Yosemite National Park Facts

"I have seen persons of emotional temperament stand with tearful eyes, spellbound and dumb with awe, as they got their first view of the Valley from Inspiration Point, overwhelmed in the sudden presence of the unspeakable, stupendous grandeur."
Galen Clark, guardian of the Yosemite Grant

History of the National Park
The history of Yosemite National Park is fascinating. The area that now is the Yosemite National Park was previously a valley of hills and the Merced river flowed languidly through these hills. Gradually, the Merced river started flowing speedily due to geological changes in the valley. As a result of this, the hills grew higher and higher. Glaciation took place, which brought major changes in the geography of the Yosemite valley and formed the valley that we see today. Humans discovered the Yosemite valley in 1833. Thomas Ayers, an artist, visited the Yosemite valley in 1855. He sketched many pictures, depicting the beauty of the valley that led to the "Yosemite Valley Grant Act", which was signed by President Abraham Lincoln, in 1864, which granted the permission for the formation of a national park in this area. The sincere efforts of John Muir, a naturalist, and Galen Clark, the Yosemite National Park was formed on 1st October, 1890.

Location and Area
The Yosemite National Park is situated in Sierra Nevada that is located in the east-central part of California. The park is spread over a vast area of 750,000 acre (1,200 miles), with streams that are 1,600 miles long, hiking trails that are 800 miles and the roads that extend to 350 miles.

Climate
The climate of Yosemite National Park is of Mediterranean type, with cold winters, hot summers, mild springs and chilly falls. In summer, the climate is usually dry and it rains occasionally. The winter is cold, snowy and sunny at times. The spring and fall are highly unpredictable. The weather during spring can be sunny and warm with seldom winter storms; while that in fall can be very hot to moderately cold, accompanied with rainfall or snowfall. The average annual rainfall and snowfall in the area is 37.9 and 61.9 inches, respectively. The table illustrates the months through which the seasons last and the temperature during these seasons.

Season	Months	Minimum Temperature (Degree Celsius)	Maximum Temperature (Degree Celsius)
Summer	June to September	8 to 9	28 to 30
Fall	October and November	0 to 4	14 to 23
Winter	December to March	-3 to 0	9 to 15
Spring	April and May	2 to 5	18 to 23

Tourists
The first tourists to Yosemite valley were, Thomas Ayres and James M. Hutchins, in 1855. Charles Leander Weed, a photographer, became the first person ever, to take photographs of the Yosemite valley, in 1859. The Yosemite National Park has 3.5 million tourists every year. Tourists prefer to visit the national park during summer.

Fauna
Over 300 species of animals can be found in the Yosemite National Park, out of which black bears are found in abundance. More than 150 species of birds have made the park, their habitat. The list of animals and birds found in the national park is given below.

Animals

• Cougars
• Mule Deer
• Beaver
• Fox
• Squirrel
• Marmots
• Bobcats

Birds

• Spotted owl
• Jays
• Nutcrackers
• Thrushes
• Goshawks
• Golden eagle
• Bald eagle
• Woodpeckers
• Chickadees

Flora
A variety of plants can be found in the Yosemite National Park, as it is situated at a considerable height above sea level, the elevation being 2,000 to 11,000 feet. The list of trees found here is given below.

• Black Oak
• White Bark Pine
• Lodgepole Pine
• Red Fir
• Ponderosa pine
• White Fir
• Douglas Fir
• Giant Sequoia

The flowers that enhance the beauty of the park are monkey flowers, shooting stars, owl's clover, violets, lupines, milkweed, paintbrushes, goldenrod and many others.

Waterfalls
The Yosemite National Park is adorned by a number of waterfalls. The following table gives a brief information about these waterfalls.

Name	Month of Peak Flow	Height
Yosemite Falls	May	2,425 feet
Chilnualna Falls	May	2,200 feet
Ribbon Fall	May	1,612 feet
Wapama Falls	May	1,400 feet
Horsetail Fall	April	1,000 feet
Bridalveil Fall	May	620 feet
Nevada Fall	Late May	594 feet
Illilouette Fall	Late May	370 feet
Vernal Fall	Late May	317 feet

Other Facts About the Yosemite National Park
The Mariposa Grove is the largest Sequoia Grove in the park and Tuolumne meadows present at a height of 8,600 feet is the largest sub-alpine meadow. The Yosemite Fall is the highest waterfall in North America, while it stands third in the highest waterfalls on the earth. Mt. Lyell is the highest point, while Mt. Conness and Mt. Dana are the highest peaks in this park.

The various activities that you can do enjoy at the Yosemite National Park include, hiking, biking, fishing, climbing, bird watching, including skiing in winter. So plan a trip to the national park, and be enthralled and captivated by beauty of nature.