Over the July 4th weekend, I just Hiked from the Old Big Oak Road Trailhead on 120 to El Capitan (you could also start from Tamarack Flat. I ended up having to stop about 6 miles into the hike (had hoped to get to the top of El Cap on the first day-10 miles). The first part of that trail IS very open and you will get hot this time of year. That and I got a late start (9:30am) probably caused it to take longer than I planned.
View wise, there are some nice things to see, but it's not as spectacular as other parts of Yosemite. I did go off trail a bit to find a GREAT view of Turtleback Dome and the Merced Gorge for my first night's camp, so it wasn't a huge letdown.
I did have to spend more time on El Cap than planned (a full afternoon and night) to enjoy the next night's sunset and sunrise from the top of El Capitan. (I'd have been able to go all the way to Eagle Peak or past Yosemite Falls if I hadn't wanted to camp at the top of El Capitan as a key goal of this trek).
The next day was enjoying Eagle Peak (it's VERY worth the detour from the trail). The top of Yosemite Falls is a little crowded with tourists, but great views and a view of the falls from the very top.
I had planned to go all the way to North Dome and exit down Snow Creek, but the extra night getting to El Cap kind of sapped my strength. I did go beyond Yosemite Point a little way and found a fabulous area above Yosemite Point where you can camp and see the sunset and sunrise over Half Dome and the Clark Range. Spectacular.
I decided to go down the Yosemite Falls trail instead of going to North Dome.
The first time I did this hike, I came up Yosemite Falls trail, got hit with a big hail storm at the top of the falls
(had to hike through the hail to Eagle Peak Meadows to find a campsite to hide from the hail for the rest of the day). The next day was Eagle Peak and over to El Cap, then return and over to North Dome. Exit via Snow Creak. That's one of the reasons I decided not to continue to North Dome this time, since I'd done it already once.
So if you want to try going up Yosemite Falls trail, over to El Cap, then backtracking to Yosemite Point and North Dome and exiting via Snow Creek, that's also possible. A little more scenic for the whole trek. Although it's steeper going up (but the start of the trail from the Old Big Oak Road TH is a bit steep as well). You could start from Snow Creek as well. Little easier to get back to your car this way (you cna use the valley shuttles-I had to hitch back to mine).
As for campsites, the top of El Capitan, near Eagle Peak, above Yosemite Point (you aren't supposed to camp at the top of the falls or at Yosemite Point itself), and near the top of North Dome are spectacular camping spots. All very recommended.
Here's some pictures:
https://flic.kr/s/aHskZCcvhP(oops... didn't see your last post before mine. Guess it's too late now...)