Gaylor Lakes
Gaylor Lakes Photo Gallery / Trail Map / Satellite View
Distance: 3 miles (4.8 km) give or take; you can do a lot of freelancing on this hike
Elevation at trailhead: 9,950 feet (3,000 meters)
Elevation Gain: 600 feet (180 meters)
Why hike to the Gaylor Lakes? If Yosemite were a high school, the Gaylor Lakes Trail would be the guy who always sat in the back of class and got voted "Who? Are you sure he's in our class?" but came back to the reunion a movie director with a starlet on his arm. The trail to Gaylor Lakes is one of Yosemite's great overlooked hikes.
Best Time to Visit: Whenever the Tioga Road is open - June through October, most years
Hiking Time: 2 - 5 hours, depending on how much wandering you do
Scenery Factor: High almost from the very beginning of the hike. It starts out with a steep climb, but you're soon rewarded with sweeping views back to Dana Meadows and to the mountains beyond it - Dana, Mammoth, and Gibbs, among others. The top of the pass has striking views to the mountains east of Yosemite, and to the high Gaylor Lakes valley, which has a denuded, prehistoric feel to it; when you gaze down onto it from the pass, you almost expect to see dinosaurs wandering through the grass. The valley itself contains five lakes, all picturesque, and has bonus views beyond the valley's horizon to the mountains that ring Tuolumne Meadows. There's also an abandoned 1870's mine above upper Gaylor Lake.
Crowd Factor: Gloriously light when we've been there. We like to sneak out of the office and go hiking at odd times, though. You'll probably have company if you visit on a weekend, and given the wide-open nature of the Gaylor Lakes valley, it'll be easy to spot any fellow hikers. It is a high elevation hike that that starts with a steep uphill section, though, and it's at the far eastern edge of Yosemite, so it'll always be uncrowded relative to, say, Yosemite Valley.
Difficulty: We rate it a 4 out of 10. There's a steep climb (with a starting elevation of 10,000 feet/3,000 meters) to reach the pass that leads into the Gaylor Lakes valley, but it's easy from then on. The valley itself is mostly flat or gently sloping.
Nearest Restrooms: at the trailhead
Nearest Snacks: There's a grill & convenience store at the eastern edge of the Tuolumne Meadows, 7.5 miles (12 km) west. There's also a restaurant at the Tioga Pass Resort, 2 miles (3 km) east of the trailhead.
Getting There: From Yosemite Valley, take highway 120 ten miles (16.8 km) to the Crane Flat turnoff onto Tioga Road, then take Tioga Road 48 miles (77 km) east to reach the trailhead, which is just inside the eastern gate.
If you're coming to the trailhead from Yosemite's east entrance at Tioga Pass, you'll find the parking lot to your right immediately after you go through the Yosemite entrance gate.
Parking: There's a lot at the trailhead that holds a dozen or so cars, and another across the road and just to the southwest in Dana Meadows.