Winter Forest in Yosemite Valley

Figure 1. Forest in Yosemite Valley, CA.

While most people visit Yosemite in spring and summer, winter provides another spectacle in Yosemite Valley. The snow covered scenery looks as though this is another Yosemite National Park.

Unfortunately, not every winter in Yosemite, especially Yosemite Valley, lives up to expectation. The snow line is about 4,000 feet, where Yosemite Valley sits. The snow accumulation can be quite irregular in the valley, though they are regular in the high country. So in some years Yosemite Valley in winter looks great, but in others it doesn't. Even in a good year with snow, the scenery looks best before it starts to melt. Typically, I like to go on a sunny day after a snow storm. This means I have to check the weather forecast regularly. In addition, Yosemite website provides live cam and you can have a look and see if it is good enough. Basically, it is a planned trip for photography.

When the condition is right, every photo just seems to work. I started to shift my attention to smaller scenes in recent years such as these two photos taken during 2012-2013 winter. I tried to get something more during 2013-2014 winter. It is certainly a dry winter and it doesn't look as good as last year. Hopefully it can snow more next winter.


Figure 2. Forest from Northside Drive.