Yosemite National Park

Yosemite National Park is located in the west of Sierra Nevada, California. Local magnificent landscapes with a huge number of lakes, forests, meadows and mountains are somewhat reminiscent of panoramas of the Alpine mountains.

The picturesque valley is divided into two parts by the river Merced, the magnificent banks of which have inspired many artists and photographers. And in the heart of the valley - quarries up to half a mile deep, at the bottom of which sparkle millennial glaciers.

It is believed that the first Europeans appeared in the western Sierra Nevada in the 1830s, and a more detailed study of these territories began 20 years later. The excitement broke out in the middle of the XIX century, when gold was discovered at the foot of the Sierra Nevada hills. Many thousands of gold miners poured here in an endless stream in pursuit of profit and in search of luck. As a result, a war broke out with local Indian tribes, which, however, a few years later was stopped. Gradually, the economic development of the valley and the development of tourist infrastructure began.

Inspired by the incredible beauty of Yosemite and alarmed by the powerful pressure of industrial development of the valley, politicians and public figures appealed to the US Congress with a proposal to give it official status.

And on June 30, 1864, President Lincoln signed a decree granting the status of a national treasure not only to the Yosemite Valley, but also to the Mariposa grove with unique giant sequoias.