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Yosemite National Park embraces a spectacular tract of mountain-and-valley
scenery in the Sierra Nevada, which was set aside as a national park in
1890. The park harbors a grand collection of waterfalls, meadows, and forests
that include groves of giant sequoias, the world's largest living things.
Highlights of the park include Yosemite Valley, and its high cliffs and
waterfalls; Wawona's history center and historic hotel; the Mariposa Grove,
which contains hundreds of ancient giant sequoias; Glacier Point's (summer-fall)
spectacular view of Yosemite Valley and the high country; Tuolumne Meadows
(summer-fall), a large subalpine meadow surrounded by mountain peaks; and
Hetch Hetchy, a reservoir in a valley considered a twin of Yosemite Valley.
Yosemite National Park was established on 01 October 1890, and is the Nation's
third oldest national park. The park was established for the purpose of
preservation of the resources that contribute to its uniqueness and attractiveness.
Congress recognized the importance of preserving this great park for future
public enjoyment when it established Yosemite National Park. Yosemite National
Park is a showcase of spectacular geological features, including the greatest
concentration of granite domes in the world and the largest exposed granite
monolith in the world. The first application of a park concept originated
in Yosemite with the grant of 1864 (Federal land given to California for
preservation) signed by Abraham Lincoln and since that time the park has
played an important role in pioneering park management concepts. Yosemite
National Park possesses outstanding recreational values and supreme scenic
attractions, including alpine and subalpine wilderness, three groves of
giant sequoia trees and thundering waterfalls that are among the world's
highest. Yosemite was the birthplace of the idea of the Sierra Club and
plays an important role in wildlife preservation and preserving biological
diversity. Yosemite National Park is a world heritage site which has made
a significant contribution to California's cultural heritage, to the national
park movement, and to Yosemite's 4,000 years of cultural heritage by Native
Americans. The park provides solitude and inspiration and serves as an outdoor
classroom for environmental education.
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