Mountain Project: Climbing Yosemite National Park

Yosemite National Park was set aside in 1890 for it's natural beauty. Yosemite Valley, or "The Valley" to many climbers is the heart of the park and the location of many of the most incredible natural wonders in the area. Yosemite Valley is the heart, soul, and a lot of the history of rock climbing in the United States.

Getting There

Yosemite can be reached from the west, south or east via highways 120 (west), 140, 41 or 120 via Tioga Pass. The Tioga Pass drive through Tuolumne Meadows from the east side is normally closed from sometime in the fall through mid to late May due to snowfall.

Weather

The Classics

Mountain Project's determination of some of the classic, most popular, highest rated routes for Yosemite National Park:

Midnight Lightning V8 Boulder Yosemite Valley : Camp 4 Bouldering

Southeast Buttress 5.6 Trad, Alpine, 5 pitches, 700 feet, Grade II Tuolumne Meadows : Cathedral Peak

Snake Dike 5.7 R Trad, 8 pitches, 2000 feet, Grade III Yosemite Valley : Half Dome

Nutcracker 5.8 Trad, 5 pitches, 500 feet Yosemite Valley : Manure Pile Buttress (aka R...

Bishops Terrace 5.8 Trad, 1 pitch, 150 feet Yosemite Valley : Church Bowl

West Crack 5.9 Trad, 5 pitches Tuolumne Meadows : DAFF Dome

Central Pillar of Frenzy 5.9 Trad, 5 pitches Yosemite Valley : Middle Cathedral Rock

Regular Route 5.9 Trad, 12 pitches, 1000 feet, Grade III Tuolumne Meadows : Fairview Dome

Salathe Wall 5.9 C2 R Trad, Aid, 35 pitches, 3500 feet, Grade VI Yosemite Valley : El Capitan

The Nose 5.9 C2 Trad, Aid, Grade VI Yosemite Valley : El Capitan

Reed's Pinnacle-Direct Route 5.10a Trad Yosemite Valley : Reed's Pinnacle Area

Steck-Salathe 5.10- Trad, 15 pitches Yosemite Valley : Sentinel Rock

Royal Arches 5.10a/b Trad, 15 pitches Yosemite Valley : Royal Arches

Sons of Yesterday 5.10a/b Trad, 6 pitches Yosemite Valley : Royal Arches

East Buttress 5.10b Trad, 9 pitches, 1200 feet Yosemite Valley : El Capitan

East Buttress 5.10c Trad, 11 pitches, 1100 feet, Grade IV Yosemite Valley : Middle Cathedral Rock

Serenity Crack 5.10d PG13 Trad, 3 pitches Yosemite Valley : Royal Arches

Astroman 5.11c Trad, 10 pitches, 1000 feet, Grade IV Yosemite Valley : Washington Column

Separate Reality 5.12a Trad, 1 pitch, 50 feet Yosemite Valley : Wildcat Falls & Above the C...

Regular Northwest Face of Half Dome 5.12a/b Trad, 23 pitches, 2200 feet, Grade VI Yosemite Valley : Half Dome

Featured Route For Yosemite National Park

Skip leading Tales of Power, photo: Bob Horan Collection

Tales of Power 5.12b CA : Yosemite National Park : ... : Wildcat Falls & Above the C...

This route is soooo beautiful! The climb starts with an awkward overhanging chimney. After that you get a rest then it moves into beautiful thin hand jams up an overhanging wall. This route shouldn't feel as hard for people with thinner hands. Those with thicker hands may have trouble in the mid-section of the hand crack. I feel like I have normal sized hands and ended up getting about six real tight thumbs up jams in a row. The crack does widen ...[more] Browse More Classics in CA

Photos of Yosemite National Park

Slideshow

Add Photo

Yosemite. 1981. Photo by Blitzo.	Yosemite storm. Photo by Blitzo.	Little Nellie Falls. Photo by Blitzo.
Winter morning. Photo by Blitzo.	Liberty Cap and Nevada Falls. Photo bt Blitzo.	Upper Yosemite Falls, Winter, 1975. Photo by Blitz...
Merced River-Happy Isles. Photo by Blitzo.	Star King. Photo by Blitzo.	Monarch butterfly on thistle. Photo by Blitzo.
Yosemite Valley 1975. Photo by Blitzo.	Sugar Pine. Photo by Blitzo.	El Capitan. Photo by Blitzo.
	Dogwood-Yosemite Valley. Photo by Blitzo.	Forest-Lower Merced Canyon. Photo by Blitzo.
Up-turned grinding stone. This boulder was dislodg...	Mt. Watkins and Tenaya Canyon from Half Dome. Phot...	Half Dome and Merced River-Winter. Photo by Blitzo...
El Cap through a dead, fallen tree arch. The NPS h...	Yosemite Valley from 33,000 feet. Flying into San...	really cool camp 4 problem called Thriller.
Yosemite in May, 1992 Photo by Deaun Schovajsa	Not in the Platte! This mystery dome is about twe...	El Cap-West Buttress profile. Photo by Blitzo.
Fingertips 5.10b Daff Dome, Tuolumne Meadows, Yosm...	The Nose from the road	The Nose and Pine Line
Taken June 16, 2008 at 13.5	Tenaya Canyon	Fairview dome
"Chongo" Big Wall climber and theoretical astroph...	Winter In Yosemite	Nevada Falls
Nevada Falls and Liberty Cap	Liberty Cap, Nevada Falls	Fern Springs
2 shots stitched together, September 2009.	Panoramic from the Tunnel View vista, September 20...	3 stitched shots from Glacier Point, September 200...
A squirrel with a view. We were laughing about th...	Larger panoramic of the Valley from Glacier Point,...