Couple in 30's in love headed to Yosemite mid August. We want a little of everything. Driving from San Fran. First stop is at Wawona Hotel. Staying there 2 nights (Tues, Weds). Next is Ahwahnee Hotel for one night (Thurs). We want some photography spots, easy to moderate hikes, and maybe a day to just enjoy: swimming, rafting, horseback riding or picnic. Both in good shape. Any interesting places to view stars? We love food too. Any secret spots? We are sooooo excited to come visit! Looking for possible itineraries to help us. We head back to San Fran on Friday - no rush to get back

Do the trail up to the top of Half Dome. The views from there are beyond amazing. You won't be sorry.

That's hardly an "easy to moderate hike"!

You can "see the stars" from any location in Yosemite... like the meadow in front of Ahwanee is a nice place.

If you have an IPhone a great app for identifying stars/planets at night is Star Walk.

Another fun app is "Oh Ranger". It will help you find hikes and places of interest in the National Parks

Half dome not worth the trip for several reasons. Too crowded, too long, the view from Glacier Point (drive from the Wawona) is better. From Glacier Point take part of Panorama trail at least to panorama point, hard to find and dangerous, and the spectacular views of Nevada Falls and turn around when ready. I would stay till dark for the stars at Glacier point. The Ahwahnee experience should include breakfast and dinner in the restaurant, and favorite beverage on the verandah overlooking the meadow. Dinner is casual dressy. The Mist Trail to Vernal Falls is not to be missed and is the best part of the Mist Trail. (From the Ahwahnee} On the way to SF Hwy 49 to El Dorado and Poor Red's Bar er Bar-B-Q is a local must. The long wait at the bar with a Golden Cadillac or a few for the non driver, (no reservations) is part of the experience, on Friday get there early afternoon.

MEA CULPA - I wrote "Half Dome" but meant to write "Sentinal Dome" I never hiked to HD so have no idea of what it is like. The following comments apply to Sentinal Dome.

DW, DD and I hiked the trail to Sentinal Dome in '09. I was 68 at the time and DW 63. We are both not in the greatest shape and did not find it difficult. Here are some photos along the trail to Sentinal Dome and from the Dome itself:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/basings...7622771908188/

for us it was a moderate hike, DD in her mid 20's found it easy.

JC - We hiked Sentinal Dome in early October and SD was not crowded at all - quite the opposite, we saw no more than 10 people on the way there including an older couple that passed us and were the only other folks on the dome when we got there - I can't speak for other times of the year. Glacier Point, now that was crowded. As far as length, it took us a tad under two hours to reach the top of the dome from the trail head and about a quarter that time to get back. IMO the 360 degree views from SD were much better than the narrower view from GP particularly since one did not have to jostle through the crowd to get a good viewing spot.

Nolo contendere. There is a reason the Conservancy Web cam for the High Sierra is on Sentinel Dome. http://www.yosemiteconservancy.org/webcams/high-sierra. The only excuse for GP is parking for the Panoramic trail. And the easy drive down after dark.