Clouds Rest

Clouds Rest
The summit of Cloud's Rest.
Highest point
Elevation	9,930 ft (3,027 m)  NAVD 88
Prominence
Parent peak	Tresidder Peak
Listing	Sierra Peaks Section Western States Climbers Emblem peak
Coordinates
Geography
Location	Yosemite National Park, Mariposa County, California, U.S.
Parent range	Sierra Nevada
Topo map	USGS Tenaya Peak
Climbing
Easiest route	Trail hike, class 1

Clouds Rest is a mountain in Yosemite National Park east northeast of Yosemite Village, California. Although there are many peaks in the park having far greater elevation, Clouds Rest's proximity to the valley gives it a very high degree of visual prominence.

Geography

The summit can be reached by a 7.2-mile (11.6 km) trail hike from Tioga Pass Road or a 9.4-mile (15.1 km) trail hike from Happy Isles by way of Little Yosemite Valley. There are also several technical routes available.

Clouds Rest is an arête, a thin, almost knife-like, ridge of rock formed when glaciers eroded away solid rock to form Tenaya Canyon and Little Yosemite Valley. The northwest face, mostly solid granite, rises above Tenaya Creek.

History

File:Half Dome and Clouds Rest.jpg

From Glacier Point, the overall arête shape of Clouds Rest (behind Half Dome) becomes evident

Lafayette H. Bunnell, a medical doctor with the Mariposa Battalion, notes that his party named the summit Clouds Rest because they returned to camp to avoid a snow storm after seeing "the clouds rapidly settling down to rest upon that mountain."

Recreation

File:Summit of Clouds Rest.webm

Video illustrates the very narrow arête at the summit. Views of Yosemite valley can be seen on the right.

There are three main ways to access the summit of Cloud’s Rest; via the Sunrise Lakes Trailhead off of CA-120 (commonly known as the Northeast Ridge Route); via the Happy Isles Trailhead in Yosemite Valley (commonly known as the South Slope); or via the Northwest Face of the mountain. The Sunrise Lakes Trail is a round trip hike of 14.5 miles (23.3 km) that begins at an elevation of 8,150 feet (2,480 m) and gains 1,776 feet (541 m) over 7.25 miles (11.67 km) to reach the summit at 9,926 feet (3,025 m). The summit has wide-ranging 360-degree panoramic views.