Park: Yosemite National Park Location: Yosemite Valley, California Established: October 1890 Size: 748,036 acres Annual visitors: 4,150,217 (2015) Entrance fee: $30/vehicle/week Times visited: 2 Last week's blog entry introduced you to Yosemite Valley, the central hub and most visited area of Yosemite National Park. |
On both my visits to Yosemite National Park, I entered the park via Tioga Pass, the eastern entrance of the park. The first time was during an August storm, which meant rain and even touches of snow in the 10,000 foot pass. Thankfully my second time through was perfect summer weather, allowing me to clearly see the amazing meadows and peaks surrounding the park entrance.
I encourage you to take a few extra days outside of Yosemite Valley to explore the high country of Yosemite National Park. Get out of your car and get away from the main road. You will get the opportunity to ramble beside pristine alpine meadows, clamber onto rounded granite domes, and take in amazing scenic vistas.
Of course Tioga Road, cutting through the middle of a Yosemite National Park, is just a taste of what the Sierra Nevada mountains can offer. Over 3 million acres of the Sierra Nevada is protected in the National Wilderness Preservation System. The only real way to get to know all of that grand space is to get out and walk.