Most Australians have heard of Yosemite National Park in California and if you haven't heard of it, it is time to crawl out from under the rock you have been living under. Yosemite National Park by far is one of the most spectacular parks in the world and in 2016, it had a record breaking year of visitors, a staggering 6 million.
We all need to thank a man named, John Muir, for conserving the park and persuading the President of the United States of America, Theodore Roosevelt in 1903 for protection of the park.I highly recommend you obtain one of John Muir's books as it will provide you with a poetic tour of the park.
John Muir said, "It is by far the grandest of all the special temples of Nature I was ever permitted to enter."
It is known for many beauties and what stands out to most people are the granite rocks, especially Half Dome and El Capitan that tower over the Valley and likely what you think of when you think of Yosemite National Park and probably the most photographed sites. It has giant sequoias, ancient sequoia trees, and by far the most "wow" factor entrance is driving through the South Gate entrance from Highway 41, and you will be hit by the beauty of the Tunnel View.
Getting to the park from Australia is made easy these days with frequent flights leaving from all the International airports with Qantas, American Airlines and United Airlines. Keep an eye out for discount flights and snap them up.
When I am back visiting family and friend's in my home country, I always fly out of Sydney to the nearest airport to the park,a small airport (although small you will be greeted by a Starbucks, sorry, you can't avoid them in the U.S!) called Fresno International Airport.From Fresno International Airport, I highly suggest you rent a car and take the 1 hour drive to a town called Oakhurst which offers a variety of hotels, B & B's,Airbnb's and fabulous American restaurants (my favorite is South Gate Brewing Co.,it serves farm to table food, world's best burgers and award winning craft beer, really how can you go wrong).
Getting to the wow site, Tunnel View takes a little over an hour from Oakhurst. It is important to stop at Tunnel View to allow the beauty to absorb you and of course, take lots of photos.
As you will be arriving in Winter, you may have snowy or icy road conditions and unless you want to fork up 5k to Uncle Buck, you better make sure you are carrying snow chains as it is the law. You can rent snow chains from many places in Oakhurst, and it is best for up to date information on the best pricing and availability is stopping in to the Visitor Center
If you do not feel comfortable driving with chains, you can take the YARTS bus from Mariposa which is a 30 minute drive from Oakhurst and travel into the park.
