Weather Wise, Yosemite National Park

Favorite thing: Yosemite is a beautiful, breathtaking park any time of the year, but each season has it's pros and cons. When you decide when you want to go, you must decide what is more important to you: waterfalls, fewer crowds, alpine meadows, Glacier Point views of the valley, weather. To get a more indepth idea of what each season is like, I have posted four General Tips devoted to each of the four seasons of the year. But each season at a glance:
Winter
PROS:
-Least crowded (except around Christmas holiday)
-Outdoor ice skating rink and Badger pass ski area are open.
-Fresh snowfall makes the valley even more gorgeous.
-Lodging prices almost slashed in half from the high season.
CONS:
-Many hiking trails closed
-Snowstorms can close roads
-Tioga Road and Glacier Point closed.
-Waterfalls not running at full strength.

Spring
PROS:
-Waterfalls at full strength
-Warm weather
-Some trails open
CONS:
-Crowds begin to pick up
-Tioga Road and Glacier Point still closed
-Lodging rates increase

Summer
PROS:
-All trails open
-Cables up on Half Dome
-All tours operating
-Tioga Road and Glacier Point open
CONS:
-Very crowded
-Lodging rates are highest
-Waterfalls diminish to almost nothing by August
-Hot days
-Occasional afternoon thunderstorms

Autumn
PROS:
-Warm days, cool nights
-Crowds diminish significantly
-Trails still open until November
-Tioga Road and Glacier Point usually still open til November.
CONS:
-Watefalls almost non-exsistant
-Days get cooler and wetter into November and December
Tioga Road and Glacier Point eventually close

As I said, for more indepth information on each season visit my other four general tips on those seasons.

Favorite thing: Visiting Yosemite my second time was in the
Spring of 2002. What a difference a season makes! The Vernal Trail, which had been hot and following a trickle of a Vernal Falls was now cool and rumbling with the roar of the winter snow-melt.

Favorite thing: The Yosemite valley is just like a postcard, wonderfull picture spots, landscapes at every corner. We went in the spring and that's a good time to go, not too hot so that you still can hike. In the late summer and fall the waterfalls and lakes (mirror lake) may be dry, although still beautiful, you miss a great part of this fairy tale place.