Project overview: Reroute the popular wilderness trail bisecting Kerrick Meadow to restore ecological stability for local amphibian populations and protect hikers from seasonal flooding and erosion. 

How your support helps: Kerrick Meadow sits in the heart of Tuolumne’s mountains. Years ago — long before visitors began exploring Yosemite’s wilderness by the thousands and when local amphibian populations were stable and robust — a trail was built through the meadow. Though idyllic, with increased visitation, the original trail layout has significant ecological consequences. 

The trail through Kerrick Meadow threatens both the meadow’s essential hydrologic functions and local amphibian populations. Juvenile Yosemite toads are trapped and crushed in incised trail ruts, and yellow-legged frog egg masses are disturbed by erosion from trail stream crossings. The trail also has negative impacts on the visitor experience. During seasonal flooding, hikers navigate off trail, unintentionally creating additional impacts outside the trail corridor when crossing the meadow.  

To protect wildlife habitat, uplift visitor experiences, and improve hydrologic function, National Park Service staff plan to reroute the Kerrick Meadow trail to a more durable surface and restore the meadow to its best possible state. The project will mirror previous project successes at Upper and Lower Cathedral meadows, Lyell Canyon, and Lukens Lake Trail. Over three seasons, park teams will work to finalize and build the trail reroute, close the original trail, and restore the meadow to a functional state.  

After the project is complete, visitors will enjoy the meadow with dry feet as they skirt its eastern edge. They may once again hear the chorus of Yosemite toads and Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs thriving in the improved amphibian habitat. 

This year: In 2025, National Park Service teams will live on-site — due to the meadow’s remote location — to finalize the trail reroute and construct the new trail. Over the next two years, staff will close the original trail and restore ecological components of Kerrick Meadow. 

Project partner: National Park Service