Yosemite Park is approx 200 miles east of San Francisco, and is at least a four hour drive by road. However, I had booked an airflight to the park through Scenic Air Tours, who offer a courtesy pick up coach from San Francisco hotels, and a narrated tour guide and coach once in the park. The flight from a private terminal at Oakland Airport takes about an hour. The aircraft is somewhat unusual, a single engined six seater Cessna 207A - it all adds to the fun and excitement.
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Yosemite Park lies on the Western side of the Sierra Nevada mountains. It is perhaps the most famous glacier carved canyon in the world. It contains northen america's longest waterfalls, oldest trees, and many spieces of flora and fauna. The total area of the protected park is 1169 square miles, of which just 7 miles form the instantly recognisable Yosemite Valley. Around the park, the mountains peak to 11-13,000 feeet, although the valley floor is just 4000 feet. |
| Millions of years ago, the area lay under the sea and pre-historic sediment slowly built up, until the ground was thrust high as the Sierra Nevada mountains were formed. During the last ice age, glaciers carved through the soft sediement and other rocks, leaving sheer walls of hard granite. The Merced river has flowed since the ice age, and has helped to put its own mark on the landscape with eons of floods and erosion. | 
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The most prominent waterfall is Yosemite Falls which, in several steps falls over 2400 feet. The largest single drop is over 1400feet. Other prominent falls are Bridalveil at 620feet and Ribbon fall at 1600feet. The area was worshipped by generations of native Americans prior to the arrival of the white man. It is said that some early (very hardy) pioneers broke down and wept when they discovered the awesome beatuty of the valley and waterfalls. Several of the early visitors are laid to rest in a cemetry at Yosemite Village.
The main part of Yosemite valley has free shuttle buses,
and for a small fee you can take a open top guided tour. It isn't necessary
to drive round the valley, although parking lots are situated to offer
viewpoints over several features. Well trodden footpaths lead from the
parking lots to the bottom of several falls, allowing the adventurous to
soak up the atmosphere - quite literally! You can also browse the gift and souvenir shops in Yosemite Village.
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The whole of lower altitudes of the park are famous for trees and plants. Disaster nearly struck in August 1996, when lightning ignited huge fires which swept through thousands of acres of woodland on the periphery of Yosemite Valley. For many years the authorities had a policey of preventing all fires, but it was realised that this led to a growth and accumulation of dry and dead foilage on the floor which was perfect fuel once a fire started. Nowadays, a programme of controlled burns is maintained, where dead wood and vegetation are selectively allowed to burn, thus preventing years of fuel building up. |
The park is also famous for its groves of Giant Sequoia trees, at least one of which is known to have been growing for 2700 years.
One interesting aspect of the air-flight from Oakland to Yosemite was the aerial view of Central California from a 5000ft vantage point. Much of this State is a desert in its natural form, but huge man made aquaducts, reservoirs and irrigation schemes bring water to many area's where the steady sun gives rise to very fertile and productive land. The level of rainfall in northern California is substantially higher than in the south, and without these massive schemes, cities such as Los Angeles and San Diego would have precious little water, for either irrigation or consumption.
