Everybody wants to visit Yosemite National Park at least once, but with so much attention given over to hiking Half Dome, or even scaling El Capitan without ropes, you may be wondering if the whole experience might be a little beyond your capabilities? The answer, you’ll be glad to hear, is a resounding no. Yosemite features 750 miles of hiking trails and they range from short, paved, wheelchair accessible paths to epic wilderness treks. Having guided several yoga and hiking retreats here, I’ve found hikes that worked for me after a knee surgery and accommodated many novice walkers, a heavily pregnant hiker, and even my 70-year-old mother.
If you’re looking to spend less time huffing and puffing up the trail and more time taking a nature bath in this magnificent park, these eight hikes are my top picks to get you started. Not only do they entail largely flat and sometimes paved trails, they still deliver some of the most dazzling views in the park. You’ll be able to tackle these hikes in the summertime wearing lighter hiking shoes or even trail running shoes, so you can save those hiking boots for the tougher hikes, pack yourself a nice lunch and enjoy an easy day in nature’s embrace.
