There are a lot of web guides and suggestions for a 3 day stay and this is what we came up with:
Day 1: hike Vernal Falls
Day 2: Sentinel Dome, Glacier Falls, and Tuolumne Meadows
Day 3: Mariposa Grove
I think it was a fairly good plan. In the future I would consider doing Half Dome and maybe visiting the area around Hetch Hetchy.
We flew from D.C. to San Jose and stayed with some relatives. The drive from there to Yosemite was about 4 hours. There was a lot of desert and highway. A few Walmarts in between for last minute supply gathering, mainly food. Would recommend a lot of water and some snacks.
We decided to stay outside of Yosemite at the Days Inn Oakhurst. While it was only 14 miles from the southern entrance, it still took about 45 minutes to drive just to the entrance due to one lane roads and a low speed limit. If we were to go again I think we'd shell out and stay inside the park or as close as possible. Once in the park it is about 45 minutes to an hour(s) to each destination. That said the Days Inn had a nice continental breakfast each morning and the rooms were sufficient. There was a microwave and fridge.
Day 1 we arrived around noonish or 1pm and decided to try one hike, the Mist Trail to Vernal falls which was just 3 miles round trip. We thought it would not take that long but ended up taking several hours. We did stop and take a lot of pictures along the way. There are two or three places that people stop a lot of photos, all related to the falls. I do recommend getting off the trail to the bottom of the Falls. Nice rainbows and a refreshing mist during the summer.
In August it was crowded but manageable. People of all ages were doing the trail and there is one place to fill your water bottles. At the top of Vernal Falls there is a nice pool of water but even in August very chilly. Only a group of French adolescents were brave enough to jump in and swim to the other side.
Prior to this we were thinking of being ambitious and try the Mist Trail to Nevada Falls or even Half Dome. But we or I am out of shape. Maybe one day.
Being a "why adventure" when we got back to the car we saw a note on the car. Someone saw our keys on the ground and they had it! OMG. This was very distressing especially because our cell phones did not have any reception. We tried using pay phones and asking strangers to use their phone. Finally we found the Yosemite security and we were able to get in touch with the folks with our keys. I had dreams that we would be sleeping on a bench somewhere or when we found the stranger with our keys they would like stab us to death.
They were very kind and we ended up eating pizza at one of the dining halls and stopping to look at the stars before heading back. Pretty amazing but a photo fail. The Tunnel View was a place we placed several times each day and it was always an sight.
Mist Trail: http://www.yosemitehikes.com/yosemite-valley/mist-trail/mist-trail.htm
Days Inn: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g32809-d79191-Reviews-Days_Inn_Yosemite_Sierra_Inn-Oakhurst_California.html
Yosemite Valley: http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/yv.htm
Hetch Hetchy: http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/hetchhetchy.htm
Half Dome: http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/halfdome.htm
3 Day Guides:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i21258-Three_Days_in_Yosemite_National_Park.html
http://www.sunset.com/travel/california/yosemite-travel-3-day-trip-itinerary-00400000050386/
http://www.fodors.com/community/united-states/3-days-at-yosemitethings-to-do-.cfm
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