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Yosemite is one of the most famous, and beautiful, of the National Parks. It is a place of awesome natural beauty. From Yosemite Falls to El Capitan and from the Great Sequoias to the spectacle of Glacier Pass, it is a place words hardly do justice to. The scenery is breathtaking, one is left with a sense of wonder, a deep respect for the power of nature to create something so spectacular, so incredibly beautiful on such a grand scale.  The first known inhabitants of Yosemite were the Miwoks. In the early 18th century a "fatal black sickness" decimated their population. The few survivors moved to the Eastern Sierra and were assimilated into the Mono Paiutes. A small group of Yosemite Miwoks resettled under Chief Tenaya, a descendant of the survivors. Joseph Rutherford Walker and a group of explorers were the first whites to see Yosemite in 1833. Settlers and prospectors, artists and many others followed. In 1864 President Lincoln signed a bill protecting Yosemite for its natural beauty and set it aside for public use. In 1890 Yosemite was
declared a National Park. Here is a more complete history of Yosemite.
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Yosemite embraces over 1,200 square miles of land along the Sierra Nevadas in northern California. It is popular because it offers some of the most breathtaking views imaginable. It is also an unbelievable place for hiking
and mountaineering. The John Muir Trail, named after the famous conservationist, is 211 miles long and goes from Yosemite Valley to Mt. Whitney, spanning three National Parks. Yosemite is also one of the most awesome places anywhere to camp, with about 1,500 campgrounds. Can you imagine pitching
a tent and waking to greet the sunrise among wonders like these? The Park Service estimates that Yosemite receives 3.5 million visitors last year, its popularity being one of the greatest challenges to preserving the natural beauty of the Park. There is a range of wildlife in Yosemite that includes 78 species of mammals, 22 kinds of reptiles and 11 species of fish. It is therefore essential to safeguard the normal ecological processes. The large black bear population of Yosemite is part of the challenge. The bears have a powerful sense of smell, so careless storage of food has caused a number of incidents with the hungry bears coming into contact with humans and their property. The bear is not normally aggressive, nor is the mountain lion, so it is essential to observe food storage and safety guidelines. Though the Park Service says there is a better chance of being struck by lightning than to be attacked by a mountain lion I am in no hurry to test the accuracy of that. |
| A truly dramatic place in Yosemite is in the valley, where the glaciers carved the rock formations like El Capitan, Half Dome and Cathedral Rocks. In some places the domes rise to about 4,000 feet above the Valley floor. Half Dome is a favorite for photographers and rock climbers, a vertical dome of rock cut in half during the ice ages. Another favorite for both is El Capitan. |
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The waterfalls in Yosemite Valley are spectacular, among them Yosemite, Bridalveil,Vernal, Nevada, and Illouette falls.Vernal Falls are the first on the way up to Half Dome and have a great lake, emerald lake, at the top. The way it shimmers in the sun is really quite unforgettable. Yosemite Falls is one of the highest in the world with a fall of 2425 feet. The waterfalls are the most stunning in spring and summer and have little or no water from August through early fall. Winter changes the scenery entirely, making many sites seen earlier in the year unrecognizable. At higher elevations there is some excellent cross county skiing. Due to heavy flooding this year the Park Service has closed some parts of the park and will carefully monitor others for ecological damage. Another popular attraction is the Giant Sequoia, which are in Mariposa, Touloumne and Merced Groves. These are among the largest and oldest living creatures on earth. The Grizzly Giant in Mariposa Grove, for example, is about 2,700 years old. Interestingly, the wood and bark of these giants is fire resistant. Sequoia and King's Canyon National Parks, nearby to Yosemite, have more of these giants. The General Sherman, for example, is between 2300 and 2700 years old, is about 275 feet tall and has a circumference of 103 feet. The sequoias grow only on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada. |
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Yosemite is heaven for photographers. It really is hard not to take a good picture here. But very few have captured the wilderness and majestic beauty of Yosemite like the master, Ansel Adams. Adams' relationship with the park began in the early 1900's and became an annual pilgrimage. He is known to have said," when i first experienced Yosemite I knew my destiny." |
| Visions of Yosemite |
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Main Page
Cooking
Friends |
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A Place in the Sun A Voyage to Atlantis 
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Ride the Rail, meet some new friends!
| The photos on this page are the copyrighted work of the US Park Service(top photo),Whitney Potter, Paul Carlin, and Ansel Adams. Permission has been granted, where possible, for their use on this page and they may not otherwise be used in any way except with the consent of the artist. Please respect artistic creativity and copyright law by crediting all work that is not your own. |
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