Washburn Point

Washburn Point is a roadside overlook on Glacier Point Road, south of Glacier Point. Its more southerly angle puts Half Dome in a sharper, edge-on profile, with Illilouette Fall more visible than it is from Glacier Point. Yosemite Falls is not in this view.

This is a minutes-long pause, not a hike. A short stairway drops from the parking area to a lower viewing spot. There is one designated accessible parking space at the north end of the lot.

You can drive here when Glacier Point Road is open. It usually opens in late spring and closes after significant snowfall, often in October or November. Vehicles over 30 feet long and vehicles towing trailers cannot continue past Sentinel Dome parking area toward Washburn Point. Treat this as a view stop: snacks and the nearest bathrooms are at Glacier Point, less than a mile farther along the road. Check road conditions before setting out.

Vernal and Nevada Falls step down through Illilouette Gorge below Mount Broderick and Liberty Cap, with Half Dome rising beyond them. Look to the right for Illilouette Fall, Mount Starr-King and the Clark Range. In spring, snowmelt can make the falls run especially high, so they often become the liveliest part of the view.

The point is named for the Washburn brothers, early Yosemite concessioners in the hotel and transportation businesses. Their business interests financed the original Glacier Point Road in 1882, the route that made this overlook a roadside stop.