alt image

California

YOSEMITE

ESTABLISHED 1890


The name Yosemite conjures images of looming mountains and riotous meadows, pure lakes and rushing waterfalls, and, of course, those giant sequoias. This second-oldest park delivers on all its promises.

Yosemite National Park is about grandeur. Among its countless spectacular waterfalls is Yosemite Falls, at 2,425 ft (739 m) the highest in North America. Thirty-one peaks reach above 12,000 ft (3,658 m), and the age of many redwood trees is measured in thousands of years. The soaring cliffs of the Half Dome and El Capitan combine with this wilderness to lend Yosemite its incomparable beauty. High up on Tuolumne Meadows in the Sierra Nevada, you can see a dazzling display of wildflowers in July and August, when the plants shake off the winter snows.

Majestic flora

A rare mix of topography, climate, and soil creates the range of native plants found at Yosemite. Explore the different terrains and look out for mountain willow, sky-blue alpine asters, and verdant-green sedges. Standing tall among them all are the trees: at lower elevations, blue oak and gray pine, while elsewhere the incense of cedar fills the air. And, of course, the arboreal movie stars are the giant sequoias. In Mariposa Grove, trees have their own names, such as the Fallen Monarch and Grizzly Giant.

dk

The world’s largest tree, the giant sequoia goes by other names: Sierra redwood and just plain big tree

Through the lens

It was American photographer Ansel Adams who showed the world that Yosemite’s most remarkable features are its mighty mountains and imposing rock formations. He was drawn again and again to photograph places like El Capitan and the Half Dome, capturing them in different lights and seasons to show their changing moods.

It’s hard to single out one feature, but perhaps the aptly named El Capitan shows the best of Yosemite. The perfect sighting of its sheer cliff face is from Tunnel View, on Highway 41—of course, you’ll be sharing this with many other onlookers. Still, if this is your first experience of Yosemite, it’s a jaw-dropper of a view, also introducing you to the Half Dome and the Bridalveil Fall.

For a more personal experience, tackle El Capitan Trail, which starts near Yosemite Village and is a tough 14-mile (23-km) round trip to the top of El Capitan. It is a challenge, though not as much as your other option: the 3,000-ft (914-m) climb of its sheer granite face. If the views from the bottom are awe-inspiring, just consider what the views from the top are like.

Half Dome was another Adams favorite, a granite formation 8,836 ft (2,693 m) high that does indeed look like a rock dome that has been sliced in half. Standing above the valley floor, the silhouette of this cliff has become the symbol of Yosemite. One of the easiest ways to see it is from Mirror Lake, a short hike from Yosemite Village; one of the toughest and most exhilarating is to climb to the top. The latter requires a full day to cover the 15-mile (24-km) round trip, starting from the valley floor. It begins as a pleasant, even idyllic, hike through woodland, with the serenade of warblers, the chatter of sparrows, and possibly even the rat-a-tat-tat of a woodpecker.

alt image

Sunset is the best time for atmospheric shots, when the fog rolls in and blankets the peaks.

When you emerge from the woods, however, you face the last section, up the side of the dome itself, hauling yourself up using twin cables bolted into the rock. It becomes increasingly obvious why Half Dome was once considered totally inaccessible. Today, aided by the cables, the fully fit hiker can pull their way to the top. One feature here is the so-called “Diving Board” from which Ansel Adams took the shot he rightly called “Monolith, the Face of Half Dome.”

