RV for 5: Yosemite National Park, part 1 of 2

Jill's Journal: “It is by far the grandest of all the special temples of nature I was ever permitted to enter.” –John Muir

“Yosemite Valley, to me, is always a sunrise, a glitter of green and golden wonder in a vast edifice of stone and space.” –Ansel Adams

I’m certain I can’t say anything about California’s crown jewel, Yosemite National Park, that hasn’t already been said, so I’ll just share our time there.

The most spectacular entrance to the 1,200 square miles of Yosemite is supposed to be the lone eastern entrance, which just so happens to be the side we’re on. The scenery on the famed Tioga Pass Road leading up to the park through the Eastern Sierras is simply magnificent and it just gets better once through this gate.

Tioga Pass, just shy of 10,000 feet, is California’s highest vehicle pass.

I loved this hand-colored sign at the entrance.

And then it’s straight to the natural beauty. The stunning Tenaya Lake is one mile long and bordered on three sides by granite peaks.

The number one thing we noticed about Yosemite is that it’s truly a hiker’s paradise. At roughly the size of Rhode Island, there are over 800 miles of hiking trails through the park. Our girls are intrepid little hikers, but Yosemite’s best hikes are multiple miles long and they’re just not quite ready for that yet. So, we spent our time in Yosemite seeing the major landmarks and getting a nice overview of the park.

Olmsted Point gave us our first view of Clouds Rest with Half Dome beyond. All the major rock formations in Yosemite are named.

Pictures of course do not do all these tremendous rock formations justice. There are four distinct geographic areas in Yosemite: high sierra, granite cliffs, sequoia groves, and valley.

We got our first bird’s eye view of the famed Yosemite Valley from the lovely Valley View overlook.

Valley View is clearly popular with artists.

We’re moving closer to the valley floor…

This spot is important. First, a little background: President Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite Grant in 1864, making Yosemite the first park land set aside by the U.S. government for conservation and citizen use. Yellowstone was made the first national park in 1872, while Yosemite Valley was ceded to California as a state park. Homesteaders, shepherds, and loggers were actively destroying the area surrounding Yosemite Valley. Conservation activist John Muir lobbied Congress to make the whole area a national park, which happened in 1890 but did not include the heart of Yosemite (Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Grove still belonged to California). In 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt and Muir sat together beside a campfire at this spot and camped for three days in surrounding areas. During that time, Muir convinced Roosevelt to take Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Grove away from the state to create a unified Yosemite National Park. By 1906, Roosevelt was able to sign a bill that did just that.

This is the famous and magnificent Tunnel View. From left to right: El Capitan, Clouds Rest, Half Dome, Sentinel Rock, Cathedral Rocks, and Bridalveil Fall. Below is Yosemite Valley.

A little closer to Bridalveil Fall, which looks tiny here but stretches 620 feet from top to bottom.

We later took a short hike to the base of Bridalveil, which got its name from the mist that wafts off it. When the breeze blows, it resembles a bride’s veil.