Yosemite (Glacier Point & high country)
Yosemite National Park · near Yosemite Valley / Oakhurst · Sierra Nevada / Yosemite
Stargazing
At a glance
- Best season
- Summer–fall (Glacier Point & Tioga Rd snow-closed in winter)
What is here
- Highlights
- milky-way · programs · astrophoto
- Landscape
- mountain
- Amenities
- Half Dome & granite foregrounds · 'Starry Skies' ranger programs · Tuolumne high-country dark sites · Iconic Yosemite scenery
- Best for
- Milky Way over Yosemite's granite icons
- Features
- Milky Way over Half Dome · Glacier Point sky programs · Dark Tuolumne high country · World-famous foregrounds
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Glacier Point Rd & Tioga Rd snow-closed in winter · Valley light & crowds — high country is darker & quieter · High altitude — cold nights · Bears — store food properly
- Beginner friendly
- Yes
Stargazing detail
- Designation
- informal
- Reach
- easy
- Darkness
- 3
- Sky notes
- The Milky Way over Half Dome — from Glacier Point and the Tuolumne high country, Yosemite's granite icons become dramatic foregrounds for the night sky, with ranger 'Starry Skies' programs held on the point in summer
- Stats note
- ~Bortle 3 (some valley light); iconic granite foregrounds; summer sky programs
- Campground
- Yes
- Intl tip
- The Milky Way over Half Dome — from Glacier Point and the Tuolumne high country, Yosemite's granite icons become dramatic night-sky foregrounds (~Bortle 3), with ranger 'Starry Skies over Yosemite' programs on the point in summer. Seasonal: Glacier Point Rd and Tioga Rd are snow-closed much of the year (summer–fall). The valley carries some light and crowds — the high country is darker and quieter. Cold nights at altitude; bear country (store food). Legendary scenery with the stars.
The guide
Yosemite National Park may be best known by day, but its night skies are spectacular too, especially away from the busy valley …
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Yosemite (Glacier Point & high country) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.73, -119.57