At 10,916 ft (3,327 m), Cathedral Peak is over 2,000 ft (610 m) higher than Half Dome and it’s yet another of Yosemite’s distinctive shapes. Here, you may have to settle for the view, unless you’re an experienced climber, but you can still hike the Climber’s Approach Trail to soak up the scenery from the bottom and capture some amazing photos of dare-devil rock-climbers who take to the bare, rocky surfaces like mountain goats.

dk

Visitors admire the mesmerizing views of Half Dome and the valley from Glacier Point

dk

El Capitan is a mercurial creature, changing its look to suit the weather and season

alt image

PARK PIONEERS

Ansel Adams

Ansel Adams was 14 years old when he first visited Yosemite with his family in 1916. By age 20, he had become successful for his black-and-white images of the park, pushing physical and technical boundaries to get the perfect shot of El Capitan and the Half Dome. He became one of America’s best photographers and continued to share his love for Yosemite by conducting workshops there (see Ansel Adams).

Mighty waters

If there’s one feature that makes people go “Wow!” in Yosemite, it’s the triple-decker Yosemite Falls. This is especially so in the spring, when the falls are at their height, thundering with the added water of the melting mountain snows. It’s the highest waterfall in the park, its waters plunging 2,425 ft (739 m) before crashing into pools and against rocks to create three separate sections. Tumbling in two great leaps, Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls are at their most spectacular in May and June. By September, however, the falls often dry up due to the hot summer weather, and tend not to flow again for a few months.

Yosemite Falls may be the highest and most impressive falls, but the park is filled with water features easily accessible from Yosemite Village. These include the Bridalveil Fall, a short (but steep) hike from the parking lot to a mighty 617-ft (188-m) plunge, which runs all year.

With dozens of falls to choose from, it’s not hard to find isolated spots. Relatively few people see the Wapama Falls, in the beautiful Hetch Hetchy Valley. A little over an hour’s drive up pine-lined roads from Yosemite Village brings you to the serene blue expanse of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir.

alt image

Three-quarters of visitors arrive May through October, and some trails close in winter, so April offers the best balance of activities and peacefulness.

The Wapama Falls are visible in the distance from the parking lot at the O’Shaughnessy Dam, and the trail there runs beside the reservoir’s sparkling waters. You’ll splash your way through several streams, and if you come too early in the year those streams will make the track impassable. Listen for the crash in the woods that might just be a bear running, and watch where you tread—rattlesnakes live here, too. At journey’s end, you’ll be upclose with these dramatic falls, which can be so fierce in spring that they engulf the bridge at their base.

dk

The powerful waters of Yosemite Falls plunge down into the conifer woodlands of the Yosemite Valley

Did You Know?

Yosemite is where the distinctive park ranger’s hat was first worn.

Reflected views

Falls are not the only water features in the park. Visit the hauntingly beautiful Mono Lake. Covering an area of 70 sq miles (181 sq km), the lake is at least 760,000 years old. There are pleasures to be had year-round: a clear winter’s day is the perfect time to observe the gnarled tufa towers jutting from the water; in spring and fall, millions of birds make it their home; and in summer you can swim in its dense, ultra-salty waters.

Not surprisingly, the waters of the aptly named Mirror Lake make superb reflections of the cliffs behind in the water. This lake can be reached by a trail that weaves through woodland from Yosemite Village. It lacks the scale of Mono Lake, and in drier weather may even disappear completely, but when filled in late summer, it makes the perfect tranquil spot to enjoy the views of mountains and forests.

dk

Located in the northwest of the park is the remote Hetch Hetchy Reservoir

dk

A lone hiker surveys the lunar landscape at the dried up Mono Lake

90

The percentage of visitors who don’t venture beyond Yosemite Valley, which makes up just 1 percent of the park.

209

Height of the Grizzly Giant, the tallest tree, in ft (64 m). It’s also the oldest.

13,114

In ft (3,997 m), the height of Mount Lyell, the highest point in Yosemite.

FLORA AND FAUNA

Yosemite Toads

Native to the Sierra Nevada mountains, this threatened species likes to sun itself on warm rocks. Don’t be tempted to touch: they emit a toxin to deter predators.

alt image
dk

A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Yosemite is awash with color in the warm sunshine

..................Content has been hidden....................

You can't read the all page of ebook, please click here login for view all page.
Reset
35.171.22.220