Looking for suggestions: 4 day trip in late Oct. Yosemite?, Sequoia?

It's a question of the weather report. You won't have any trouble getting a permit for anywhere in the Sierra at that time of year—because not many people are still backpacking then. We've done trips in October, but only with a keen eye on the weather. You have the potential for a serious storm to hit.

I know that you asked for lower elevation hikes—but there really aren't any routes in the Sierra that would keep you busy for four days at lower elevations. Yeah, you could do a North Rim traverse of Yosemite, or a loop around Laurel Lake, Kibbie Lake, and Hetch-hetchy…but while you might miss a bit of the bad weather, those areas can still be snowy in October. And there will be no overnight parking on Tioga Road by then…so your trailheads are limited

I'd offer three suggestions:

1: make it two separate overnight hikes, so that you are always ready to bail in the case of bad weather

2: Look at the Lost Coast Hike. If you get sun there, this is absolutely the best time of year for this hike

3: Pohono Trail to Glacier Point and into Illilouette Canyon, then over the Panaroma Trail to NEvada Falls and Little Yosemite Valley, then out Happy Isles…

Hey Paul, Thanks for your feedback and suggestions.
I considered the LCT when I started my original planning. After reading several trip reports on the LCT, it fell to the bottom of my short list of considerations. Seemed like a lot of logistics for such a short trail. I believe it is a 5 hour drive from Fremont, plus 2 hr shuttle from Shelter Cove to the northern terminus, Mattole Beach (24.4 miles) (at a cost of $200 $300 if we hiked both Southern and northern sections). Living near the beach in Florida, it just didn't seem to be worth the effort.
I will consider your suggestion for Yosemite and 2 overnight hikes at the lower elevations. Thanks