The best camping near Upper Yosemite Falls

Discover the most magical spots to pitch your tent or park your rig on your next Upper Yosemite Falls adventure.

Yosemite Falls Trail: A Hike to North America's Tallest Waterfall.  

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Community favorites near Upper Yosemite Falls

Top-rated campgrounds reviewed by the Hipcamp community.

Top-rated campgrounds near Upper Yosemite Falls

96%
(888)

Diamond Gulch

43 sites · Lodging, RVs, Tents824 acres · Groveland, CA
CLOSE TO YOSEMITE! Explore the mines and hang out on our Groveland, California ranch! We are 35 minutes to the main gate of Yosemite National Park. A great place to stay just outside of the park. We have 824 acres on a beautiful cattle ranch with two small ponds. On our property, you'll find frogs, turtles, oak trees, pine trees and stunning views of Yosemite. We have several campsites to choose from including RV camping, tent camping, and a glamping tent. Pets are welcome. Campfires are permitted as long as there is no fire ban. Potable water and toilet are available onsite. There's a golf course less than a mile away. We are also very close to town. In just a few minutes, you can drive to our local grocery store and pizza parlour. We are a 10-minute drive to Pine Mountain Lake. Beautiful Pine Mountain Lake offers golfing, dining, horseback riding, water sports and an airport. When you come to the ranch it feels like you are hundreds of miles away from civilization, but still close to everything you need. It is incredibly peaceful! This is a great place for someone who wants to escape city life and enjoy the tranquillity of nature. Much of the ranch is open wilderness for you to explore, and it's not uncommon to see deer, frogs, turtles, quail, turkeys, or other countless species of birds. Diamond Gulch Camp is the perfect place to relax if you’re a photographer, artist, family or a group of friends looking for a place to camp near Yosemite. A small portion of the property was used as a gold mine years ago, and you may find remnants of old home sites if you go exploring. We're not far from Wards Ferry Road, Groveland, Lake Don Pedro and other interesting places.
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$36
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98%
(205)

Musick Creek Falls

4 sites · RVs, Tents40 acres · Shaver Lake, CA
Musick Creek Falls is 40 acres and lies just south of Shaver Lake. At an elevation of, 4800 feet (1.46 km). The land is in a green and lush state of regrowth following the Creek Fire four years ago. Exhibiting novel and intriguing wildflowers such as Sierra Manzanita, sweet peas, Indian paintbrush, and cedars. The terrain is natural, beautiful, and rugged. This property boasts three exquisite cascading waterfalls, hiking trails, rock climbing, mountain biking, and stargazing opportunities. With proximity to Shaver Lake and China Peak Ski Resort, you are just minutes from any outdoor activity imaginable. Including, but not limited to, hiking, water and snow skiing, fishing, boating, stargazing, and sooo much more. The road into the property, although being maintained by us and the community, is still a dirt and gravel road. There are a few potholes and water bars. If you've rented a new Lamborghini, you should probably park on the asphalt, or use the Helicopter pad. The spigot provides excellent spring water. The water is flown in daily, condensed against Musick Mountain and filtered through acres of underground granite aquifers, where the minerals are added, raising the PH to around 9. The high PH helps rid the body of pollutants is essential to the whole Musick Creek experience. We want you to leave here healthier and happier than when you arrived. There is trash and a composting outhouse on site. My wife and I stay here on site as long as the dog will allow it. We out heaping amounts of privacy or hospitality as we know how to read the room. Please explore everywhere. Be sure to check out all three waterfalls and Shaver Lake. Don't stay gone too long, though, as just about every night, there is an unforgettable sunset and the sounds and smells of the Sierra Nevada. The experience is supernatural. There is powerful medicine here, and it is undeniable. The weather is very mild most of the year, where a sweatshirt is perfect most nights and not too hot during the day We have kayaks available for use free of charge. Musick Creek Falls offers an affordable option compared to campgrounds and cabins in the area, which are often booked up and very expensive. Most cell phones have good reception throughout the property. We also have spare tents, camping gear, blankets, etc. if you forget something. Musick Creek borders on a Nature Conservancy, The Musick Creek Confluence. Since nearly all proceeds from your support go to the preservation of the area and its ecosystem, It is crucial that we respect our downstream neighbors. Unfortunately, there was an incident where a large family had trash blowing downstream. I know that this is not the norm for Hipcampers. As we are the most respectful and best looking of all the camping crowd. Though some are better at the leave no trace policy than others. It is critical that we deposit all trash into the receptacle. There are garbage bins for your use next to the shipping container, and one can be put at your site upon request. Sasquatch has been known to rip the limbs clean out of the sockets of campers he/she/it has suspected of littering. I scolded the squatch one year bravely, I mustard up the courage to look him is his glowing eyes and demand he return those arms immediatly but when he/she/it tried handing back the arms to the campers... well Im sure you can see the problem there. Please be courteous to our neighbors, as the golden rule is the law of the land. We appreciate your support more than you know, and we are thrilled to share this amazing place with our Hipcamp community. Please be careful during your stay. Rocks can be slick in the water, and when the moon is small, it is very dark. Some nights can be cold, and there are timber rattlers. Timber rattlers get huge and are green. Now if you've ever seen a pissed off rattlesnake coiled up and ready to strike, these are not them. They are not responsible for any bites dog or human year in and year out. I steped on a big one at night and it looked at me like it could not believe how rude and clumbsy I was to the point I took my hat off and apologized red cheeked and ashamed Now The Golden Bears or these new hybrid species that are caused from big bears having to migrate south due to environmentalism and bigger bears are mating with smaller bears making new species They will eat your skin first while the rest of you watches! Lol Im so only totally mostly kidding Please be advised that in the winter months of December through April, there will be no host on site, and access will be limited as weather permits. For more info, visit https://musickcreekfalls.com. I just have to add, for anybody still reading, that Hipcampers are truly an amazing group of people. Maybe it's just that I get to meet you when you're on Vacation and down for anything, but I have not met a single Hipcamper I didn't like, which is incredible as I live out in the wilderness because I don't like people. You all have given me a renewed sense of community, and I am grateful for you all. There is absoloutly nothing I wouldnt do for you, and while you are my guests you are under mine and the forest protection. Protection from bordom , cold, hunger ,danger , mechanical mishap and Dick Cheney ,If you are friends of the falls, then you are my family. What's mine is yours, and the Falls is ours. The responsibility of preserving this place and this planet belongs to all of us as well. Thank you for your support, and thank you for being you, exactly as you are.
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$60
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97%
(576)

