Yosemite's Mist Trail: Vernal & Nevada Falls

You can hike the full Mist Trail to Vernal and Nevada Falls, and on up to the base of the Half Dome subdome, without any permit. The requirement starts beyond that base — rangers check right there, so the subdome staircase counts too, not just the cables. Permits are awarded mostly through a preseason lottery in spring plus small daily lotteries through the season, and a Tuesday or Wednesday application has noticeably better odds than a Saturday.

The steep stone staircase beside Vernal Fall gets drenched with waterfall spray for much of the year and the granite gets slick underfoot; many hikers do the climb in a poncho, and traction matters most during spring snowmelt, when the flow is heaviest.

Yosemite dropped its peak-hours entry-reservation system, so no timed ticket stands between you and the gate — but summer mornings still bring long waits at the entrance stations, and arriving at the trailhead early is still the difference between parking near Happy Isles and a long shuttle wait.