A ranger at Yosemite told me to skip the Half Dome cables and take the JMT route instead, and I still owe him a thank you

Morgan Martinez · 2026-10-01T10:55:02.881531+00:00

Back in 2016 a ranger near Happy Isles pointed me toward the John Muir Trail detour instead of the famous cable climb, and I figured he just wanted to thin out the crowd. Turns out the route up past Nevada Fall and Little Yosemite is way less of a traffic jam, and I only saw 4 other hikers the whole stretch. Wondering if anyone else has gotten route tips from park staff that ended up being gold.

Vivisector

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A ranger at Yosemite told me to skip the Half Dome cables and take the JMT route instead, and I still owe him a thank you | Backpacking Routes - Vivisector