Wondernut Farm

4 sites · Lodging37 acres · Big Oak Flat, CA
Wondernut Farm is an upstart, entirely off grid, working farm-stead being built from the ground up. We breed milking goats and sheep, heritage pigs, and are in the process of converting to a grade A dairy and creamery! We use organic practices, management intensive rotational grazing, and dryland pasture management. We sell our animals locally so that others can have their own milking and meat animals. Our 110 year old hay barn and the roof of the former lumber mill were all we had to work with in getting off the ground. Being first and foremost a functional farm, we can't help but offer a somewhat warts-and-all look into everything it takes to be working to our goals. Our hearts are, and always will be, educational and local community focused, and we work closely with farmers and friends alike in better understanding our innovative animal husbandry, power, pasture and water systems. Whenever we have time, we'll afford the same time and opportunities to interested hip-campers. Our location is stunning and historic, and the beauty of the wild, natural landscape is powerful, yet offers easy access to both Yosemite Valley and the San Francisco Bay area. The area features excellent road and mountain biking in the immediate vicinity, vast access to hiking and backpacking trails, a huge variety of rock climbing in the area, the best whitewater rafting in California on the Tuolumne River, with some tasty places to eat or drink coffee in the nearby town of Groveland, just 10 minutes away. Accommodations at the farm are certainly rustic, and private but not secluded, with occasionally heavily project-exploded shared kitchen and living space, showers, and airy flush toilets. Do be advised that animals are pooping, hammers are hammering, sometimes we need to look into a health or animal injury related issue. Sometimes there is blood in an animal birth or slaughter, and our working guardian dogs have been known to be noisy some nights. Water and electricity are both very limited (though we reuse all our water), waste must be carefully sorted into a number of different categories, and there is always evidence of ump-teen projects unfolding at once. The most difficult condition during much of the summer are nuisance flies, which are always gone at night. We have almost no mosquitoes or ticks. Depending on the exact situation and time of year, guests may have the opportunities to snuggle with baby animals and run our herd to or from pasture, and maybe even get their hands dirty picking veggies in the garden.
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$102
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97%
(189)

