Yosemite National Park--The Prettiest Place On The Earth

Visitors come from all over the world to see the majestic towering cliffs, magnificent waterfalls, and beautiful meadows of Yosemite National Park. One can enjoy the camping scene or resort atmosphere throughout the shuttle loop in the valley or the quiet seclusion and beauty of the high country.

Welcome to my Yosemite Lens. It has been a joy to me to create this lens. Yosemite has captured my heart and has been the setting for multitudes of camping trips for my family throughout my life. It gives me great pleasure to share my experiences and information about this splendid place.

"Everybody needs beauty as well as bread." -- John Muir

I've been visiting Yosemite National Park almost every year since I was 7 months old and haven't missed too many years in my 69 years on the earth. Many of you, like me, grew up with yearly Yosemite vacations and now you continue the tradition with your extended families. To all of you Yosemite Lovers...take a moment to reminisce.

To those of you who have never been to the Park, please take a few minutes to peruse this lens and learn about one of America's beautiful national parks.

What a spectacular view

You can get to the top of Glacier Point by car or hiking. We would most often travel by car. There were some years some of our party would hike to the top. Wow, what a spectacular view at the top.

In years past, we were even privileged to witness the Firefall. The Firefall is long gone and if you were not in Yosemite in the 50's and 60's or earlier, then you probably do not know what I'm talking about. It looked like a waterfall--only it was a fire being pushed over the cliff from Glacier Point. People would gather at the point and there would be a ranger naturalist program. Then we would listen as a man from Glacier Point and a man from Camp Curry communicated calling out to each other using an amplifying cone. Then we'd watch as the man pushed the large fire and coals over the cliff.

We most often observed the Firefall from the valley. Camp Curry was a popular place to observe the Firefall. There would be a ranger program there also and then the Firefall ceremony.

Click on the History link below to see this awesome photo

A favorite family tradition

Several evenings my parents, my brother and sisters and our extended families would meet at one of the campsites and bring our favorite dinner entries and share with the other families. We also enjoyed stories and singing around the campfire, card games and other games.

A great stress reliever

I remember, as a child, lots of hikes. Once during each trip my Dad would take a day and go out of the valley to fish at El Portal. When Dad went fishing Mom would walk us all over the valley. We'd pack a lunch and stop somewhere near the river for a lunch break. When we got back to camp, we would get ready for a swim at the river near our camp.

In more recent years, I still enjoy the hikes but now we also take our bikes. There are paved bike paths throughout the main traffic areas of the valley.

Easy way to get around the valley

A free shuttle has been available for years--a necessary transportation system to keep automobile traffic to a minimum. We use the shuttle to get to the chapel on Sunday mornings, grocery store to pick up something for our evening dinner, visit the Yosemite Lodge for swimming at the pool or a visit to the gift shop, or just making a "round trip" excursion around the valley loop in the evening.

As an adolescent, I went on a 2-hour horseback ride each year. I remember riding a horse that was in the movies (so the stable hand told me). The horse's name was Blaze and he was in a moving with Clark Gable.

The Yosemite Valley Stable offers guided trips in the valley. Two-hour horseback , half day mule rides and all day mule rides are available.

Particles of granite compose the beautiful beaches

We looked forward to our daily invigorating dip in the river each afternoon. We frequently visited beaches along the Merced River near the campgrounds. Groups of us would raft down the river together and ride the shuttle back.

One of our favorite beaches was on the Merced River below El Capitan. It was a little bit of a distance so we would drive and take our lunch and spend most of the day there.

"But no temple made with hands can compare with Yosemite. Every rock in its walls seems to glow with life...as if into this one mountain mansion Nature had gathered her choicest treasures..."