Yosemite National Park is located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. It is world famous for its breath taking landscapes tinted by the grey of its granite rocks, its forests’ jade green, and its silvery lakes and rivers. It is the third largest park in the United States: 315 km of roads, it is indeed difficult to see everything in one day. Here are our tips to optimize your visit.
Yosemite is the first American natural site to have received state protection. Today it is one of the most visited parks in the United States! In 1899, there were 4,500 visitors a year, while now there are around 3.9 million.
Yosemite national park altitude
The Park has an elevation range from 2,127 to 13,114 feet (648 to 3,997 m).
Remember that the 4 entrances are:
- Big Oak Flat Entrance (west)
- Arch Rock Entrance (southwest)
- South Entrance (south)
- Tioga Pass Entrance (east)
Springs in Yosemite
Here are activities you can do in Yosemite during spring time:
Getting watered by the Bridalveil fall
First stop: As soon as you get out of the car, you can already hear the rumbling of waterfalls. The more we advance, the more the noise intensifies until it completely covers our words. Then, a few meters from here, through the trees, a superb waterfall appears! It’s not the tallest in the park (189m high versus 739m for Yosemite Fall), but it’s already huge for us! A nice introduction that will make your mouth water for the rest!
Admire the view from tunnel view
After this first bluffing stage, we continue towards Tunnel View. This point of view is surely the best known of Yosemite, and it is from here that most of the representative photos of the park are taken!
Skiing at badger pass
Seeing the next stop on the map: “Badger Pass Ski Area”, we understand that it is possible to ski there, but we find it hard to believe it. Indeed, at Tunnel View, no traces of snow apart from a few remain on the summits. We, therefore, continue for about twenty kilometres, the snow is more and more present (but the roads are clear, phew!), then we get to the top!
Stroll to mirror lake
After all these emotions, direction Mirror Lake, a short walk along the river to the lake, today is not a good day: the sky is foggy, and the wind has picked up, but the view is still very beautiful! As the name suggests, this small body of water is known to perfectly reflect the landscape that surrounds it.
New travellers to the USA that are minor
Regardless of age, you are still required to obtain an ESTA travel authorization to travel to the United States. But in this case, how can the application be submitted, and, more precisely, can a child of a suitable age be able to carry out the procedure himself and check ESTA status online?
You will certainly have noticed when you filled out your ESTA application that the online form made available to travellers is reserved exclusively for adults. However, this does not mean that you cannot use it to obtain a residence permit for your children. Rather, a responsible adult must validate the information given to you and answer the questions asked.
Therefore, if a child carries out the procedure alone, the ESTA authorization will be automatically refused. To fill in the application for your child, you simply have to use the classic form but check the box at the end of the form indicating that the application has been filed on behalf of a third party. Obviously, the identity data and the answers to the various questions on the form must relate to the child you are practicing for and not yourself.
Another way to register an ESTA application for your children is to travel to the United States with them. You also need this residence permit to submit a group ESTA application.
This is possible and allows you to fill in the forms for you and your children one after the other.
Suppose you have forgotten to tick the box indicating that you are applying for an ESTA for your child, and you got a refusal. In that case, you can always simply submit a new valid application by allowing a period of 10 days from the notification of refusal received by email. Although this obviously entails additional costs because you will have to pay the processing fees again. You will be required to fill in your ESTA Employment Information when applying.
Stroll through the centre of Yosemite Valley
After that, we arrive at the centre of Yosemite. A short trip to the Yosemite Museum, next to the Visitor Centre. This museum is not very big but is very well done. Everything is explained there, from the formation of the valley to the present day through the Indian occupation and the arrival of the pioneers. Everything is explained there! In addition, the reconstruction of the Indian village outside is a real plus!
Yosemite night hike
You can enjoy a lovely night hike at Yosemite national park. Because there are multiple paths for more or less long walks/hikes. It can be 30 minutes to 1 hour, 2 hours, or even 4-5 hours. It really is according to your desires. Even if It’s 1 hour, you will discover magnificent trees! Once you arrive at the scene, you can get a map with explanations in English (for 50 cents) in order to plan your route.
