Artist Point

Artist Point sits on the old stagecoach road above Yosemite Valley, delivering nearly the same sweep of El Capitan, Half Dome, and Bridalveil Fall as the famous Tunnel View pullout, without the parking lot crowd. It's a short, moderate climb that rewards you with a quiet ledge to take in the whole valley.

Trail Details

• Distance: About 2 miles round trip
• Elevation gain: Roughly 500 feet
• Difficulty: Moderate — short but with steady climbing
• Trailhead: Tunnel View parking lot, at the east end of the Wawona Tunnel on Wawona Road (Highway 41)

The Route

From Tunnel View, the trail climbs switchbacks on the Pohono Trail for about a half mile before you turn off onto the old stagecoach road — the original wagon route into the valley before the tunnel was built. From there it's a gradual descent to a clearing at Artist Point, where the trees open up to the same panorama early landscape painters once set up their easels to capture: El Capitan on one side, Bridalveil Fall and Cathedral Rocks on the other, and Half Dome anchoring the far end of the valley.

Know Before You Go

Expect some poison oak along the lower half of the trail and mosquitoes in the shaded sections, especially in early summer — dress and prepare accordingly. There's no water, restroom, or shade structure at the overlook itself, so treat this as a self-contained side trip rather than a stop with amenities.