Yosemite National Park is in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California. It is your responsibility to get to and from Yosemite Institute at the beginning and end of the course. Here are some travel options.
Plane
Train and Bus
Our nearest
Amtrak station is Merced. From there, you can get the
YARTS bus to Yosemite Valley, where we can meet you and take you to our campus at Crane Flat.
By Car
If you’re planning to drive, visit send us an email so that we can help you arrange carpooling with other participants. Here are some driving directions:
Directions from the San Francisco Bay Area and Points North
Enter the park via Highway 120
Expect a 4.5 to 5.5 hour drive from San Francisco
In stormy weather consider using Highway 140
Directions from Southern California
Enter the park via Highway 41 from Fresno
Expect an 8-hour drive from Los Angeles
In stormy weather, consider using Highway 140
Directions from the East
Enter the park via Highway 120
Be sure to call the National Park Service at (209) 372-0200 for road and weather conditions before planning to use this route. It may be closed anytime, especially from November to May
Directions from the West
Enter the park via Highway 140 from Merced
Expect a 4 to 5 hour drive from Montere
When You Arrive at the Park
Present your gate pass (you will receive this in the mail prior to your trip) at the park entrance to waive the park entrance fee. Tell the Rangers at the gate that you are going to Yosemite Institute’s Crane Flat campus (not Yosemite Valley) and they will direct you. Our Crane Flat campus is on Highway 120, about 1 mile east of the Crane Flat gas station. Here is a map of the park showing the location:
TELL A FRIEND
PRINT
