The Yosemite National Park 



By Mark Daniels 

 Former Superintendent of National Parks 



PERHAPS the greatest blessing which we enjoy in 

 the possession of our scenic reservations is their 

 great diversity of character and the unique indi- 

 viduahty of each. It cannot be said of our National 

 Parks that after you have seen one you have seen all 

 of them, nor can the comparative merits of one be 

 weighed against those of the other. In fact, it is im- 



The Yosemite National Park lies on the western slope 

 of the Sierra Nevada and extends from the end of the 

 foothills to the very crest of these wonderful moun- 

 tains which John Muir has named '"The Range of Light." 

 It was first brought to the attention of the people as 

 an area justifying reservation when it was made a state 

 park by the State of California. The boundaries of the 



possible to honestly state that one is more attractive or state reservation, however, were just enough to enclose 



fascinating than another after the individuality and 

 unique characteristics of each are understood and appre- 

 ciated. It is fair, however, to state that the individuality 

 of the Yosemite National Park is more quickly grasped 

 and will frequently leave the most lasting impression in 

 the mind of the itinerant visitor. 



the Yosemite Valley itself. Perhaps this is the reason 

 why so many consider the Yosemite Valley as consti- 

 tuting all of the National Park instead of its being only, 

 in area, a very small fraction of the reservation, or it 

 may be possible that the innumerable wonders and mar- 

 vels of the Valley itself hold the visitor in silent con- 



LAKE MEkCED AND TRAIL 



Lake Merced lies in the bottom of the Merced Canyon, a few miles above the upper end of the Little Yosemite. Another mountain inn of 

 the Desmond Park Service will be built in the vicinity of this lake, within a few hours' walk from the top of Nevada Falls. 



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