Yosemite — Crane Flat & Mariposa Grove
Yosemite National Park · near Yosemite Valley / Oakhurst · Sierra Nevada / Yosemite
Nordic & Snowshoe
At a glance
- Best season
- Dec–Mar; snow variable at ~6,200 ft
What is here
- Activities
- snowshoe · backcountry · classic
- Setting
- forest
- Amenities
- Snowshoe among giant sequoias · Quiet forest routes · Mariposa Grove in winter · Ranger programs nearby
- Best for
- Gentle snowshoeing among big trees
- Features
- Giant sequoias in snow · Peaceful Crane Flat forest · Mariposa Grove winter walk · Away from Valley crowds
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Variable mid-elevation snow · Cold; park-road & chain requirements · Route-finding off marked trails · Layers
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Guides, rentals and operators
- Rentals
- No
Nordic & Snowshoe detail
- Venue
- park
- Ability
- beginner
- Snow
- 3
- Trail notes
- Snowshoe and ski among giant sequoias and through quiet forest at Yosemite's Crane Flat and the Mariposa Grove — gentle, magical winter routes away from the Valley crowds
- Terrain note
- ~5,600–6,600 ft; marked & ungroomed; variable snow
- Intl tip
- A quieter taste of Yosemite winter: gentle snowshoeing and skiing around Crane Flat and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias, away from the Valley crowds. Snowed-over roads and meadows make easy touring through red fir forest; in the Mariposa Grove (reached on foot when its road closes) you wander on snowshoes among the largest living trees on Earth — awe-inspiring. Mostly gentle terrain, but marked/ungroomed (some navigation). At ~6,200 ft snow is variable (best mid-winter); chains may be required, it's cold — layers, check conditions.
The guide
For a quieter, more intimate taste of Yosemite in winter, the forests around Crane Flat and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoia…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Yosemite — Crane Flat & Mariposa Grove — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.76, -119.8