Visiting Yosemite: Expert How-To Tips

Above, a sunrise view of Yosemite Valley from Tunnel View. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

To get more enjoyment out of a visit to Yosemite National Park with how-to tips, The Seattle Times enlisted the sage advice from a former park ranger and a videographer.

The article offers advice on such topics as hiking, sight-seeing, camping, dining, lodging and tours.

Above, Degnan's in Yosemite Village offers pizza and sandwiches, among other treats. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The sub-heading of the article:

Here are useful ideas from a former Mount Rainier climbing ranger, now in top brass at Yosemite, along with tips from an avid videographer working in the highly popular California park.

The article itself begins with:

 “ … the mighty Sierra, miles in height … so gloriously colored and so radiant, it seemed not clothed with light but wholly composed of it, like the wall of some celestial city.”
— John Muir, “The Yosemite” (1912) 

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, California — Any visit to Yosemite, even for just a day, can deliver a jolt to the senses or a tonic for the soul. So imagine what it would be like to actually live within Yosemite’s boundaries, as Muir did from 1868 to 1874. 

“It’s one of the pinnacle places to live if you’re a mountain person,” says Mike Gauthier, who in 19 years at Washington’s Mount Rainier (1990-2009) rose to chief climbing ranger and search-and-rescue coordinator before beginning a seven-year stint as chief of staff at Yosemite. 

“It’s one of the most incredible valleys on the planet,” Gauthier says. “It’s very special to live here. I know it’s a gift. I know it’s memorable. I know it’s significant. I’m struck by that every single day.” 

Steven Bumgardner, meanwhile, a videographer who since 2005 has been documenting the Yosemite experience in a distinctive interpretive film series, “Yosemite Nature Notes,” is routinely reminded of how deeply both he, a local, and visitors resonate with Yosemite’s near-mystical vibe.

Above, deer in Yosemite Village. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

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