Red Tail Ranch at Yosemite

9 sites · RVs, Tents90 acres · Groveland, CA
Only 25 minutes from Yosemite's entrance gate, come stay at stunning Red Tail Ranch and avoid the crowds of the big campgrounds. With fast wifi, abundant hot water for showers, clean/flush toilets and inside space for cooking with a commercial sink for dishes, all the necessities for a comfortable stay are on site. Use Red Tail Ranch as an ideal launching off point for Yosemite or stay on the property and enjoy all that it has to offer. Welcome to Red Tail Ranch, a beautiful 90 acre property in the Sierra Nevada foothills. Among the oak woodlands, meadows and coniferous forest, there are numerous trails to explore the property and direct riding access to a developed mountain biking area nearby. Great birding, botanizing and wildlife watching opportunities abound. We have RV sites with hookups, a four site drive-in campground and two walk-in campsites- all with clean, flush toilet bathrooms, hot outdoor showers, indoor camp kitchen and gathering space. Whether your pitching a tent, parking a campervan or rv, there are opportunities for everyone. We are 10 minutes from the small town of Groveland with a market and restaurants and just down the road from the put in for rafting on the Tuolumne river. Our pricing is a little higher than other places nearby and this is due to the property's great locations, incredible beauty, and all of the amenities added for a great experience. If wanting more information about Yosemite or the surroundings, host Robb Hirsch is a biologist and professional nature photographer with 25 years of experience in the area. He also is connected with all the local guides for any outdoor adventure referrals. Concerned about getting into Yosemite with the new summer reservation requirements? We know all the details, including how to navigate and get through or around the system. Stay with us and we will show you how to access the park with or without reservations.
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$59.50
 / night
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(46)

Lillaskog A-Frames Near Yosemite

5 sites · Lodging45 acres · Colfax Springs, CA
Welcome to our A-Frame Nolla Cabins at the doorstep to Yosemite! Lillaskog, meaning "Little Forest" in Swedish, is a large property tucked away overlooking Stanislaus National Forest. Our property includes a lodge where we host families and groups of friends. Separate from the lodge, in a different part of our property, we are excited to now offer these A-Frame cabins! Our property is conveniently located off Highway 120 and 15 minutes outside of the entrance to Yosemite National Park. While amenities such as the town of Groveland, restaurants, and gas stations are nearby (15 minutes away), you will truly feel like you are off the beaten path at this campsite. Featuring our A-Frame cabins in partnership with Nolla from Finland, sleep on a comfy mattress on a bed looking out through a floor-to-ceiling window where you may see deer grazing nearby, cedar and pine trees, and big sky with stars at night. Each cabin has a picnic table outside, a Yeti cooler of water, as well as clean composting toilets. The cabin has a solar battery, enough to charge your devices and plug in a fan or light. Hot showers are available across the road at our sister property! Please be sure to check the Yosemite website for details on Park Reservations ahead of time if you plan to go Yosemite!
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$157.50
 / night
98%
(837)

Yosemite Colfax Spring

11 sites · RVs, Tents20 acres · Groveland, CA
Welcome to Yosemite Colfax Spring! Home to a basecamp for river rafting trips during the summertime, we are located 15 minutes driving distance to the entrance to Yosemite National Park. If you are staying with us between May - September and want to come rafting, ask us about our river trips! Our camp sits on a ridge with views down into the Tuolumne River Canyon. The Tuolumne River begins at 13,000 feet of elevation in the High Country of Tuolumne Meadows and provides drinking water for over 2.7 million people in San Francisco. With cedar and pine trees, manzanita bushes, and wildflowers in the spring, enjoy the Sierras' flora and fauna. Our family has been operating our river rafting company for over 50 years, the last 11 of those years being here at Colfax Spring. Conveniently located off Highway 120, we are in close proximity to swimming holes, hikes, and more. Enjoy the privacy of our campsite and getting world-class views to yourself, with all of the amenities (flushing toilets, wi-fi, showers.) Make sure to check the Yosemite National Park website for information about reservations to visit the park!
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$81
 / night
91%
(17)

