Backpacking to Cloud’s Rest in winter is a challenging but rewarding Yosemite experience with stunning snowy scenery.
Trip Overview
Dates: April 10 – April 11, 2021
Time: 5.5 hours in, 4.5 hours out
Miles: 18.5 miles
Elevation Gain: 5,686’
Permit: A wilderness permit is required year-round for backpacking or any overnight stay in the Yosemite Wilderness, but is not required for a day hike to Cloud’s Rest. From late October to mid-April, you can get a wilderness permit the day before or the day you plan to start your hike from a permit issuing station closest to the trailhead. We picked ours up at the Yosemite Valley Welcome Center. More information about winter wilderness camping can be found here (https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/wildwinter.htm).
Trailhead: Upper Pines Campground
Parking: Yosemite Valley Trailhead Parking
Dogs: Not allowed
Getting There
Enter Yosemite Valley and drive towards Curry Village and Happy Isles Loop Road. Yosemite Valley Trailhead Parking will be on the right.
Trip Details
The trailhead to start this hike begins at Upper Pines Campground in Yosemite Valley. Walk along Happy Isles Loop Road and walk until you get to the end of the campground, cross a bridge, and start your hike along the John Muir Trail.
Normally the hike starts from Sunrise Lake Trailhead at Tenaya Lake and the trail is a 6.7 mile hike in from the north. In the winter months Tioga Road is closed so the only way to hike in is from Yosemite Valley.
We started our hike around 7:30 AM and brought along with us snow shoes and microspikes. It turned out we didn’t need our snowshoes at all and it was just extra weight to carry along for a good workout. 🙂 The microspikes did come in handy though. We also brought ice axes for any emergency situations but did not need them except for building our snow couch.
From Upper Pines Campground follow the Join Muir Trail or the Mist Trail and reach Little Yosemite Valley after about 3.5 miles. Along climb over some stone steps, and pass the popular Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls. On our way up the trail was pretty empty but hiking back out in the afternoon, this trail gets extremely busy with everyone visiting the waterfalls.
Once you reach Little Yosemite Valley, keep trekking on towards a few sets of switchbacks. We stopped to set up camp somewhere along this stretch between Little Yosemite Valley and the top of Cloud’s Rest.
After setting up camp and snacking, we finished our trek to the top of Cloud’s Rest! As we neared the end it was harder to find the trail because of all the snow. By the time we got to the top it was evening and most of the day hikers had left, so we had the whole view to ourselves. The summit is 9,926 feet above sea level with incredible views of Half Dome, Yosemite Valley, and the Sierra Nevada peaks all around.
Need to Know – Winter Wilderness Camping in Yosemite
- You can’t camp on top of Cloud’s Rest
- Where you can camp: red arrows on this map show where dispersed camping is allowed. The Yosemite NPS website states: “camp out of sight of all trails, water sources, and one mile from any plowed road”
- Wilderness permits are required for all overnight camping. You must register at the station closest to your starting point.
- Human waste must be buried 6 inches into the grow (meaning beneath the snow, 6” into the ground)
- Follow more guidelines from this page on winter wilderness camping
- Be prepared and know your limitations!
- Helpful websites:
- Yosemite Wilderness Permits : wilderness permit information
- Wilderness in Winter : tips, guidelines, and safety information for camping in winter
- Yosemite Wilderness Trailhead Map : Yosemite map showing trailhead and camping locations
When to Go
Anytime during the busy season would be great to go if you can get your hands on a permit! If you want to avoid crowds, April and October would be good months with less crowds, given the weather is still good but there will be snow in April! We went at the very tail end of the winter season when wilderness permits reservations weren’t required.
What to Pack for Winter Backpacking
- Hydration: We usually start with 2-3 liters of water each, and pack a water filter and some iodine tablets. Since there’s snow higher up on the trail, you can melt some snow to have drinking water. Electrolyte packets are also very useful for hydration on the trail.
- Nutrition: You need extra fuel to keep your body going when it’s cold! Your body will burn more calories in the winter.
- Stove and fuel: We love our Jetboil to boil water for drinking and to heat up our dehydrated dinners, oatmeals, coffee, etc.
- Navigation: For hikes with more difficult trails to follow, you may want to invest in a GPS tracker. For simpler hikes, we use the GPS system on our phones and a tracker such as Gaia GPS or AllTrails.
- Headlamp: We always bring our headlamps and inflatable solar latern by MPOWERD.
- Sun protection: Sunscreen, sunglasses, and sun-protective clothes – always a must!
- Shelter: We use our Marmot Tungsten 2-Person Tent (3 season, 4 lbs, 13 oz).
- Warm sleeping bag and insulated sleeping pad.
- Lots of layers and insulated clothes!
- Microspikes or crampons. On this trip we also carried our snowshoes, but we ended up not needing the snowshoes.
- First aid: Our first aid kit consists of band-aids, gauze, medical tape, Compede Bandages (love this more than Moleskin for blisters), antibiotic ointment, alcohol wipes, ibuprofen, tweezers, pocket knife.
Leave No Trace
Always remember to practice the principles of Leave No Trace! These 7 principles include:
- Plan Ahead & Prepare
- Travel & Camp on Durable Surfaces
- Dispose of Waste Properly
- Leave What You Find
- Minimize Campfire Impacts
- Respect Wildlife
- Be Considerate of Others
Check out the Leave No Trace program for more information.
