Parking
Use the unpaved Ten Lakes Trailhead lot on the north side of Tioga Road. Another lot is across the road at the Yosemite Creek trailhead, with picnic-area parking nearby; the small lots can fill.
Overview
About Grant Lakes via Ten Lakes Trail
Why go
- A high granite pass and the first Grant Lake make a rewarding full-day route.
- A short optional plateau walk adds wide views into the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne.
Heads up
- The long return includes climbing back over the pass.
- Cairns across open granite can be difficult to follow.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Yosemite map
Full mapElevation7,520–9,577 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
4 active Yosemite alerts
- ClosureDome Fire closes Glacier Point Road and trailsGlacier Point Road is temporarily closed because Dome Fire smoke reduces visibility and to allow firefighting operations; some trails south of the road are also closed.Official details
- CautionMist Trail access limited during October repairsThe Mist Trail between its John Muir Trail junction above the Vernal Fall footbridge and the top of Vernal Fall has limited access through October for repair work.Official details
“Ten Lakes Trailhead is coming up, with Yosemite Creek Picnic Area nearby. For a short break, I'd choose the creekside tables under the pines. You're beside the stream that feeds Yosemite Falls farther downstream.”
Yosemite Tour Guide
Yosemite, narrated.
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 trailhead
Yosemite Creek Picnic Area and Ten Lakes0:00 / 0:30
“Ten Lakes Trailhead is coming up, with Yosemite Creek Picnic Area nearby. For a short break, I'd choose the creekside tables under the pines. You're beside the stream that feeds Yosemite Falls farther downstream.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Yosemite Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Mapping a Vertical Wall
- Lakes Before the Trout
- Why Summer Clouds Build Up
- Yosemite Creek Campground
- 125 audio storiesacross Yosemite’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Black Bear, Peregrine Falcon, Mule Deer, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 141 trails, 99 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“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.”
Trail guide
Hiking Grant Lakes via Ten Lakes Trail
A full-day lake hikeGrant Lakes via Ten Lakes Trail is a 12-mile out-and-back from the Ten Lakes Trailhead to the…
Grant Lakes via Ten Lakes Trail is a 12-mile out-and-back from the Ten Lakes Trailhead to the first Grant Lake, crossing Ten Lakes Pass. The route climbs through conifers and over granite, crosses an unbridged Yosemite Creek tributary, then follows a roughly one-mile spur down to the lake. Allow about eight hours; this is a full-day hike for a high-country lake, not a quick detour.
The distance is round trip to the first Grant Lake. The second Grant Lake and the Ten Lakes Basin route are farther choices and are not included in the mapped hike.
The long climbThe first four-plus miles climb gradually through forest.
The first four-plus miles climb gradually through forest. About a mile from the trailhead, the tread crosses a broad granite stretch; cairns mark where it continues, but they can be easy to miss. After a large meadow, switchbacks make the short, steep climb to the Ten Lakes Pass plateau.
Take the Grant Lakes forkThe Grant Lakes branch leaves from the south end of the plateau and drops about a mile to the…
The Grant Lakes branch leaves from the south end of the plateau and drops about a mile to the first lake. The route stored here turns around at that lake and returns along the same corridor. If you have energy left, a short walk north across the plateau opens views into the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne; that detour adds distance and is not included in the 12 miles.
At the lakeThe first Grant Lake sits beneath pale granite walls, with pines along the shore and a small…
The first Grant Lake sits beneath pale granite walls, with pines along the shore and a small tree-covered island in the water. Include the island and wall in a view from shore to show the lake's high, bare setting.
Access and footingThe Ten Lakes Trailhead is on the north side of Tioga Road.
The Ten Lakes Trailhead is on the north side of Tioga Road. The road usually opens sometime in May or June and closes in October or November, depending on snow. Parking and services are limited; animal-safe food lockers are at the trailhead, but bring the food and water you need. Pets and bicycles are not allowed on hiking trails. The tributary crossing is unbridged and can be high, cold and swift early in the season. Leave enough daylight to follow the cairned granite section on the return.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Yosemite
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.
