Yosemite+National+Park

By: Britney P.

Yosemite is commonly known for its waterfalls. But, you can also find deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient, giant sequoias, a wilderness area, and much more!

Location/Size/Distance [[image:800px-Yosemite_Valley.JPG width="480" height="360" align="right" caption="Yosemite Valley"]]
Yosemite is located on the Sierra Nevadas of California. It is 761,266.28 square miles. Yosemite is 26 hours and 50 minutes or 1738.99 miles away from my house.



Park Hours
Yosemite is open twenty-four hours and 365 days but, Hetch Hetchy Entrance is only open during daylight and some roads may be closed due to snowfall. The visitor center is open between 9:00- 5:00 p.m. Wilderness Information Center Phone number is: 209-372-0200.

Climate
During the winter the temperature is around 39 degrees Fahrenheit with about a precipitation of 6.2 inches. Spring is around 51 degrees Fahrenheit with a precipitation around 3.2 inches and in summer it's around 70.5 degrees Fahrenheit with only 0.4 inches of precipitation. In the fall it is around 55 degrees Fahrenheit with about 2.5 inches of precipitation. For higher elevations, subtract ten to twenty degrees Fahrenheit from the averages above.

History
Yosemite became a national park on October 1, 1890 with the help of Theodore Roosevelt. Yosemite's first people there were probably Native Americans who may have lived on Yosemite as many as 10,000 years ago! The areas most recent tribe was Ahwahneechee. They named Yosemite "Ahwahnee" of "place of the gaping mouth." These Native Americans were frequent traders with the tribes of the eastern side of the Sierra. The discovery of gold in California's foothills brought in the first non-native settlers to Yosemite Valley around 1850. Conflict happened between the newcomers and the native population over resources. In 1851 battalion of troops entered Yosemite on a mission to search for the Native Americans to end the conflict.

Facts
When it opened to public on May 29, 1926 Yosemite became the first museum building in the nationwide park system. Giant sequoias are fire-adapted species. Their bark is fire resistant. Yosemite and Huangshan are sister parks.

Things to see
When visiting Yosemite you may see valleys, animals (bears, etc.), flowers (plants, etc.), habitats and much wildlife.

Things to do
When your here you may bike ride, bird watch, fish, hike, horseback ride, go picnicking, rock climb, water activities, winter sports, and much more depending on the season.

Resources
[|**http://www.nps.gov/yose**][|**http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yosemite_National_Park**] [] [] __ http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page __

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