Yosemite National Park★★★
The Yosemite National Park is the place where the idea of conservation was born. When photographer Ansel Adams took his iconic black-and-white shots of Yosemite Valley in the 1920s, the park became a symbol of the untamed beauty of the American wilderness. And when you stand at Tunnel View for the first time and the valley lies below you — El Capitan on the left, Bridalveil Fall on the right, Half Dome in the middle — you immediately understand why.
The Yosemite Valley (only 1% of the park's area, but 95% of the visitors) is an 11 km long glacial valley traversed by the Merced River, surrounded by granite walls up to 1,000 meters high. The dimensions are hard to grasp — El Capitan (the largest exposed granite wall on Earth, 900 m vertical) and Half Dome (the park's landmark, a perfectly halved granite dome) are so immense that photos do not do them justice.
The waterfalls are most spectacular in spring (April-June), when the snowmelt swells the rivers: Yosemite Falls (739 m, the highest waterfall in North America — in three stages), Bridalveil Fall (189 m, easily accessible from the valley), Vernal Fall and Nevada Fall (accessible via the challenging Mist Trail — 600 meters elevation, 5-7 hours, but every drop of sweat is worth it).
Away from the valley: Glacier Point (road open May-October) offers a breathtaking view — 975 meters vertically above the valley, overlooking Half Dome, Vernal and Nevada Fall, and the Sierra Nevada peaks on the horizon. Mariposa Grove in the south of the park is home to over 500 giant sequoias — the largest living organisms on Earth, up to 2,000 years old and 80 meters high.
💡 Tipp
From May to September, a reservation ($2 per car, in addition to the $35 park entry fee) is required to drive into Yosemite Valley — book weeks in advance on recreation.gov. Accommodations in the park (lodges, campsites) are booked out months in advance. Alternative: Stay in El Portal, Mariposa, or Groveland outside the park. From San Francisco: 4-hour drive.
Achtung
Bears are real! Food must be stored in bear-proof containers (available at all parking lots) — never leave it in the car. Bears can open car doors. The hiking trails in the high mountains are challenging — never underestimate the altitude (Yosemite Valley is at 1,200 m, peaks at 3,000+ m) and bring enough water.
