Yosemite National Park
By Jeremy Gorrell
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Yosemite National park covers an area of over 1100 square miles in east central California. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the natural wonders of North America. It is beautiful year-round, but is best visited during specific seasons, depending on what you want to see and do. See the climate section of the Wikipedia article on Yosemite for more information.
Location:
Getting there:
Yosemite is located in the Sierra Nevada mountains in east central California, north of Fresno and south of Lake Tahoe. It is accessed by two main highways, the 41 and the 120.
The Yosemite Park website offers these helpful driving directions to the park.
Areas within the park:
Although there are several main areas of interest within Yosemite national park, the best known is probably Yosemite Valley. Only seven square miles in size (about 1% of the park's area) this serves as the primary "jumping off" point for most of the visitors to the park. Numerous trailheads, shops, park offices, galleries, and facilities can all be found in the valley, and Highways 140 and 41 intersect here.
Quintessential Yosemite: The famous "Tunnel View" of the valley.
Photo taken by me during my last visit there with friends.
Accommodations:
Camping is extremely popular in Yosemite, and there are multiple campsites throughout the park. During the busy summer season from April through September it can be quite crowded, and making reservations is highly recommended. There are also numerous lodges, hotels, and cabins to stay in, including the famous Victorian-style Wawona Hotel and the upscale Ahwahnee. For a helpful list of accommodations in and around Yosemite, see the Yosemite Lodging Review page or search Google for "Yosemite Accommodations".
Activities:
An excellent way to learn about Yosemite while enjoying the sights is the Yosemite Valley Floor tour. A guided bus tour through the valley from the park headquarters to the Tunnel View turnaround and back, it is an easy and enjoyable way to get an overview of the park, see the sights, and take great pictures like this.
El Capitan as seen from the Yosemite Valley Floor tour bus.