Yosemite - North Dome Loop

The North Dome is the little brother of the Half Dome right on the opposite side of Yosemite Valley. I had already planned to bag it a month before, but didn’t make it due to a miserable physical condition.

In much better shape now, this was my second try.

Perfect weather: still chilly in the morning, but sunny during the whole day. There had been a few inches of snow 2 days before, but most of that was gone.

The plan was to do an out-and-back via the Upper Yosemite Falls and head East via Yosemite Point. Tag the summit and return. They were out of maps at the entrance of the park, but how hard can it really be, with only a few trails and signs at every intersection? I had also stored the route in my GPS.

In the past, I’ve been in trouble a couple of times during the climb to the top of the Falls: even with moderate temperatures in the valley, the heat on the trail can be really bad. This time, I tried to be at the trailhead at 9am to avoid some of that. It worked very well, and I made it to the top of the Falls in 1h35min.

The North Dome looks really close from Yosemite Point, but to get there you have to make a long detour to make it around a ravine. The trail is mostly in the woods. There were still patches of snow, but always enough foot prints to find your way.

I didn’t know it was possible to make a loop around the Northern part of the Valley, but 1/2 mile before the summit, there’s a sign that indicates a distance of 8 miles to the Valley via Mirror Lake. Since the way back is only slightly shorter (7 miles), I decided to take the former and avoid beaten path down via the Falls.

The view from the Dome is spectacular.

Next up: Indian Rock, around 1.5 mile away from the North Dome. You can see the rock up high from the main trail. I didn’t make the little out-and-back to the rock itself.

And then starts the descent back to the Valley. It takes an endless 4 miles to go from 8000ft to just below 6500ft, which is then followed a rather brutal stretch to 2 miles to the bottom of the Valley. At least, the Half Dome gives you company, and you get great view of the entrance of Tenaya Valley.

The final stretch back to the Village lasts forever. If I didn’t take the shuttle, it’s only because, without a map, I couldn’t find a bus stop. At one point, there’s an intersection without signs, of course, I took the right side and missed Mirror Lake. Duh.

All in all, a great hike with impressive views.

If your main goal is the North Dome, an out-and-back via the Falls is definitely shorter and just as scenic. If you want to make the loop, I suggest going clockwise like I did: the descent is long, but at least you don’t have to look around to see the Half Dome and I prefer shorter ascents and longer descents than vice versa.

This was the first time my Garmin Edge didn’t mess up recording the positions in Yosemite Valley. The trick seems to be to already switch on your GPS before your drive into the Valley. This way, it has enough time to find all the satellites and calibrate itself.

This trip looks GREAT on Google Earth!