Preparing for your Visit to Yosemite
It's a great idea to prepare for your visit to Yosemite National Park before you arrive. True, you will be given some introductory reading materials as you enter Yosemite. But if you wait until then to think about where to go and what to do, some of your precious Yosemite hours will be spent on something you can do now!
The following items are at the top of my list of pre-visit reading suggestions:
- Download and read Yosemite Today, a free park newspaper.
- Order a Visitor Kit from the Yosemite Association.
- Explore the Web sites of Yosemite National Park and the Yosemite Association.
Read on for more information!
Yosemite Today
Yosemite Today is an Adobe Acrobat® document. You will need the free Adobe® Reader® to view and print it.
[ Obtain the free Adobe Reader ]
Adobe and Acrobat are trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated.
Yosemite Today, a free newspaper available at park entrances, ranger stations, and other locations in the park, is your indispensable key to current park information. It lists ranger talks, facilities, services, and phone numbers, and provides much general information. Be sure to obtain and read a current copy of this publication when you arrive at Yosemite.
In addition, I strongly recommend that, right now, you download and print both the current version and the version that was current one year before the date of your planned visit (because many activities and services are seasonal). The information in these documents will allow you to plan your visit to Yosemite much more effectively.
[ View and print Yosemite Today ]
Visitor Kits from the Yosemite Association Bookstore
The online Yosemite Store offers two excellent visitor kits for purchase:
The Yosemite Visitor Kit is a collection of books, maps, and other information, most published by the Yosemite Association. It includes:
- The Complete Guidebook to Yosemite National Park
- Map & Guide to Yosemite Valley
- Map & Guide to Tuolumne Meadows
- Map & Guide to Wawona & the Mariposa Grove of Big Trees
- Yosemite Road Guide
- Yosemite: Your Complete Guide to the Park
- Yosemite Today
The Deluxe Visitor Kit includes everything in the Yosemite Visitor Kit plus the following three items:
- Destination Map - Yosemite National Park, from National Geographic, is printed on waterproof, tear-proof plastic and detailed with shaded relief, park roads, trails, and points of interest. Besides suggested itineraries for one, two, and three-day visits, there are inset maps of Yosemite Valley, Tuolumne Meadows, and Wawona.
- Easy Day Hikes in Yosemite: Twenty Enjoyable Trails
- The Waterfalls of Yosemite
You can go to the online Yosemite Store now to order your kit or other items. The Yosemite Store is operated by the Yosemite Association, a nonprofit organization that benefits Yosemite National Park. Members of the Yosemite Association qualify for a discount when ordering from the Yosemite Store, and you can become a member as you place your order.
Yosemite National Park Web site
This site is the Yosemite section of the National Park Service Web site. The National Park Service is in the US Department of the Interior.
- Main page
- Plan Your Visit
- Backpacking
- Today in Yosemite
- Park Management
- Park News
- Nature and Science
- History and Culture
- For Teachers
- For Kids
- Working in the Park
- Support Your Park
Yosemite Association Web site
The Yosemite Association is a not-for-profit educational organization dedicated to the support of Yosemite National Park. Among other things, it sells printed materials, presents educational "outdoor adventures", and operates information stations within Yosemite. [ more ]
- Main page
- Visitor Information
- Trip Planning
- Camping
- Lodging
- Wilderness Travel
- Weather (current and forecast weather, weather statistics, and monthly average temperatures and precipitation for Yosemite Valley)
- Membership
- Seminars (Yosemite Outdoor Adventures)
- Virtual Yosemite
- Nature Notes
- Newsroom
- Bookstore
- Diary
- Links
More Information in Advance
The following links give you a direct route to information that specifically interests you.
Other Yosemite Resources on the Web
- DNC Parks & Resorts at Yosemite. This organization is the authorized concessionaire for hospitality services within Yosemite.
- Yosemite Institute: a private non-profit organization dedicated to providing educational adventures in "nature's classroom".
- Yosemite Fund: the primary non-profit fundraising organization for Yosemite. The mission of The Yosemite Fund is to provide private funding for specific projects that further preserve, protect or enhance Yosemite National Park.
- American Park Network: online and printed guides to many U.S. national parks.
- YARTS: bus (coach) shuttle services to and from Yosemite
- Road and Travel Conditions from the California Department of Transportation (CalTrans)
- Yosemite.com: a commercial Web site with much information about visiting Yosemite.
Other US National Parks Resources on the Web
Other Related Resources on the Web
- American Hiking Society
- Bureau of Indian Affairs
- Bureau of Land Management
- Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics
- National Recreation and Park Association
- Natural Resources Conservation Service
- The Nature Conservancy
- Pacific Crest Trail Association
- Recreation.gov
- Sierra Club
- Student Conservation Association
- Take Pride in America
- Travelers' Health from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- United States Army Corps of Engineers
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
- U.S. Geological Survey
- USDA Forest Service
- Wilderness.net
- Wilderness Society
- Wilderness Volunteers
