next to impossible. There is no potable water in Tamarack Flat but a stream runs all through the camp area so filtering your water is easy. Also, vault toilets and no showers. On to the hike. I got up at 4:00 am, had breakfast and hit the road to the valley at 5:00 am. Arrived at the Four Mile trailhead at 5:50 am. Pro tip...There are about 7 parking spaces at the trailhead. If you do not get a parking place you will have to start you hike from Curry Village. This will add an additional 2 miles to the hike or you can take the shuttle bus from Curry Village to Four Mile trail head after 7 am. The first hour was hiked in the dark with a head lamp and an almost full moon. I was totally alone without anyone on the trail at the time. Most people seem to hit the trail at around 7:00 am. It took me 4 hours to get up Four Mile Trail which is actually 4.7 miles. I didn't get enough sleep the 2 nights prior and this created a bit of a challenge with my stamina. I am in fairly decent shape at 6'0", 170 lbs. I turn 60 in December. I took plenty of rest / photo breaks and really enjoyed myself. I started with 3 litres of water and a Sawyer squeeze filtering kit.This is plenty of water to start with and you can filter water on your way down Panorama Trail in multiple places. As the sun came up I found myself in a state of continual awe. Every turn greeted me with spectacular views. Yosemite Falls is dry this time of year but the full monty view of YF is one you can only see from Four Mile Trail. It is truly spectacular! There were times when I felt like I could reach out and touch Half Dome and I could literally look down on El Capitan. I spent 30 minutes at the geology hut at Glacier Point where I had a snack and shared the views with a group of about six or seven 30 something year olds that passed me on my way up. Oh, to be mid 30's again 😂🤣 Glacier Point was a like a ghost town because they are working on widening the road. The road has been closed all season and the only access is up Panorama Trail or Four Mile Trail. Both of which are very taxing, explaining why there are only a handful of people there at any given time. The hike down the Panorama Trail was filled with open meadows and more spectacular views of all the iconic rock formations including reverse tunnel view, Nevada Falls, Vernal Falls, Illilouette Falls, Illilouette Overlook, Panorama Point and a few other hidden gems. There is an awesome swimming area where I took another break for lunch, filtered water for the final leg of the hike, and took a quick dip. I spent about an hour there before making the 1000 ft elevation gain to start the last leg of the hike. I chose to take the John Muir Trail down instead of the Mist Trail via Nevada Falls to Vernal Falls. The hike took a total of 11 hours and 5 minutes. This included a 30 minute break at Glacier Point and an hour and a half break at Illilouette foot bridge. Approximate total distance is 14.8 miles. The toughest leg of this hike is the last 2-2 1/2 miles of Four Mile Trail. I would compare it to the upper section of upper Yosemite Falls, although the switchbacks of upper Yosemite Falls are much steeper and seem endless. The beauty of the hike and scenic views are hands down the best I have experienced in Yosemite on a day hike. This hike changes elevations quite a bit and reveals many different perspectives of the valley rim, waterfalls, and its...

RUNNING/HIKING😁 It occurred to me that I could do this running 🤣, which I soon found out that I was only able to run about 1/4th of the way up from the valley floor. It took me 1 hour and 46 minutes to go up to glacier point, running and hiking. Coming back I was able to run the entire trail, to the valley floor in 43 minutes. *I did this in August so it was very hot, but there are some parts with shade. *the actual trail is very smooth and easy to manage using regular street running shoes. *I used a simple small Camelbak backpack with less than 1 liter of water. *There is a little store at the top where you can buy more drinks. *It was the down hill part that left my quadriceps sore and full of lactic acid, so consider that before you plan your next run/hike. *The whole trip to the top and back was less 10 miles *Recommendation: when you finish at the valley floor go put your legs in the river...

Hiking date: 27-June-2020 Early summer

The name is “4 mile”, but actual distance is close to 5 miles (1 way). We started at 9:20 from Four miles trailhead. For most portion of the trail (around 3.5 miles), it was shaded. For the rest 1.5 miles, shade was on & off. If shade is a criteria for you, start early. We hiked 1 way & it took 3 hours. There are lot of mosquitoes & other flies, get your repellent cream/spray. Though the elevation gain is more than Upper Yosemite Falls trail, the hike itself is easier than that. Do visit Union Point, which gives 360 degrees views : Glacier Point, Sentinel Dome, Valley, Yosemite Falls & Half Dome. Number of parking spaces at 4 miles trailhead are less, you may use Swinging Bridge picnic or Sentinel...