YOSEMITE, CALIFORNIA : JULY 2010 : ATTRACTIONS

The view driving in to Yosemite

Yosemite : Just the drive in to Yosemite offers beautiful vistas as you drive along the very curvy and hilly road. There is a $20 vehicle fee, good for 7 consecutive days.

Half Dome

Many of the famous Yosemite sights such as Half Dome and El Capitan can be seen from the roads in the Yosemite Valley area.

Us in the Tunnel Tree

Tuolumne Grove : Since we entered the park from CA-120, the ranger at the entrance suggested we stop at Tuolumne Grove on our way in to Curry Village, where we were staying. This proved to be good advice since the parking lot there filled up quickly. The trail is 1-mile one way and is downhill to the grove and uphill back to the trailhead.

The trail took us to a beautiful sequoia grove including the “Dead Giant,” the first tree to be tunneled in the park. In 1878, a tunnel was cut through the already dead tree stump so that wagons could pass through it. The tree is approximately thirty feet in diameter at the base, and it has been dead for over 100 years!

Mariposa Grove and Merced Groves are also sequoia groves located in Yosemite.

Bridalveil Fall is easy .5 mile round trip, paved trail

Lower Yosemite Fall an easy 1.1 mile loop trail with views of both Lower and Upper Yosemite Falls

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Jamestown : Jamestown is about an hour and a half from the main part of Yosemite.

View from the porch off our hotel room.

We decided to stay in Jamestown the night before we went in to Yosemite, rather than driving from Pigeon Point to Yosemite. Jamestown is a cute little western-style town. It has several shops that close at 5 pm, so we didn’t get to go in them.

To see more photos of Yosemite and Jamestown, go to: Yosemite photos on Flickr.

Want to sleep and eat? Here's my post on lodging and dining in Yosemite and Jamestown.

YOSEMITE, CALIFORNIA : JULY 2010 : LODGING + DINING

Yosemite : There a plenty of lodging options inside the park, most of it pricey and booked far in advance. We were lucky to get a canvas tent cabin (wood floor, canvas sides and top) in Curry Village on short notice (7 weeks before).

The downside was that there are several hundred of these cabins in close proximity to each other, and unless you are staying in one of the motels or lodges, you have to keep all of your food and toiletry items in a bear-proof container located outside of the cabin. During the night we were awoken by the sound of a bear attempting to get in to one of the containers, luckily it wasn’t the one outside of our cabin.

There are many food options in Yosemite, ranging from snack shops to fancy restaurants. We ate at a breakfast buffet at the dining pavilion in Curry Village.

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The hotel we stayed at in Jamestown

Jamestown : Jamestown is about an hour and a half from the main part of Yosemite.
We stayed at the Americas Best Value Inn & Suites Royal Carriage Inn. It was a cute, Victorian-styled hotel, and we had access to the second-floor balcony that looked out over the main street.
Unlike the shops, most of the restaurants are open past 5 pm. We didn’t eat at any of them, but did sit on the hotel balcony and listened to the live music playing at the restaurant across the street.

Looking for something fun to do? Here’s my post on attractions in Yosemite and Jamestown.