Yosemite Overview

On June 30, 1864, the bill of an inalienable public trust was signed by President Abraham Lincoln granting the Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias to the State of California. The federal government set a first time history to protect scenic lands for the people to enjoy. A few years later in 1872, Yellowstone became the first official national park. John Muirs struggle against the devastation of the sub-alpine meadows surrounding Yosemite Valley resulted in the creation of Yosemite National Park on October 1, 1890. While the State of California continued to govern the area covered by the original 1864 grant, military units administered the park with headquarters in Wawona. In 1906, dual control of Yosemite came to an end when the State of California receded Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove to the federal government. In 1914, civilian park rangers took over from the military and two years later, on August 25, 1916, through the persistent efforts of Steven Mather and Horace Albright, Congress authorized the creation of the National Park Service to administer all national parks "in such manner and by such means as to leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations."

This is were I spent my vacation and the visit was worth it. I had a lot of fun with my husband camping in Wawona and Soquel campground. Though the campground is not the greatest yet the park is a very beautiful place to visit. I never thought that the heat was that extreme for the first few days we were there and at night the temperature dropped that really you need to wear warmer clothing while sleeping in your sleeping bag. From Thursday until Saturday they had over 100 degree Fahrenheit during the day and at night the temperature dropped to lower 60's in Wednesday and Friday in Wawona campground and between upper 30's and lower 50's Saturday and Sunday in Soquel campground. Can you believe the big temperature change? Well, if you are planning to visit you better be prepared. Good thing is I brought long sleeve clothing, socks, gloves and jacket with me as well as for my husband to keep us warm just in-case. This was our first time visit and we never know what's out there specially if we are out camping.

Our drive wasn't that bad. Usually if we only had a few stops it would only take us at least the minimum of six hours but we stopped to stretch and our little kitty sometimes demand with a very loud meow on the driver's ear which means she needs to get out so we have to stop for a little while. We left first thing in the morning on Wednesday around 6:30 or 7:00am and arrived probably around 2:30 or 3:00pm. Battling with LA traffic, stopped for lunch, gas, stretched and MingMing's kitty break.

Federal regulated is more strict with rules compare to state especially when there are so many black bear around like in Yosemite. Food and anything that are scented needs to be stored in a bear proof locker in your campsite. You have to bear proof your car, this means that you have to take anything that smells in your car stored them in your locker, anything includes lotion, soap, car scent.... etc... etc... The locker is a decent size storage to store the stuff we took with us including two cooler, one food container and a few bags here and there.