My Honest Review of Yosemite National Park!

Aloha and welcome!

My name is Dominique, but my friends call me Niqui (Ni-kki)! I love going on trips knowing absolutely nothing before doing research. Should I do research before spending the time, money, and energy? Yes, absolutely! But do I really do that? No…not really. But that’s okay!

I hope that if you are planning on going any trip, you get to somehow come across my blog and read about my experiences.

I dedicate my time and energy to share my stories with my fellow travelers hoping that they’ll learn something from my experiences. I hope you say, “That place sounds like a great idea!” or “Oh actually, I didn’t know that either. I’m glad I read about it.”

Honestly, I’m just glad that you’re reading in the first place!!! Thank you for the support, mahalo and enjoy :)

Entering Yosemite National Park

Yosemite definitely has the most beautiful and breathtaking grand entrance that I’ve ever seen! Once you enter the park, you will drive through a forest that’s about a mile long. Immediately as you exit the forest, you will be greeted with a large grassy field that is surrounded by walls of mountains. You are able to park your car on the side of the road to take in the astonishing view of nature. Yosemite gives a warm welcome right as you enter the park!

Hike to Glacier Point

The Four Mile Trail was the hike that we chose to go on! In 1872, the Four Mile Trail was created and it was measured to be four miles long. I will tell you now that it has definitely extended since. The is about 9.6 miles long, there and back. It is easy to walk a long ways when you are on flat ground…but a 3,200 ft elevation gain is a whole

In this hike, you get to see two of the most beautiful sites in Yosemite. The tunnel view, which is also called, the reverse tunnel view, and the main view, which is Glacier Point. If you want to take a short 5-10 minute break on the way up, there is also a lookout area called the Union Point about three miles of the way up. The trail is nicely paved so you won’t get lost unless you go off the path, but that’s not likely to happen.

Seeing Glacier point is super rewarding after hiking up the mountain, there are mini streams along the way up and switchbacks that will feel like FOREVER. Depending on the season, you might get to see animals like deer, insects, and small animals.

Here is a picture of Glacier Point at sunset!

DO NOT MAKE THIS MISTAKE

Here’s my story of hiking the Four Mile Trail. Our group of friends decided that it was a great idea to do a four mile hike and we would be done before sunset. But guess what? We started hiking at exactly 4:00 in the afternoon…and we didn’t finish until 11:30 at night.

I just want to state a friendly reminder that only 2 out of the 5 people that we went on this hike were “decently in shape”. This was a strenuous hike for the 3 other members in the group who don’t really go on hikes.

If you are interested in seeing the viewpoints and not really wanting to workout, I recommend to take a shuttle to the top of Glacier Point and then hike down the mountain, as it is easier hiking down the mountain than hiking up. But if you’re adventurous, by all means start at the bottom, hike to the top, and make your way back down. For us, we weren’t able to take a shuttle bus to the top because the road was under construction. We wanted to see glacier point, so we decided to hike up anyways.

I had come to a point where my legs started to carry themselves and it all became mental. I’m sure that everyone has become so tired that they’ve experienced that in their life!

This hike was so long that I made a personal record of how many steps I’ve made in one day at, which was 32,650 steps. Just to put it in perspective, it felt like Disneyland BUT standing the entire time. No sitting.

This was the most challenging trail I have ever done in my life. It is good to mention that I rarely go on hikes and I’m not the one to spring into action and WANT to go on challenging hikes. But I love traveling, and hiking is apart of it. So I do it anyways.

We were the last ones to start the hike, and we were the last ones to end the hike. Everyone in our group has stories of their own of how their experiences were while doing this hike.

I’m not discouraging anyone to not do this hike. I actually want everyone to do this hike!!! It changed my perspective and respect to people who like to go hiking. It taught me so much about myself and how far I can push myself to do something. I challenged myself to finish the hike, get to the hotel, and take my reward by sleeping in a comfortable bed.

Important Information to Know

Bring a hiking buddy, never go alone!
Start a hike during the day. The earlier the better!!!
Bring two liters of water. That is about a sixty-seven ounce bottle.
Be prepared to see wild life! Be kind and watch from a distance.
Bring a flashlight! Better safe than sorry.

Anything else?

Interested in traveling there? Contact me to book your vacation! No need to lift a finger. I will plan and book everything that you need with no extra charge! I am more than happy to help you plan a safe trip, a lot better than any trip I will ever have!