Yosemite National Park occupies 1,190 sq miles of some of the most beautiful landscape in the world, but the the one mile wide by seven mile long valley floor makes up the most popular part of the park. This small section of real estate is where the vast majority of people spend most of their time. During the busy summer months the valley looks more like a crowded metropolitan city park than a dedicated wilderness area.
But why the crowds congregate to this small little plot of land is by no means an accident. They are there because Yosemite Valley provides some of the best scenery to be found anywhere in the world. John Muir called it the "Crown Jewel of the Sierra Nevada"
Weather in Yosemite can range from 100 degrees in the valley during the summer to below zero in the upper elevations of the park during the winter. Yosemite Valley that rests at an elevation of about 4,000 feet has fairly mild temperatures throughout the year, but as you go higher, the temperature (in general) decreases 1 degree Fahrenheit for every 300 feet of elevation gain. Precipitation also increases 2 to 4 inches for each 300 feet of elevation gain reaching a maximum at about 5000 to 6000 feet. You will hit these elevations along the Mist Trail between Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls. Ninety five percent of the precipitation (both in rain and snow form) falls between October and May, with more than half (typically) falling in January, February, and March.
But why the crowds congregate to this small little plot of land is by no means an accident. They are there because Yosemite Valley provides some of the best scenery to be found anywhere in the world. John Muir called it the "Crown Jewel of the Sierra Nevada"
Weather in Yosemite can range from 100 degrees in the valley during the summer to below zero in the upper elevations of the park during the winter. Yosemite Valley that rests at an elevation of about 4,000 feet has fairly mild temperatures throughout the year, but as you go higher, the temperature (in general) decreases 1 degree Fahrenheit for every 300 feet of elevation gain. Precipitation also increases 2 to 4 inches for each 300 feet of elevation gain reaching a maximum at about 5000 to 6000 feet. You will hit these elevations along the Mist Trail between Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls. Ninety five percent of the precipitation (both in rain and snow form) falls between October and May, with more than half (typically) falling in January, February, and March.
THE FOLLOWING IS THE WEATHER FORECAST FOR YOSEMITE VALLEY AT THE 3,998 FT LEVEL
| September | 17 | Thursday Night A 30 percent chance of showers after 11pm. Partly cloudy, with a low around 60. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm. |
| September | 18 | Friday A 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 74. North northwest wind 5 to 15 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. |
| September | 18 | Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 51. West northwest wind around 5 mph becoming east southeast in the evening. |
| September | 19 | Saturday Sunny, with a high near 78. East northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming west southwest in the afternoon. |
| September | 19 | Saturday Night Clear, with a low around 54. West wind 5 to 10 mph becoming light and variable. |
| September | 20 | Sunday Sunny, with a high near 81. East wind 5 to 10 mph becoming southwest in the afternoon. |
| September | 20 | Sunday Night Clear, with a low around 54. West southwest wind 5 to 10 mph becoming east in the evening. |
| September | 21 | Monday Sunny, with a high near 80. East wind 5 to 15 mph becoming southwest in the afternoon. |
| September | 21 | Monday Night Clear, with a low around 54. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph becoming east in the evening. |
| September | 22 | Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 80. East wind 5 to 10 mph becoming west southwest in the afternoon. |
| September | 22 | Tuesday Night Clear, with a low around 55. West wind 5 to 10 mph becoming east northeast after midnight. |
| September | 23 | Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 83. East northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming west southwest in the afternoon. |
| September | 23 | Wednesday Night Clear, with a low around 56. West wind 5 to 10 mph becoming east northeast in the evening. |
| September | 24 | Thursday Sunny, with a high near 84. East wind 5 to 10 mph becoming west southwest in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 15 mph. |
To the left is frozen Ellery Lake (9,489 feet) The Lake is located along the Tioga Road just below the Tioga Pass (9,943 feet) This photo was taken on June 6th, 2010 (opening day for the Tioga Pass Road that year).
When the Tioga Pass Road opens varies from year to year (depending on weather and snow conditions). Tioga Pass is the Eastern entrance to Yosemite National Park. It is the highest highway pass in California and in the Sierra Nevada.
THE FOLLOWING IS THE WEATHER FORECAST FOR TUOLUMNE MEADOWS AT 8,650 FEET
Check out the big temperature drop when comparing the higher elevation of Tuolumne Meadows to the Valley Floor's forecast as noted above.
| September | 17 | Thursday Night A 30 percent chance of showers, mainly after 11pm. Snow level 12000 feet rising to 13100 feet. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 41. West wind 10 to 15 mph. |
| September | 18 | Friday A 40 percent chance of showers. Snow level 12800 feet lowering to 12200 feet in the afternoon . Partly sunny, with a high near 53. Breezy, with a west southwest wind 15 to 25 mph, with gusts as high as 35 mph. |
| September | 18 | Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 31. Breezy, with a southwest wind 20 to 25 mph decreasing to 10 to 15 mph in the evening. Winds could gust as high as 35 mph. |
| September | 19 | Saturday Sunny, with a high near 58. Southwest wind around 5 mph. |
| September | 19 | Saturday Night Clear, with a low around 34. Calm wind becoming south southeast around 5 mph after midnight. |
| September | 20 | Sunday Sunny, with a high near 61. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon. |
| September | 20 | Sunday Night Clear, with a low around 35. Southwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm. |
| September | 21 | Monday Sunny, with a high near 60. South southwest wind around 5 mph. |
| September | 21 | Monday Night Clear, with a low around 35. West southwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm. |
| September | 22 | Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 59. Southwest wind around 5 mph. |
| September | 22 | Tuesday Night Clear, with a low around 37. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm. |
| September | 23 | Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 63. East northeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm. |
| September | 23 | Wednesday Night Clear, with a low around 38. Calm wind becoming southeast around 5 mph after midnight. |
| September | 24 | Thursday Sunny, with a high near 63. Southwest wind around 5 mph. |
Above Weather Report Powered by the National Weather Service
Half Dome Cable Ladder to the Left
Psalm 103:11-13
For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.
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