Paddling in Yosemite National Park

Yosemite sits in the Sierra Nevada at elevations that shape everything about its water. Snowmelt drives the rivers hard in spring, drops them to a trickle by late summer, and closes the high country entirely in winter.

The paddling inside the park is quiet by whitewater standards — the big technical water on the Merced and Tuolumne runs outside the boundaries — but what's here is worth knowing. The Merced River through Yosemite Valley is the park's main paddling corridor.

The classic run puts in at Stoneman Bridge near Curry Village and takes out at Sentinel Beach Picnic Area, roughly 2. 5 miles of Class I water at 2 feet per mile average gradient. The views — Half Dome, El Capitan, Yosemite Falls — are the point.

Rafts, kayaks, and SUPs are all permitted; no motors. The section opens each day when the gage height at Pohono Bridge reads below 7 feet at 8 a. m.

PFD rules are tied to that same gage: above 4 feet, every person on the water must be wearing one; at 4 feet or below, one must be immediately available per occupant, and anyone under 13 wears it regardless.

Raft rentals have historically been available in June and July, but availability tracks water level, not the calendar. Call ahead.

The park does not currently require a permit for private boaters on the Valley recreational section, though American Whitewater notes the park may implement one if use and impacts warrant it.

Tenaya Lake, up on Tioga Pass Road in the high country, is the other option. It's an alpine lake ringed by granite — Mt. Hoffman, Tenaya Peak, Lembert Dome — and open to kayaks and SUPs.

Tioga Road closes in winter and typically doesn't reopen until late spring, so the window here is shorter than the Valley. Overnight trips into the Yosemite Wilderness require a wilderness permit issued by Yosemite National Park, available through recreation.

gov. Nearly 95 percent of the park is designated Wilderness, and quotas apply by trailhead. Check current conditions with the park before any spring trip — high water restrictions have been posted in heavy runoff years. The Merced is a Wild and Scenic River.

Paddle it like one.