Old Big Oak Flat Road

Dogs No Dogs

Features Birding · Fall Colors · Spring · Views · Wildflowers · Wildlife

This is can be pretty brutal on a warm day and sections of the old road are covered in talus, i.e. watch your step on the loose rock.

This trail is great to do when temperatures are a bit cooler, as it makes it more comfortable to complete the exposed beginning and end of the trail. It also is more enjoyable, in my opinion, to begin at the parking lot on HWY 120 near Foresta and head into the Yosemite Valley, finishing the trip down the old (partially destroyed by rockslide) road. Doing so allows you to soak in the views up valley, and they are a lot more rewarding than those offered by the descent into the old burned forested into Foresta.

Either way you go, the views of the surrounding mountains and forests are impressive.

Approaching and passing Cascade Creek is a pleasant respite of solace and of shade. Traffic through this section seems to be minimal and the seasonal creeks and towering pines of this middle section of the trail contrast well with the open vastness of the beginning and end.

The slope above Foresta is often covered Lupine and other various flowers in the spring.