Mist Trail to Vernal Fall Footbridge - Yosemite National Park

At the eastern end of the Yosemite Valley, the Merced River drops down from Little Yosemite Valley by way of two scenic waterfalls, 594' Nevada Fall and 318' Vernal Fall. The Mist and John Muir Trails are coincident from the trail head in the Happy Isles area of Yosemite Valley to a point about 0.2 miles beyond the Vernal Fall Footbridge where they diverge before meeting again near the top of Nevada Falls. Both trails offer views of both falls as they climb into Little Yosemite Valley. The Mist Trail ends into the John Muir Trail above Nevada Fall, but the John Muir Trail continues on to Tuolumne Meadows before joining the Pacific Crest Trail and heading out of the park.

To reach the trail head, take the free shuttle to Happy Isles (shuttle stop #16). From the shuttle stop, follow the bus and hike 600 feet on Happy Isles Loop Road, crossing the Merced River in the process. After crossing the river, turn right onto the old service road and hike another 700 feet to the gaging station and former bridge location. This is the trail head according to the park service, but it is ¼ mile from the shuttle stop. At this point, the road walking is over and the paved trail begins to twist and climb.

Because we started late in the day, we only hiked as far as the Vernal Fall Footbridge before turning back. The park service states the distance as 0.8 miles one-way, but that is from the old trailhead and doesn't include the ¼ mile from the shuttle stop to the gaging station, so the total round-trip hiking distance is 2.1 miles. The trail climbs about 400 feet from the shuttle stop to the footbridge for an average gradient of 7%. We hiked the trail during our March 2018 visit to Yosemite National Park. We wore our MICROspikes® and had no issues with traction or stability. We saw many other hikers without traction devices slipping and sliding as they descended the trail. Note that the Merced River has carved a fairly narrow and deep canyon between Grizzly Peak and Panorama Cliff, so GPS devices can't track enough satellites to accurately show your position.

Merced River from the Happy Isles Bridge

Trail head on Happy Isles Loop Road

Merced River below Happy Isles

Glacier Point

Trail through a boulder field

NPS Trail head (¼ mile from shuttle stop)

Trail begins a steady climb

Trail side spring

Stonework creates a small pool and a larger one

Continuing the climb

Stone wall keeps hikers on the steep side-slope

Glacier Point

Glacier Point on the left, Yosemite Point in the center

Upper Yosemite Fall and Lost Arrow

Continuation of Glacier Point's granite wall toward Illilouette Gorge

Panorama Cliff

Confluence of Illilouette Creek and the Merced River

Merced River

Trees block view of Illilouette Gorge

These trail side stones have gathered a lot of moss

Water running under the ice on the trail

Another view of Panorama Cliff

Illilouette Gorge

Lack of shade has cleared this part of the trail

No handrails here

A pair of ravens stake their claim

Another view of Illilouette Gorge

Back in the shade and ice on the trail

One more look at Illilouette Gorge

Approaching the bridge over the Merced River

A very substantial footbridge

Merced River from the bridge

Merced River from the trail on the left bank

View downstream from the bridge

Obstructed view of Vernal Fall (318') 2300 feet upstream

Liberty Cap (7076') stands high above Vernal Fall

Entrance to Yosemite National Park requires an entry fee of $30 per passenger vehicle for a 7-day pass. The price increases to $35 per vehicle on June 1, 2018. Any of the America the Beautiful passes may be used instead.

The park website is https://www.nps.gov/yose.