Yosemite Photo Trips We have had many great times at Yosemite National Park at different times of the year. Summer is very pleasant but horribly crowded. After the flooding of Jan 1997, the park is still in disarray. About 50% of the camping sites have been permanently destroyed. The Yosemite Lodge sustained severe water damage and is just now returning to some semblance of normalcy. Other parts of the park will take years to recover and others may never be the same as in the past. Efforts are under way to control access to the park by eliminating autos entirely. This would be most unfortunate for photographers since the best sites require a lot of mobility and hiking. The Park Service is reported to be spending upwards of $150 million to repair the park. Yosemite is a magical place. What most people think is the "park" is the valley floor area. However, Yosemite National Park extends beyond that area. There are superb areas all along Tioga Pass Road (closed in the Winter), Glacier Point, and Mariposa Redwood stands. We have not been back to the park since the flood so I cannot advise of present conditions. I do know that access is limited as are accomodations. Plan well in advance or prepare to be disappointed. As far as weather is concerned, we prefer the early Winter, late Fall. Later September through mid-October. Storms will arrive rapidly and be very dramatic yet generally not linger more than a day. The valley is a marvelous micro-clime such that you can get unique pictures from just about anywhere in the park. Note that the road to Glacier Point closes when the snows start. Ironically, the best time to shoot the falls is Spring, but the snow and trees are mostly bare. For color and contrast, early Fall is great but the flows are low. This is one of the compromises you will need to make. Here you can see how the weather can change and have a dramatic impact on photos from the same area. As you can see, Yosemite is a very popular place for tourists from all over the World. The Japanese especially travel here by the bus loads. They will jump out, snap a few pix, load back into the bus and be gone. Other groups will go through essentially the same routine. If you set up your tripod, just stand by it while the transient visitors do their thing. All Photographs Copyright © by Gary Gaugler - All Rights Reserved - Use By Permission Only