Yosemite National Park is located in the eastern portion of California. It encompasses a number of counties within the state and is roughly 761,268 acres. The park is a popular tourist attraction. Nearly 4 million tourists visit every year, with most visiting Yosemite Valley, which is approximately 7 square miles.
Yosemite is known for its great beautify and biological diversity. It boasts of majestic looking streams and waterfalls. The groves and granite cliffs are a big draw as well. Individuals travel from all over the United States and even the World, to visit Yosemite National Park.
The Yosemite National Park was made a World Heritage site in the early 1980s. Primarily made up of wilderness, it has rich and diverse wildlife and vegetation. Yosemite National Park was very instrumental in the national park movement. It wasn’t the first but it turned out to be one of the most important. Two gentlemen who worked tirelessly to get the movement in motion were John Muir and Galen Clark.
Yosemite National Park’s elevation is quite drastic in its range. It is a little more than 2000 feet in some areas and greater than 13,000 feet, in others. The park has a number of vegetation zones. More than 1000 of all of California’s species of plants can be found at Yosemite. Individuals who appreciate diverse vegetation may want to consider planning a trip to the park. Amongst the many things Yosemite Park is known for are the unique plants and soils, further making it an ideal destination for those with an appreciation for geology.
Yosemite National Park is within a comfortable driving distance from many of California’s major cities, including Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Bernardino. It is approximately four hours from San Francisco. It would take the average driver about six hours to visit from Los Angeles and seven from San Bernardino.
Hiking is a popular activity amongst visitors to the park and with good reason. There is lots of opportunity to hike. In all, the park has a whopping 800 miles of hiking trails. The beautiful scenery, which is made up of beautiful ponds, streams, lakes and waterfalls, makes hiking a joy and draws visitors to the area.
Along with hiking, rock climbing is extremely popular as well. Some of the most visited climbing areas are the Half and Sentinel Domes. The term dome may at first glance, be a bit misleading. The term dome might denote a small sized rock in some people’s minds The aforementioned dome is anything but. Both are thousands of feet high, with the Half-Dome, reaching nearly 4,800 feet.
One of the most popular destinations in the popular national park is Yosemite Valley. It doesn’t take up much area, but it attracts most of the park’s nearly 40 million, annual visitors. Other areas of interest are the Tunnel View and El Capitan.
Yosemite National Park is located in eastern California. A huge draw for vacationers, people from all over the world visit the park to take in its scenic views. Hiking and rock climbing, as mentioned above, are also popular activities.
