Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Northern California → Yosemite → Mirror Lake

Location: Yosemite Valley, Yosemite National Park, California

Distance:  3.2 km (2 miles) roundtrip to the lake (8km or 5 miles if you make the loop around the lake)

Elevation Gain: 30 m (100 ft)

Time Required: 45 minutes

Red Tape/Notes: None.

What’s Nearby?: Sentinel Meadow, Upper Yosemite Falls, Lower Yosemite Falls, Mist Trail

It should be more heavily published that this place is actually Mirror Meadow (or Mirror Sand Field) as opposed to Mirror Lake for much of the year. And of course there is no mirror in the meadow/sand field. Your best bet for seeing an actual lake with reflections is in spring and early summer. I didn’t make it out  on our spring trip to Yosemite, and only visited it in the fall…which basically means I’ve never actually seen Mirror Lake. It was still pretty though, with a nice view of Mt Watkins and pretty granite cliffs around the creek. When there’s water, and the waters are calm, you can apparently see nice reflections of these cliffs, including reflections of Half Dome. Although you may be hard pressed to find calm waters, since this is also one of the most popular swimming holes in Yosemite.

Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Northern California → Yosemite → Mirror Lake