🏔 Yosemite Valley | Enter the real version of Pandora planet.
About Yosemite National Park
📍Location: California, USA
👤Indigenous people: Ahwahneechee
⛳️Area: 3,028.8 square kilometers
♟Established: Federal protection (1864); National Park (1890)
🗺Visitor centers: Yosemite Valley (year-round), Wawona and Tuolumne Meadows (May to October), Hetch Hetchy (limited hours)
🎟Entrance fee: $30 per vehicle; $15 per person.
▪️Yosemite was designated as a national park in 1890 and became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984.
▪️Before becoming a national park, Yosemite was home to the Ahwaneechee Native Americans for over 4,000 years. The California Gold Rush and hunting in the mid-19th century led to the displacement of the Ahwaneechee people from the area.
▪️Yosemite Falls is the highest waterfall in North America, and May is the best time to see it at its peak.
▪️Tioga Pass is the highest mountain pass in California and the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
▪️Wild animals found in the park include black bears, coyotes, mules, bighorn sheep, red foxes, chipmunks, squirrels, mountain lions, and more.
🕙Visiting time:
The valley is open all year round, with different beauty in each season. The park undergoes huge changes in every season, but summer is the peak season.
▪️Spring: Visit the flowing waterfall.
▪️Summer: hiking, camping
▪️Autumn: rich in colors, it is the favorite season of photographers.
▪️Winter: play in the snow, cross-country skiing
Personally, I prefer visiting during May to July, enjoying the lush green grass, flourishing trees, colorful small flowers, the sunlight shining on the mountain peaks, and the waterfalls at their highest flow during the snowmelt. Everything is just perfect.
⛰[Travel Guide]
🏔Mountain tunnel landscape
It is the most representative scenery of Yosemite National Park. When driving into the valley and leaving the Wawona Tunnel, Yosemite will appear in its most beautiful form before your eyes.
Right next to the parking lot, there is an observation deck where you can admire famous landmarks such as Half Dome, Bridalveil Fall, El Capitan, and the entire Yosemite Valley.
💡El Capitan is considered the largest exposed granite monolith in the world. Those with binoculars may even spot strange climbers crossing El Capitan's face, or see the headlamps of climbers camping on the wall at night.
🏔Mountain valley floor loop
Driving the Valley Floor Loop is the best way to visit the sights of Yosemite. Stop and admire the Yosemite Falls (you can choose to walk down the Yosemite Falls Trail), the El Capitan Meadow, Sentinel Bridge, valley views, and various other points along the way.
🏔Tioga Road
Tioga Road is another route to enjoy the beauty of Yosemite highlands. The road runs from west to east through the park, allowing access to both sides of the Sierras in the summer. Along the way, there are many overlooks, including Olmsted Point, Tenaya Lake Scenic Area, and Tuolumne Meadows.
🏔MARIPOSA GROVE
Yosemite is also home to giant sequoias, which can be seen by visiting Mariposa Grove. There are many hiking trails here, ranging from very easy (Big Trees Loop), to moderate (Grizzly Giant Loop), to difficult (Mariposa Grove Trail).
💡This area is home to over 500 giant redwoods!
🏔Glacier Point
This is definitely a must-see attraction for visitors to Yosemite National Park. Glacier Point can be accessed through a large parking lot on Glacier Road, with a short path leading to the viewpoint. From Glacier Point, you can see panoramic views of Half Dome, Nevada Falls, Vernal Falls, and the valley floor.
📸Best photo spot
▪️Mountain valley landscape
▪️Cathedral Beach
▪️Artist point
▪️Yosemite Falls
▪️Tafuto Horn
Glacier Point
▪️Fire at the Maqiu Waterfall
🏞 Nearby attractions
▪️Redwood National Park
▪️Guoliang National Park
▪️Death Valley National Park
▪️Joshua Tree National Park
▪️Pinnacles National Park
▪️Fujian Putian Meizhou Island National Park
▪️San Francisco Bay Area
▪️Lake Tahoe
▪️Da Su Er