Arrival in Fresno and transfer to Yosemite National Park. Wawona Meadow; 3.5 mile loop, easy

You meet your guides and fellow walkers in Fresno, where you board your vans and drive directly into Yosemite National Park to the Wawona area, approximately a two-hour journey. The first walk takes you through Wawona Meadow, beginning near the Wawona Hotel under a canopy of incense cedar and ponderosa pine. The historic Wawona Hotel, built in 1879, was the site of an overnight stage stop on the way to Yosemite Valley. You follow a wide, smooth trail running between the meadow and forest—constituting the border zone, which is called the ecotone, generally, the richest in living organisms, such as the mule deer that you may spot. Crossing a series of fern-lined streams, this walk borders one of Yosemite’s largest meadows. In the late afternoon you arrive and settle in to your welcoming classic mountain lodge, just two miles from Yosemite’s southern gate. After unwinding, you step out to a favorite local inn featuring fine American cuisine with fresh sourdough French bread.

Mariposa Grove; 7.5 miles, moderate

After a hearty buffet breakfast at your lodge, the destination this morning is the Mariposa Grove, only a ten-mile drive from the inn. Of the three sequoia groves in the park, Mariposa is the largest, containing approximately 500 mature giant sequoias, some of which are over 2,000 years old. Also called Sierra redwoods (not to be confused with California’s coast redwood), these awe-inspiring trees can be over 50 feet in diameter and can reach heights of over 300 feet. An extensive, almost maze-like trail network makes its way through the upper and lower groves, weaving its way through trees with whimsical names reflecting their shapes, such as the Grizzly Giant, the Clothespin Tree, and the Telescope Tree. Crucial to the role of sequoia reproduction are the chatty and endlessly entertaining chickaree or Douglas squirrels, playing and darting about. The chickarees chew open the young green scales of sequoia cones, thereby dropping the seeds to the forest floor.

After a full day’s walk, you return to your full-service resort lodge where you may want to enjoy one of its swimming pools or spa tubs, or simply relax in your comfortable room before gathering for dinner.

Sentinel Dome/Taft Fissures/Glacier Point; 4.5 or 7.5 miles, moderate

Today’s walk in some of Yosemite’s 747,956 acres offers views from the top down. A one-hour van ride brings you to the Glacier Point Road where you begin the walk to Sentinel Dome. The route starts down a sandy path through Jeffrey pine and manzanita and quickly turns to a rocky path undulating upwards towards Sentinel Dome, its smooth rock coming into sight. Once you arrive at the back of the dome you begin the climb to the summit. Views from the top are just about the best in the park—360 degrees of beautiful features of domes and waterfalls, including El Capitan, Half Dome, and Yosemite Falls. Descending slowly you proceed to Taft Point and the Fissures—cracks in the cliff only inches wide with three thousand-foot drops! For those not suffering from vertigo, you may continue out to Taft Point (railing protected) and look across the Yosemite Valley and Yosemite Falls. Along the way, you will enjoy a gourmet picnic while taking in the scenery.

Concluding the walk, an hour’s drive takes you back to Tenaya Lodge. Tonight dinner is on your own, choosing from one of many onsite restaurants—either the more upscale Embers, the casual Sierra Restaurant, or Timberloft Pizza.

Vernal Falls; 3.5 miles, 1,400-ft elevation gain, strenuous; Nevada Falls; 7 miles, 2,000-ft elevation gain, strenuous

After another delicious breakfast, you leave the Tenaya Lodge and head to the valley floor of the park, where you spend the next two nights at the award-winning Ahwahnee Lodge. Today's route to Vernal Falls is considered one of the park's must-do walks. After a one and a half hour transfer, you find yourself at the trailhead that takes you into classic Yosemite scenery of cliffs of granite, glacial features, and views of some of the best waterfalls on the Merced River. You will undoubtedly share the trail with many hikers, as it is one of the few routes out of the valley and up to the high country. The first part of the hike, about 0.8 mile, is on a steep asphalt trail that skirts the boulder-strewn Merced River up to the Vernal Falls Bridge. With lovely views up the river to Vernal Falls, you may choose to stop here. For those who want to experience the Mist Trail, up and over to the top of Vernal Falls, you continue up 700 rock stairs—strenuous but rewarding. And, for those who wish, you may continue onward and upward to Nevada Falls, returning on the John Muir Trail, named for the man who was one of the founders of the Sierra Club and moved to preserve the region as a national park from seeing the destructive results of overgrazing livestock.

Later, a short transfer brings you to your home for the next two nights. Architecturally magnificent and stately, it is a showcase of American Indian art. After unpacking, should time allow, you may have time to explore the Yosemite Village including the Visitor Center and Ansel Adams Museum. Ansel Adams first visited the park in 1916 with his parents and a Kodak Brownie camera; later, he captured the natural beauty in his striking photographs. You may also choose to enjoy a dip in the hotel's outdoor heated pool, browse the gift shop, or enjoy a cocktail in front of one of the hotel's famous fireplaces.

This evening the group proceeds to the Yosemite Lodge, the hotel closest to Yosemite Falls, for dinner. A Western flat iron steak or ruby trout accompanied by a Sonoma Syrah are a satisfying finish to a full day.

Tuolumne Meadows. Elizabeth Lake; 4.8 miles, moderate, 1,000-ft elevation gain, or Lyell Fork; 4-6 miles at 8500' altitude, easy

After a filling breakfast at the Ahwahnee you head to Tuolumne Meadows. The gateway to Yosemite’s high country, Tuolumne Meadows is the largest subalpine, high country meadow in the Sierra Nevada and known for its stunning beauty. Encircled by some of the highest peaks and passes in the park, such as the Cathedral Range with its 10,000-foot peaks, it is also the trailhead to Yosemite’s highest peak, Mount Lyell. Tuolumne Meadow is also a less crowded part of the park; in summer the meadows are blooming with wildflowers such as the rare Purple Webber of the lupine family. Lodge pole pines stand out as the dominant pine between 7,000 and 10,000 feet.

The Elizabeth Lake trail starts in the Tuolumne Meadows campground, the largest campground in the park with over 300 campsites. You take the trail south and climb steadily through the peaceful mountain hemlock and lodgepole pine forest, noting young lodgepole pines twisted into contorted shapes by heavy winter snows. As the trail levels off, it veers towards Unicorn Creek, which drains from Elizabeth Lake. You emerge at the foot of a spacious meadow decorated with paintbrush and bistort flowers that will lead you to your destination. The views from the east and north side of the lake are of Unicorn Peak, part of the Cathedral Range. Enjoying your lake-side picnic there is time to explore the shore before returning along the same trail, reveling in the scenery from the return perspective.

Should your guides decide to offer Lyell Fork, the trail starts from the Dog Lake parking lot offering an easy ramble along the Lyell Fork of the Tuolumne River. Green meadows and turquoise water combine into some of the most beautiful vistas in Yosemite. Crossing bridges you notice bowls worn into the granite by the scouring silt carried by the river. Concluding the walk, an hour-and-a-half drive descends back to the Yosemite Valley and the Ahwahnee Lodge, where you have time to unwind before our farewell dinner in the grand dining room with its floor-to-ceiling windows, a fitting setting concluding a memorable week.

Grand tour of the Valley Floor; Bridalveil Fall; 1 mile, easy, 200-ft elevation gain; Yosemite Falls; 1 mile loop, easy, no elevation gain; El Capitan Meadow. Departure to Fresno

Your final morning in Yosemite takes you on a grand tour of the valley floor with short walks offering big views of these iconic park features. First stop is Bridalveil Fall at 620 feet. During the early season this “bride’s veil” can heavily mist the trail with its lacey patterns causing the trail to become slippery. Bridalveil flows over the cleft between Cathedral Rocks and the Leaning Tower. Boarding the vans, you transfer a short distance to Yosemite Falls to walk another mile loop offering spectacular views of the Upper and Lower falls. Yosemite Falls is the highest waterfall in America at 2,425 ft—taller than the Sears Tower in Chicago! Our final swing takes you to El Capitan Meadow to watch the climbers scaling the world's most famous rock climb. Making their bid on this 3,300-ft granite face the average party takes 4–6 days hauling 100 pounds of gear per person. This is a good place to remember your binoculars. You climb into the vans and make the return drive south to Fresno, where you make onward travel connections.