Recommendations for must-do Sierra Nevada day hikes?

I'll be in the San Francisco area late this month and I was planning to travel out to the Yosemite area for Memorial Day weekend but would like to avoid the holiday crowds by hitting some lesser known areas. Lake Tahoe or Kings Canyon regions are also an option.

Since I won't have much time, I'm looking for a good bang-for-the-buck day hike. Views and avoiding the crowds are the goal, but I'd also like to keep it under 3500 ft. of elevation gain and 10 miles if possible.

I'd appreciate any input from people familiar with the area - the selection of hikes in these areas is truly overwhelming.

Thanks!
Mike

Take a look at either the Panorama Trail or Mt Dana.

Tioga Pass opened this week - early this year due to the lack of snowfall so dropping down into the Eastern Sierra to places like Mono Lake is also an option.

Is it safe to assume you've seen the sights in Yosemite already and done the tourist thing?

Mount Tallac on the south shore of Tahoe is almost exactly 3500' vert and 10 miles roundtrip, IIRC. The summit is right around 10K and overlooks the lake - simply stunning. I believe you walk past scenic Fallen Leaf Lake en route, up Cathedral Bowl, and have great views into the Desolation Wilderness as well.

Check snow conditions first, of course. Cathedral Bowl might be tricky and/or dangerous in deep, soft snow.

Cathedral Lakes off Tioga Rd...but not sure of snow situation around Memorial Day.

BTW, do NOT go into Yosemite Valley over Memorial Day weekend. I did that once and it was awful. All the parking lots were filled by like 9am. If you must enter the park, get to the front entrance by like 6am. Hike the loop up the Mist Trail and down the John Muir Trail (best hike in the valley).

I'd say Donner Pass (best with a bunch of people), but that would be in poor taste I suppose.

Mt. Dana is the one for you and if your ambitious after that, there is alot of cool hikes right nearby. I stayed at the campground down the hill heading towards Lee Vining, its close to the peak and cheap, believe its a forest service CG. By the way Dana tops out at 13,003ft, round trip is about 6 miles.

If you haven't been to Yosemite, go there! I second Kevin's suggestion of the Panorama Trail. We combined it with the Four Mile Trail for a longer hike, not quite a loop, but nearly that with the bus through the valley. Stunning views of what I knew would be beautiful scenery, but it was amazingly beautiful. If you look at a map, Four Mile climbs steeply but has a ton of switchbacks with smooth footing so it is a very comfortable trail. Sentinal Dome in that same area looked like something I'd want to do if going back for another visit. There's a short hike from Glacier Point, but a longer one coming in from the access road. Panorama Trail made us feel like we were really traveling somewhere and the combination was a wonderful way to see the iconic features of the park from different perspectives.

blacknblue said:

Mount Tallac on the south shore of Tahoe is almost exactly 3500' vert and 10 miles roundtrip, IIRC. The summit is right around 10K and overlooks the lake - simply stunning. I believe you walk past scenic Fallen Leaf Lake en route, up Cathedral Bowl, and have great views into the Desolation Wilderness as well.

Check snow conditions first, of course. Cathedral Bowl might be tricky and/or dangerous in deep, soft snow.

Click to expand...

I absolutely love the Desolation, though it was the only place my wife and I ever spent an unplanned extra (had food for 2 nights, spent 3) night out due to late season deep snowpack, deep fast stream crossings, ponds/lakes that are temporary i.e. not on maps, and losing the trail for a while due to a critical junction buried 8 feet deep in snow. This was on June 21st. (we are still married 17 years later. )Mt Tallac and the other ~10K peaks right around there are great. So, check before you go. Enjoy!

NH Tramper said:

I'd say Donner Pass (best with a bunch of people), but that would be in poor taste I suppose.

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Hehehe. But seriously, Donner Pass is a nice hike around the lake, just short of the summit and Tahoe. I went up to Echo Lake as a kid to a Boy Scout camp on Upper Echo and then we hiked into Desolation Valley a short ways.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desolation_Wilderness

As already said, Yosemite in summer is a circus-like going to the mall at Christmas, but with better scenery. If you must, head for the high country. For something closer to San Fran, perhaps look at Henry Coe, nothing as scenic as Yosemite, but much closer.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_W._Coe_State_Park