jhm2jhm2

My wife and I are headed to Yosemite next Thurs-Sunday. We have reservations in Ahwanee dining room for Thursday night and are looking forward to that greatly!

My question is about lunches in the park... I know there are some snack stops to grab a sandwich/etc on or near the trails. Are there other options? If we want to pack a picnic lunch, can we buy the supplies in the park or should we get them before arriving? And is it OK to hike with lunch/food in our packs, or will the bears get us?

Also, any suggestions for dinner the second night?

Thanks!

travelbuff

I've done hiking up into the hills at Yosemite and I don't think I would recommend bringing food with you. There are bears there, we didn't see any, but DID hear growling and didn't wait around to find out what it was.
There are signs that anything you pack up you must bring back.

You can get sandwiches at several locations in the park so you shouldn't have to travel far. Also Afternoon Tea is served at the Ahwanee, which was quite nice. The dining room there is spectacular.

Have a great time.

enzian

Travelbuff, you can't be serious. All hikers in Yosemite carry food for lunch; bears are not a problem during the daytime. I've hiked several hundreds of miles there over the years, and have never even seen one on the trails---or anywhere outside of the valley parking lots and campgrounds (at night) for that matter.

jmh, there is a fairly well-stocked grocery store, as well as several other places, where you can buy food for a picnic lunch. You will be totally fine hiking with the food in your packs. And of course you must carry out whatever is left over, but why Travelbuff considers that a burden is beyond my understanding.

For your second night dinner, you might try the Mountain Room at the Lodge. We had a nice meal there last summer the night before our Half Dome hike. I was pleasantly surprised; it has improved since the days when I lived there. They do not take reservations, but you can check in and they will give you a buzzer. Even with a group the size of ours (5), in the height of August, the wait was only 30 minutes or so.

Barbara

I second the Mountain Room at the Lodge and they do indeed take reservations-at least they did last June. They do not, however, take reservations for all the tables, so you can just go, put your name on the list and wait. If you want to make a reservation, I would suggest making it now. The popular eating dinner times are busy.

J62

"I've done hiking up into the hills at Yosemite and I don't think I would recommend bringing food with you."

That advice goes against every rule of preparedness that any expert or amateur hiker should follow.

Heading out on a hike with NO food is just downright foolish.

You should carry with you whatever you will need for nourishment, plus extra in case of emergency (power bars, nuts, etc) if you are taking a serious hike.

As enzian stated there is a good market in Yosemite village at which you can pick up picnic supplies. They do advise against storing any food in coolers in cars (bears are smart) or in tent cabins so you may not want to bring stuff from home. If you are staying outside the park then it's handy to pick up food for the day before you arrive so you don't waste time finding the village store but can better head out and explore from the get go.

Have a great trip!

enzian

Not only do they advise against storing food in a cooler in your car, it's against regulations, and people who don't comply will be cited for it. How do they know? The bears will find it and break into the car. In the morning, the owners will find not only a trashed car with a broken window, but a citation on the windshield.

But it's still possible to keep your food in a small cooler. When you check in to your accomodations, you'll be advised how to keep your food. If at Curry Village, Housekeeping Camp, or a campground, there are bear lockers for each cabin or site that you must use. I believe you are allowed to keep food in your room if you are staying at Yosemite Lodge and the Ahwahnee, but check on that. Whatever you do, don't leave it in your car, even if you think it's well hidden.

And do not worry about hiking with food in your pack; it's just not a problem at all for dayhikers. Also, be sure to carry plenty of water with you. Have a great time in this beautiful place.

janisj

"They do advise against storing any food in coolers in cars . . . or in tent cabins"

To second what enzian says - ain't no "advise" involved! It is absolutely against the rules and a very serious mistake if you were to leave any food in your car or tent cabin.

And hiking w/ food is totally fine as already mentioned . . . .

MonicaRichards

When I was last in Yosemite, EVERY car that had ANY food into it was broken in to by bears. They peeled the camper shell off of a truck like it was a tin can, and wrecked a small compact to get ONE granola bar.

Ag3046

The bear warnings say that bears learn to associate grocery bags with food, so don't leave anything in grocery bags visible in your car. Best if there are no visible bags at all, like under a blanket if you don't have a trunk. And absolutely NO FOOD in your car. They can smell it. As MonicaRichards says, they will easily break into a car if they even think it has food.

J_Correa

We also hike and picnic, no worries about food in your pack - but don't leave it unattended or the squirrels will eat your lunch. I would never set out on any hike of more than a mile or so without food of some sort.

enzian

Good point, J_Correa. I have had "unattended" food grabbed by both squirrels and racoons in Yosemite campgrounds, while I stood 2 or 3 feet away. And then there was the marmot on top of Half Dome that stole my nephew's sandwich last summer.

Surfergirl

We go to Yosemite once a year. When we go up, it's a 6 hr drive and naturally you want to eat junk food on the way up. Remember that Bears can't see so well, but they can smell a kernal of popped corn sitting on the rear seat. We cover all seating areas and the floors with towels, and once we get up there, we carefully remove the towels from the car and shake the towels away from the car. That way, all popcorn, chips, etc. are out of the car.

I also recommend the Mountain Room, it's lovely. If you're staying at the Ahwahnee, take the shuttle bus to and from the Mountain Room and leave your car at the hotel. Unless, that is, your dinner finishes after 10 p.m., when the shuttles stop running. It's not a terribly long walk back, but it will be in the dark and probably a little cold.

There's a Deli at Degnan's in Yosemite Village that makes awesome sandwiches, as well as salads. You can also stock up on snacks and drinks there.