Driving to Yosemite at night???

[Buttzilla]

anybody here ever done that? or anything like that?

i was suppose to leave early morning friday but now i have to work. i'm thinking about leaving afterwards but my gf doesn't want me to cause she think's it's too dangerous of a trip alone and especially at night.

i'm certain that it's doable, i got stuck on highway 1 near monteray before and i survived the ride.

anyone?

 

[Linflas]

What exactly does she think makes it anymore dangerous than any other night drive? Unless I needed sleep I wouldn't hesitate to make a night drive.

 

[Ogg]

Its highly unlikely that youll crash into Half Dome!

 

[pcmodem]

I've driven to Yosemite more times than I can count.

What route are you planning to take, that is, from what city are you coming? There are multiple entrances.
-PCM

 

[kaizersose]

i did it, got into curry village at 11:00. wasnt a problem at all as long as you are a reasonably good driver.

it is actually kind of nice since no one else is on the road into the park. its a pretty long one-laner and you can go seriously slow if some geezer in front of you insists on taking every turn at 10mph.

 

[Buttzilla]

coming from the bay area. need to find the route info though. also, are the roads lit?

 

[NuclearNed]

It is a twisty narrow road that goes through some remote areas. I don't think the road itself is particularly dangerous, but other factors could make it so (i.e. you get sleepy, the guy in the oncoming lane gets sleepy, your car breaks down, etc.)

 

[Buttzilla]

i'll probably take the 101s > 152e > 99s > 140. we didnt' get reservations so we'll be staying outside the park. looking at the map i'm thinking "Big Oak Flat Entrance"map

 

[GoSharks]

big oak flat is off 120. you want arch rock off 140.

*tip*
if you get in late enough and leave late enough you can get around the $20 entrance fee .

 

[TuxDave]

Uh... isn't it gonna be REALLY REALLY dark? I heard there's not many street lights in Yosemite.

 

[eigen]

Coming from the west going through Tol.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Not Yosemite itself, but I've driven on many roads similar to it (I live a few hours north along the same mountain range). Just take it easy and follow the recommended speed on the corners. It's a heavily traveled road so there shouldn't be any suprizes.

 

[Ogg]

Originally posted by: GOSHARKS
big oak flat is off 120. you want arch rock off 140.

*tip*
if you get in late enough and leave late enough you can get around the $20 entrance fee .

thanks for stiffing the US Parks service. Theyre already strapped as it is.......:thumbsdown:

 

[RaiseUp]

oh shut up

 

[Buttzilla]

Originally posted by: Ogg

Originally posted by: GOSHARKS
big oak flat is off 120. you want arch rock off 140.

*tip*
if you get in late enough and leave late enough you can get around the $20 entrance fee .

thanks for stiffing the US Parks service. Theyre already strapped as it is.......:thumbsdown:

hehe, no need to worry about that cause i have a park card. just went kings canyon last week for a 3 day camp/hike. oh man, that place was nice! people were telling me that kings canyon/sequoa is nothing compared to yosemite either. so, i really want to go.

 

[NuclearNed]

Originally posted by: Buttzilla

Originally posted by: Ogg

Originally posted by: GOSHARKS
big oak flat is off 120. you want arch rock off 140.

*tip*
if you get in late enough and leave late enough you can get around the $20 entrance fee .

thanks for stiffing the US Parks service. Theyre already strapped as it is.......:thumbsdown:

hehe, no need to worry about that cause i have a park card. just went kings canyon last week for a 3 day camp/hike. oh man, that place was nice! people were telling me that kings canyon/sequoa is nothing compared to yosemite either. so, i really want to go.

King's Canyon/Sequoia has one great advantage over Yosemite: there aren't nearly as many visitors. Yosemite is spectacular, but you have to work hard to get out of the crowds. King's Canyon is also fairly similar to Yosemite.

 

[GoSharks]

Originally posted by: Buttzilla

Originally posted by: Ogg

Originally posted by: GOSHARKS
big oak flat is off 120. you want arch rock off 140.

*tip*
if you get in late enough and leave late enough you can get around the $20 entrance fee .

thanks for stiffing the US Parks service. Theyre already strapped as it is.......:thumbsdown:

hehe, no need to worry about that cause i have a park card. just went kings canyon last week for a 3 day camp/hike. oh man, that place was nice! people were telling me that kings canyon/sequoa is nothing compared to yosemite either. so, i really want to go.

haha yeah i have the park card too. .

 

[Leetman]

I live in Fresno and have driven up to Yosemite at night before a couple times. I actually prefer it because when driving up there during the day I sometimes get somewhat sick, while at night I oddly don't.

 

[pcmodem]

Howdy.

Big Oak Flat is up near Groveland. That's the Highway 120 route.

Yep, it's drivable at night.

If you take the Old Priest Grade rode, it'll cut about 15+ minutes off your driving time. It's at the back end of Lake Don Pedro.



Drive safe!
-PCM

 

[BuckNaked]

You will be fine... watch for deer though, I have seen a fair number get hit this year... We just had one hit here a few nights ago...

If you get the chance, rather than spend all your time in the valley, try and make it up to Toulumne Meadows and over to the east side... The hiking here is great! Not nearly as crowded either...

Dave

 

[GoSharks]

haha yeah i hate starting from the valley. hot and crowded. did yosemite falls w/pack last year and that is enough for me. i <3 tuolumne.

i've actually done a drive back from yosemite into the bay area starting at 11pm - after a dayhike up halfdome from little yosemite valley and then packing up camp and hauling out to glacier point all in one day. it was almost a 24 hour day including driving... =/. it was a great day though.

oh and watch for the smokies going through mariposa around midnight-1am /

 

[imported_Mike]

Just got back from a week in Toulumne Meadows, weather was nice(rained for only 20 mins the entire week). Sky was hazy b/c of the smoke....we never go down to the valley...too many people.

 

[conjur]

You miss a lot of nice scenery that way.'


<---- jealous nonetheless!

 

[Nebor]

Somewhat related story:

I was in Yellowstone for a few weeks 2 years ago during the summer. There was a black M5 there that was constantly tearing around the park @ 100+mph. Sweeeeet car.

 

[conjur]

Originally posted by: Nebor
Somewhat related story:

I was in Yellowstone for a few weeks 2 years ago during the summer. There was a black M5 there that was constantly tearing around the park @ 100+mph. Sweeeeet car.

Sweet car. Dumbass driver.