Wildhaven Yosemite Glamping

39 sites · Lodging36 acres · Mariposa, CA
Wildhaven Yosemite offers glamping tents and cabins on a beautiful property with mountain views in Mariposa, CA, just outside Yosemite National Park. Our glamping experience provides the comfort, cleanliness, and customer service of a hotel while keeping everything you love about a night outdoors in nature. Our extra-large, safari-style tents feature comfortable beds with linens, electricity, heaters, and all the furnishings needed for a memorable night outdoors. Looking for a little more structure in your night outdoors? Our larger glamping cabins provide a kitchenette, bathroom & shower, AC and heating, improved sound insulation, upgraded views, large windows, and a private patio to get you the fresh air you need. Your stay includes more than just a comfortable place to sleep. Guests are treated to hiking trails, communal spaces to socialize, trip planning help, Wi-Fi, and on-site activities such as yoga, wine tasting, and live music (spring through fall). The 36-acre hillside property is the star attraction, providing sweeping views towards the snow-capped Sierra Nevadas, down onto scenic Mariposa, and across miles of rolling hills.
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$119
 / night
100%
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Willow Creek Camp North

4 sites · Tents160 acres · North Fork, CA
IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ALL WHEEL DRIVE OR 4x4 Do not read any further this camp ground is not accessible. Campsites are located on the creek. With 160 acres to explore you can hike along the trails we have made, which are along the creek and on the hills above. We have built composting out houses and wood picnic tables at both sites. The cleared area is approx 25 feet wide by 75 feet long. Manzanita lake is 10 min away and Bass Lake is a 20 min drive. There are a few restaurants there as well. In North Fork proper there is Pizza Factory and North Fork BBQ. During winter months we will supply you with wood. 10.00 per day, cash only. PLEASE BRING TOILET PAPER FIRE SEASON IS JUNE TO NOVEMBER. We allow you to bring a camp stove and a portable propane fire pit. 50.00 charge for Check in after Sundown Trash must be taken with you when you vacate the premises. Please bring heavy duty trash bags We do not have trash cans. We will charge 50.00 which is the fee at the dump. Also dogs are allowed.
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$60
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Gold Wall Ranch & Vineyard

6 sites · Lodging, Tents120 acres · Jamestown, CA
Our property is located above the famous 'Gold Wall' rock climbing area, overlooking Lake Melones. Enjoy the great 360* views of the Sierras and foothills from this 120 acre ranch property. We own a small wine vineyard that offers glamping at its finest. The perfect place to spend one or two nights before your big trip to Yosemite National Park. Our property is NOT recommended for children under 12 yrs old, as we have dangerous cliffs that are straight drop offs. Choose to stay in 1 of our 4 cabins or just pitch a tent and camp under the stars {2 sites available}. The ranch offers fresh Mountain drinking water, with nice shady lawns and Oak trees for shade during the warm Summer weather. Dogs are allowed (2 max) at campsites but NO DOGS in the cabins. We are NOT RESPONSABLE for your animals...they must be on a leash at ALL Times. We have community outdoor areas to enjoy, including picnic tables, a fire pit and a communinal cooking gazebo area equip with BBQ and water. The "Gold Wall" is known for mountain climbing so enjoy the view from above, we offer easy hiking trails, horse shoes, and even mini golf on the "Dragon's Teeth" 6-hole . Looking to relax and rejuvinate your Spirit, book a massage with Michele, a licensed massage therapist, or hang out at the Hawks Lair wine bar on the cliffs edge, overlooking the Gold Wall and Lake Melones. Enjoy the sunset and take in the beauty of the night sky.
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$60
 / night

The best camping near Upper Yosemite Falls guide

Overview

About

Upper Yosemite Falls is one of the most breathetaking sites to see during your visit to Yosemite Valley. 2,400 ft above the valley floor the water begins it's freefall and by the time the water reaches the rocks below it has become a pleasant cooling mist that is sure to raise the spirits of any hiker. While the larger Upper Falls are visible from a footbridge near the easily accessible Lower Falls it is well worth it to take the 7 mile round-trip to the top. Once you emerge onto the overlook Yosemite Valley presents itself with stunning views of Half Dome and Sentinel Rock.

When to go

The best time to visit Upper Yosemite Falls is in the spring, when the water flow is at its peak, offering a truly stunning experience. Summer brings hot, dry conditions, while winter can present icy trails. To avoid disappointment, check the Yosemite Falls webcam for current views before planning your trip.

Know before you go

  • Start your hike early to avoid the mid-day heat, especially during summer months.
  • Carry at least 4 quarts of water as there are no drinking water facilities along the trail.
  • Wear sturdy hiking boots to navigate the rocky and sometimes slippery terrain.
  • Stay on the trail to protect the environment and for your safety, as there are steep drop-offs.
  • Check for seasonal trail conditions and closures before your visit.

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