Yosemite Family Hiking: Trails for Toddlers, Kids, Teens

Hiking can be family-friendly in Yosemite National Park as long as you know which trails to tackle and what to expect on each. Here are five recommendations based on my several years of family hiking experiences.

Toddlers and Older Children 

Lower Yosemite Fall

Yosemite Falls is actually a series of three connecting falls; the lower fall is accessible to just about anyone, thanks to a wide, paved trail. Pick up the trailhead just north of Yosemite Lodge. Follow the pathway up a slight incline, through smooth boulders and past dense pine and cedar trees. Cross the bridge to the east, and you’ll see the falls to your left. It’s an easy one-third of a mile walk to the base of the falls. My husband, daughter and I always make this hike when we visit Yosemite; we’ve done it in the swelter of summer and amid snow and ice with equal success.

The ferocity of the falls depends on the season in which you visit. Come during May and June and expect to be drenched with spray at the look-out points. Come in October and November and you might not even see the water. Whatever the season, resist the temptation to crawl on the boulders at the base of the falls; this is enormously dangerous, and several people have lost their lives in this foolhardy endeavor.

• Kids of all ages can enjoy hikes in Yosemite.
• Bill Becher

If you have toddlers, turn around at the bridge and return the way you came. But if you’re traveling with older kids (5 and up), continue over the bridge and catch the unpaved path that runs beside the cliff. This extended section of the trail is much less trafficked, and for that reason it’s my favorite part of the hike. After about two-tenths of a mile you’ll hit a dirt horse path. Follow it to the south (right) and meander through stands of majestic pines and over a series of pretty little bridges. You’ll soon come to a clearing with several benches that have an idyllic view of the falls. In wet weather, bring along a few plastic grocery bags to cover the damp seats.

Mirror Lake

Don’t let the name fool you; aside from May and June, you aren’t likely to find water in Mirror Lake. (In late spring, when the water level is high enough, there is a lovely reflection of Half Dome.) What you will find is a level, mostly paved trail that is easily accessible, even for babies and toddlers in strollers. The out-and-back loop is two miles, and the elevation change is negligible.

Catch the trail from the Mirror Lake shuttle stop. (Yosemite offers a free bus throughout the Valley; catch it from the Visitors Center and it’ll take you to all the major sites.) Follow the paved road (used only by park vehicles) through a dense forest of white firs, ponderosa pines and dogwoods (glorious during blooming season in May). After a mile, you’ll step out of the forest to see sandbars and enormous boulders in the lake bed. My 12-year-old is a budding rock climber, and particularly enjoys scampering up these. On our last visit, we hiked back via the bridal path loop (which is a little longer than taking the paved trail) and were thrilled to find Native American grinding stones, where generations of mothers and daughters used to pound out acorns.