Glacier Point->Illilouette questions

[Patrick.W]

My wife and I received our permit to head down into the Illilouette drainage.

The plan is to park in the valley, take the shuttle to glacier point and hike down into the drainage.

We plan on camping down near the creek the first night. It is my understanding that we have to hike about 3.5 miles off of glacier point before we can camp near the creek.

Will we have any trouble finding established fire rings in the area?

We will spend our second night in Little Yosemite Valley, then hike down into the valley the following morning to Happy Isles.

How should we head towards little yosemite valley on our second day?

Should we backtrack to the beginning of the Panorama trail, then to the JMT up towards LYV?

or should we take the trail that passes roughly infront of Mount Starr King up towards the "end" of the panorama trail, and join the JMT to LYV?

Can anyone point me to an online resource that lists these trail names for the wilderness area? my topo 4 program does not list trailnames other than the main valley trails.

Sorry for the long post! I appreciate any help!
Pat

[KC]

You'll find plenty of camping in the Illilouette Drainage, some spots with fire rings. There's a great spot near a a small 10-15 foot waterfall a little less than half way to Lower Merced Pass Lake. If you camp there, you can backtrack part of the way to hit the connecting trail that passes under Mt. Starr King and hits the Panorama Trail.

Jeffrey P. Schaffer's book on Yosemite trails is the one I use mostly. There are others that are good as well. You may want to consult some of them (and the maps they contain) for trail information.

[Patrick.W]

KC, The trail you are refering to puts me at the "end" of the Panorama trail closer to Nevada falls Correct?

Are the views walking this way worth skipping the entire panorama trail?

[KC]

Are the views walking this way worth skipping the entire panorama trail?

You are going to have great views the moment you leave GP. And, you're going to have a great time in the Illilouette drainage. My guess is whatever way you take, you're not going to feel ripped off.

I camped near that waterfall I talked about above in August two years ago. If you get there, it'll be even better now because of all the snow melt. The sites nearby are real nice too.



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[centurycyclist]

the panorama trail is named PANORAMA for a reason....worth seeing.

[bill-e-g]

You'll want to at least check out the "overlook" of Ill Falls.

The only trail I would rate lower is the lower connector trail between the
Buena Vista and the trail NE towards LYV (doesn't have a name).
The higher trail which kinda parallels Starr King I REALLY like.

Have fun. (it won't matter where u go... it's all great)