Merced Grove

This one's a sleeper. You start at a nondescript pullout on Big Oak Flat Road and drop down an old dirt road through a mixed conifer forest — white fir, sugar pine, the usual Yosemite suspects. The operative word here is 'down,' because every step you take toward the grove is a step you'll climb back out on the return. The road is wide and shaded, more fire road than trail, so the walking is easy even if the grade is steady. After about a mile and a half of mellow descent, the sequoias appear almost without fanfare — around twenty of them standing in a quiet hollow, massive and ancient and completely unbothered by your presence. There are no crowds here. No shuttle buses. No gift shops. Merced Grove is Yosemite's smallest and least-visited sequoia grove, and that solitude is the whole point. This trail is perfect for anyone who wants the giant tree experience without the Disneyland energy of Mariposa Grove.