yosemite from lee vining

According to Mapquest it is 194.71 miles. If it were me I would take the fifth wheel to the west side of the park, check into an rv park, leave the fiver in the site and then see Yosemite. Call ahead to find one with an opening. Enroute you could check out first come first served campgrounds and maybe get lucky. I rechecked Mapquest and saw that the 194.71 mile figure was using SR 108 rather than the shorter SR 120. Sorry about that.

I just ran it on my maps program and it came back 89 miles. I've driven it several times and thought 190+ seemed way too excessive. Also says 2 hrs and 53 minutes.

Quite a pull up to Tioga Pass summit both east and west bound.

Depending on your agenda, leave the trailer in Bishop and drive on up to Yosemite. Great trip and you can easily check campgrounds from McGee Creek to Lee Vining.

Check out Mono Vista RV in Lee Vining. In my mind the distance was more like 65 miles and it's such a scenic drive in itself. We have done day trips from Lee Vining and it's very doable. Make sure to check out Whoa Nellie Deli (Mobile Gas Station) in Lee Vining. You won't regret it!

Yes, the Hwy 120 route is much shorter and closer to about 65 miles. I 2nd the motion of leaving the trailer in Lee Vining and then just trucking over for the day. While in Lee Vining, I recommend eating at the "Whoa Nellie's Deli" just off of Hwy 395 on Hwy 120 at the gas station.

Or, you can pull the trailer over the pass and check in at one of the rv parks that are outside of the Park (there's a 1000 trails park that will allow non members about 10 miles from the entrance on Hwy 108).

Ron

Ditto on the 65 miles, the RV park in Lee Vining, and the Whoa Nellie.
Enjoy your trip!

If you like to hike, don't miss the hiking in the Tuolumne Meadows area -- this was taken from the top of Lembert Dome:



Yes, Yosemite Valley is spectacular, but it also crowded and sometimes hot. The Tioga Pass area is really great, less crowded, much cooler, and much closer to Lee Vining.

By the way, you probably already know this, but it looks like it may snow tomorrow (Tuesday) -- not sure if Tioga Road will stay open.

Also, if you are going to be in the Eastern Sierra through the weekend, there is supposed to be a meteor shower from 10 pm Friday to 2 am Saturday -- and the weather is supposed to clear up, too!

We did it the other way stayed at Diamond O SP traveled up to Saddle Bag Lake at 10,000 then down to Lee Vining. The brakes were smoking on the way down, it is steep.

Check out glass creek campground. Its free. Its has large sites. And a camp host. It is about half way between June lake and lee veining. Made the trip to Yosemite many times for the day

Google Maps estimates 2 hr for those 60-70 miles.