Yosemite National Park
Backpack the High Country
At over 8,600 feet in elevation, Tuolumne Meadows offers a break from the heat and crowds of the more popular areas of the park. We guarantee that anyone who walked every mile of Tuolumne trail would simply start over again given the chance, but assuming you're not able to make this a full-time job you'll want to hit a few highlights. One doozy is the 14-mile path to Cloud's Rest — this is undoubtedly among the most beautiful hikes in the world. The trail starts at Tenaya Lake and ends at the tip-top of a granite precipice, surrounded on three sides by wind and nothingness. The valley is seemingly miles below, and you'll feel as though you could reach out and touch Yosemite's most famous rocks, Half-Dome and El Capitan. Others to try: trips to Soda Springs, Parsons Lodge, or Elizabeth Lake are shorter and less strenuous; Dog Lake and Lembert Dome are short on mileage but long on effort.