Yosemite
Location: Take Highway 395 to Hwy 120 west into the park. Call 209-372-0200 for road information. For Yosemite reservations, call (801) 559-4884 or visit www.yosemitepark.com
Yosemite National
Park is one of our nation’s most treasured natural landscapes, made
popular by the beautiful art of Ansel Adams.
Today, it is home to beautiful Yosemite hotels such as the Awahnee Hotel Yosemite, Tenaya Lodge at Yosemite and Wawona Hotel Yosemite. Each Yosemite hotel offers gorgeous views of Yosemite Valley and makes a perfect home base for exploring Yosemite park and beginning your Yosemite vacation.
Yosemite camping books up months in advance, so be sure you make reservations well ahead of time. Curry Village Yosemite, which opened in 1899, is one of the most popular Yosemite accommodations, known for its great value and spectacular location near Half Dome and Glacier Point. Curry Village is home to 91 tent cabins, 14 regular cabins and 18 Yosemite motel rooms. You'll find several casual Yosemite restaurants here as well, from a Mexican taqueria to a pizza place, ice cream store, coffee house and buffet.
Yosemite travel is perhaps
best in the fall, when summer’s busy crowds are gone and the
valley’s trees begin to turn rich shades of red and yellow.
From
Highway 395, Highway 120 curves west through the Inyo National Forest
and begins the steep climb toward Tioga Pass, the gateway to Yosemite.
Located at 9,945 feet, Tioga is the highest automobile pass in
California. Entrance fees are $20 per vehicle, which are good for 7
days.
From Tioga
Pass, the road to Yosemite Valley is a scenic 30-mile drive passing
through beautiful Tuolumne Meadows, Tenaya Lake and Crane Flat, a
forested meadow known for its great gray owls.
One
of the world’s most beautiful natural wonders, Yosemite
Valley was “discovered” in 1851 by pioneers who were following a group
of Indians along the Merced River. Tourists soon began flocking to the
area, and in 1856 the first permanent hotel opened.
Naturalist/conservationist
John Muir fell in love with this “heaven on earth” in 1868. He, along
with Robert Underwood Johnson, editor of Century Magazine, were the
driving forces behind making it a national park on Oct. 1, 1890.
If
you are planning a trip to Yosemite, do plan to stay awhile — this is
not a trip that can be packed into one day.
One
of the first things visitors encounter in Yosemite Valley is the
majestic El Capitan, a stunning granite rock that reaches 3,953 feet to
the sky, dwarfing the cars and people below it.
A
favorite destination for rock climbers from around the world, it’s not
unusual to see several people at a time testing their abilities on the
smooth face of this granite monolith. The more experienced climbers can
complete the task in one day — others dangle like spiders overnight,
sleeping thousands of feet above the ground.
Just
around the bend is delicate Bridalveil Falls, which pour 620 feet down
to the river below. The Ahwahneechee Indians called these falls Pohono,
which means “spirit of the puffing wind.” It’s easy to see why — the
wind swirls around the top of the mountain’s cliff, lifting and blowing
the water from side to side.
The falls are accessible by a short walk from the parking area, and are wheel chair accessible.
On
July 10, 1996, a slab of Half Dome almost 200 feet high, 30 feet deep
and 500 feet long broke loose. Estimated at more than 80,000 tons, the
slab crashed down the valley at almost 160 miles an hour. When it hit
the ground, the impact generated hurricane-force winds that blew down
hundreds of trees and a snack stand.
When
you reach Yosemite Village, park the car and stretch awhile at the awesome
Ahwahnee Yosemite Lodge. This historic granite-and-timber hotel, built in 1927,
is a destination not to be missed.
Designated
a National Historic Landmark on May 28, 1987, the Ahwahnee Lodge was designed
by architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood, a 35-year-old Harvard grad who
was instructed to build a first-class “fireproof” hotel to blend with
the environment.
Still, visitors came in droves to this impressive lodge, and to this day reservations are often booked a year in advance.
Named
after the native Indians who made their home here, the Ahwahnee is
mindful of keeping that spirit with motifs, stained glass panels,
mosaic tiles and Native American rugs.
Further
exploration through this hotel’s halls will reveal two massive
sandstone fireplaces (big enough for a bear) in the Great Lounge, an
elegant ballroom, and a 6,630-square-foot Dining Room, decorated with
heavy log columns and sugar pine roof trusses.
On
your way out of the village, check out Tunnel View. Located at the
eastern end of the Wawona Tunnel on Route 41, this is one of the most
photographed vistas in the world and the best scenic outlook of the
valley accessible by car.
From here, one can see what inspired Ansel Adam’s famous photographs — this vista offers a view of El Capitan to the left, Bridalveil Falls to the right, and Half Dome and Yosemite Falls straight ahead in the distance.
If you're interested in Yosemite hiking, the park is home to 840 miles of hiking trails, but only three Yosemite trails are rated as easy.
Two of them, at 10 minutes apiece, go to the base of the two major
waterfalls, Yosemite Falls and Bridalveil. Another easy trail to Mirror
Lake takes 30 minutes to two hours, depending on where you begin. Other
trails are moderate to very strenuous and involve elevation gains of
400 to 3,200 feet. Snack
stands are located at the entrance to most trail heads in Yosemite
during the summer season. They include Happy Isles, Curry Village
Coffee & Ice Cream Corner, Tuolumne Meadows Grill, Yosemite Lodge
at the Falls Cone Stand, Wawona Pioneer Market, Crane Flat Store &
Gas Station and Glacier Point Yosemite stand.
Aside from hiking and seeing the sights, there are plenty of things to do in Yosemite. Yosemite activities include walks and talks led by rangers, guided bus tours, educational films, fishing, visits to the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoia trees, horseback riding and river rafting. During the winter, ice skating is offered in a large outdoor rink at Curry Village, there are snowshoe excursions and skiing at Badger Pass, and ranger-conducted hikes and lectures are still offered.
In Yosemite Village, there is a visitor center with an exhibition hall, a replica of an Indian village, the Yosemite Museum and for beautiful Yosemite art, the Ansel Adams photo gallery.
Yosemite tours are offered throughout the park during the summer, including bus tours covering the Valley Floor, Tuolumne Meadows, Glacier Point, Big Trees Tram, the Grand Tour and a Moonlight Tour. You can make reservations at Yosemite Lodge, Curry Village or the Village Store up to 7 days in advance. Call (209) 372-4386.
Free shuttle buses run through Yosemite Valley via the Yosemite Valley Shuttle and El Capitan Shuttle. In summer, free shuttle buses also run from Wawona to the Mariposa Grove, Wawona to Yosemite Valley, and from Tioga Pass to the Tenaya Lake. The Tuolumne Meadows Hikers Bus (fee required) stops at trailheads between Yosemite Lodge and Tuolumne Meadows. Call (209) 372-4386.
One of the National Park Service’s most popular preserves, Yosemite receives more than four million visitors a year. During the winter, park activities are limited, and access through Tioga Road is closed.
The park is open 24 hours a day, year around. Entrance fee is $20 per
vehicle, good for 7 days. You can also buy an annual pass for $40. Be sure to keep your receipt.
For Yosemite reservations at the Ahwahnee, call (559) 252- 4848 or visit www.yosemitepark.com/Accommodations_TheAhwahnee.aspx.
For campground reservations, call (801) 559-4884. Wilderness permits are required for Yosemite backpacking through the National Park Service. Permits are not required for Yosemite day hikes or climbs, though there is a quota for each trailhead.
ON THE WEB:
Yosemite Association:
Yosemite Lodging, shopping and dining:
Yosemite Traveler Information and Lodging:
