Yosemite Park in California – photo, description, what to see, how to get, map
Yosemite is an incredibly beautiful place in the United States of America, which is considered a national park of a large scale. In addition, this place is a nature reserve, in which unique virgin nature reigns – only 5% of the entire territory was created with human help, and the rest is wild expanses.
Location and description
Yosemite National Park is located in one of the states of America, namely in California, on the slope of the Sierra Nevada mountain. The 3,000-square-meter terrain features cliffs and granite walls that are astonishingly tall, and there are several waterfalls, one of which is the tallest in all of America. In addition, there are several groves of plants called sequoia, which is considered one of the longest living trees in the world, as well as a plant that has an incredibly large trunk diameter.
On the territory of Yosemite you can see a variety of meadows and forests, rivers and multiple lakes. In the center of the national reserve, which is under the protection of UNESCO, you can see the valley, which bears the name of the park itself – Yosemite. This valley at any time of the year, no matter whether it is a cold winter or a hot sultry summer, is filled with a huge flow of tourists, but if we talk about most of the park, there are no tourists there.
History of Yosemite Park
Since the 18th century, the Akhwanichi Indians lived in Yosemite Park, who led a calm, measured life in the territory of untouched nature. But the tribes did not manage to live in peace for long. A few decades later, during the California gold rush, Americans came to the valley, who were of European origin. From that moment on, wars began between unexpected guests and local residents.
Battalions of semi-legal armed formations set fire to Indian settlements, as a result of which the Akhvanichi were forced to go down one of the rivers in order to find shelter and stay there for some time. After everything calmed down, the Indians decided to return to their old place of residence, but no one recognized the rights to the land for them. Since then, this area has become more and more popular with many vacationers who have caused incredible damage to these places. The authorities decided to pay more law enforcement measures, and already in the 19th century Yosemite became a national park and nature reserve.
The climate of Yosemite
The climate that prevails in Yosemite National Park is Mediterranean. Precipitation that falls there occurs most often in winter, and if we talk about summer, then it is considered very dry and hot there.
As for the snow cover of the mountains, it begins to form only by the end of autumn and can last until mid-spring. In winter, the air temperature can range from +8 to -5 degrees, in summer – from +9 to +32 degrees. It is best to visit this park in autumn, when it is no longer hot, but still not cold, nature at this moment is simply charming – rivers and lakes do not worry because of the wind, tall quiet calm trees stand still and beckon everyone with their power, mountains and rocks attract to themselves with their majestic views. The best period for the rapid and powerful movement of water in the waterfall is the end of spring and the beginning of summer, in the autumn they almost all dry up due to the subsiding summer heat. Rain here can start at any moment, even if it was not expected at all.
park landscape
Yosemite Valley has a lot of rocky terrain, as well as flattened domed mountains of gray granite rock. A huge number of rivers in the rock were able to break through several deep canyons, resulting in the formation of high walls, the length of which can reach up to several hundred meters, by the way, such walls in the park are not at all uncommon. The same reason makes one think about the origin of the local waterfalls with a significant height. These include the famous Yosemite Falls, which is known to everyone in North America. Yes, America, all over the world! According to scientists, the landscape was formed by large glaciers, which were able to melt, leaving behind such gorgeous views. Forests grow in huge canyons, and they also grow on the territory of a mountain plateau. Alpine meadows flaunt on the mountain peaks.
Attractions and Attractions Yosemite
There are an incredibly large number of trails in the park, along which various excursions take place. In addition, there are a lot of places that are incredibly loved by vacationers.
The granite rock of El Capitan is considered to be a favorite place for rock climbers. Its height sometimes reaches 2 km 300 m, from there a gorgeous view of the park opens up, it can be seen at a glance.
Tuolomn Meadows and Dan's Meadows. Clark Mountain Range, Cathedral, Kuna. Serriera Crest and Pacific Crest, two hiking trails that run along the crest of the mountain. On the territory of the park there are groves in which sequoiadendrons grow, there are no more than three of them: Mariposa, in which 2 hundred trees grow. Tuolomni, about 30 trees. Merced, no more than 20 trees.
The park offers tourists:
You can buy everything you need in shops, and have a tasty and satisfying meal in restaurants.
How to get to Yosemite Park
Yosemite is located near San Francisco and Los Angeles. The distance from the first is about 300 km (more than 3 hours drive), from the second – about 500 km (travel time will take 5-6 hours). From the airports of these cities, the park can be reached by bus, by train and by car, which can be rented at the airport.
Yosemite is the place that you must definitely visit if you are planning a vacation abroad and are a fan of extreme sports. Here is beautiful nature, forests, meadows, mountains, waterfalls and everything that can make time stop in enjoying these views, and leave a huge imprint on your memories forever!