Picnic area · Yosemite National Park
A practical riverside meal stop on Wawona Road.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
“You're coming up on Wawona Campground and the nearby day-use picnic area. For a meal break, use the separate picnic area, with tables and grills beside the South Fork Merced River.”
Yosemite Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Yosemite National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Yosemite audio tourRecorded for this place
Wawona Campground and Picnic Area“You're coming up on Wawona Campground and the nearby day-use picnic area. For a meal break, use the separate picnic area, with tables and grills beside the South Fork Merced River.”
Plays as you drive up to Wawona Picnic Area in the Parkwolf Yosemite Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“We just drove through Yosemite and it made our trip listening to this app as we drove through. Like having a tour guide in the car with you.”
Guide
Wawona Picnic Area is a day-use picnic spot on Wawona Road, near the campground about a mile north of Wawona. Tables and grills sit beside the South Fork of the Merced River among the trees. If you’re already in this part of Yosemite, use it for a simple meal break rather than adding it as a separate outing.
Tables are first-come, first-served, with no reservations. The site is listed as open year-round; Yosemite’s picnic areas are day-use, generally from dawn to dusk. Park picnic guidance says these sites don’t have potable water, so bring your own.
Expect picnic tables, grills and restrooms. Wawona has accessible tables with extended tops, accessible grills and accessible restrooms. Yosemite picnic-area guidance lists vault toilets, trash and recycling at picnic areas.
Wildlife
732 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,747 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
332 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
11 sightingsPeregrine FalconMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
276 sightingsPikaMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
677 sightingsYellow-bellied MarmotMost seen around 8 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Yosemite. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyWawona Meadow Loop Trail3.5 mi · 2.5 hr · 0.9 mi awayMostly flat meadow loop with leashed pets and bicycles allowed
ChallengingWawona to Mariposa Grove Trail4.9 mi · 3.5 hr · 0.9 mi awayAn uphill forest connector from Wawona toward Mariposa Grove.
ChallengingAlder Creek Falls Trail12 mi · 8 hr · 1 mi awayA full-day pine-forest climb to a 100-foot cascade.
ChallengingChilnualna Falls Trail8.2 mi · 6 hr · 2 mi awayFive granite cascades reward a long, steep climb above Wawona.
ChallengingBuena Vista Range Loop26.7 mi · 18 hr · 2 mi awayTwo lakes and a granite crest, reached by a serious backcountry loop.ChallengingCrescent Lake Trail19.2 mi · 13.5 hr · 2 mi awayA long climb to a high lake beyond Chilnualna's tiered falls.
EasyWawona Swinging Bridge Trail0.6 mi · 30 min · 2.3 mi awayA short, mostly flat walk to a bridge that really swings.
ModerateWashburn Trail4 mi · 2 hr · 3.3 mi awayA wooded alternative to the shuttle, with 500 feet of climbing.
Campground · 0.2 mi awayWawona CampgroundA riverfront base near Mariposa Grove.
Gas station · 0.8 mi awayWawona Store and Gas StationA handy stop for fuel and camp basics.
Sight · 0.9 mi awayYosemite History CenterA covered bridge, old wagons and stories from the park’s working past.
Visitor center · 0.9 mi awayWawona Visitor Center at Hill's StudioAn artist's Yosemite studio turned into a useful park stop.
Sight · 0.9 mi awayWawona HotelAn 1879 Victorian hotel with roots in an 1856 trail-side cabin.
Campground · 1 mi awayWawona Horse CampA small stock camp beside the South Fork Merced River.
Sight · 2.6 mi awayWawona Swinging BridgeA swaying bridge over granite boulders and a popular swimming holeSight · 3.2 mi awayChilnualna FallsFive granite cascades reward the climb above Wawona.Parkwolf’s Yosemite ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
