Yosemite Valley

Seven miles long by one mile wide at its broadest, its walls near-vertical and hemmed in by mile-high cliffs, the Yosemite Valley is what most visitors think of when they say "Yosemite." Yosemite Valley is accessible year round.

The best way to get around Yosemite Valley is by using the free shuttle service. Just leave your car near your hotel or in the campground if you're staying in Yosemite Valley or follow the signs and park in the day-use parking lots near Yosemite Village or Curry Village if you're coming in from outside.

Yosemite Valley Sights

Yosemite Valley sights in the order you encounter them, starting on Southside Drive:

• Tunnel View: This popular turnout gives a view of Yosemite Valley before you get to it. From here you can see Bridalveil Falls, Half Dome and El Capitan all at once. Photos from Tunnel View are best in the late afternoon though sunset.

• Bridalveil Falls: A slender, 600-foot-high waterfall that flows all year long. The base is a quarter mile walk from the parking area.

• Curry Village: Facilities here include a grocery store, bike rentals, a gift shop, showers, lodging and a couple of places to eat.

• Yosemite Village: Home of the visitor center, Ansel Adams Gallery and Yosemite Museum. You'll also find shops, restaurants, an ATM machine and a post office here.

• Ahwahnee Hotel: This elegant, old hotel's public spaces are so beautiful that it's worth a visit even if you aren't sleeping there.

• Yosemite Falls: Two waterfalls that, along with the cascade between form the highest falls in North America at 2,500 feet. The Yosemite valley shuttle bus stops at the trailhead. The falls are at their wettest in the spring when the snow starts to melt, but they may stop running altogether by later summer.

• El Capitan: At 3,600 feet tall, it's the world's largest single piece of exposed granite. To get a better idea of its size, get as close as you can to the base, and use your binoculars to check climbers who look like tiny insects scaling its face.

• Valley View Turnout: Near the park exit traveling west along Northside Drive, you'll find this turnout, which has one of the best views of the valley.

If you'd like to get a little closer to nature but don't want to attempt a long, strenuous hike, try one of our easy Yosemite Valley hikes.

You can get excellent views of Yosemite Valley from Glacier Point.

If you're curious about how Yosemite Valley was formed, Roadside Geology of Yosemite Valley gives a mile-by-mile description of area's natural history.