Welcome to Yosemite National Park! Yosemite is one of the many national parks in the state of California, but is debatably the most beautiful.

In addition to being a National Park, after the founding of the National Park Service in 1916, Yosemite is a World Heritage site, making it protected not only by the United States, but by the United Nations as well.

During the California Gold Rush, more and more European-Americans were coming to California, which caused competition between the regional Paiute and Miwok tribes and miners. In an attempt to surpress Native American resistance, United States Army Major Jim Savage led a batallion into Yosemite Valley, accompanied by Dr. Lafayette Bunnell, who took accounts of the surroundings. The correspondance and articles written by these men popularized the area's natural beauty, inspiring more tourism. Regarding the Native Americans, the United States Army captured Ahwahneechee chief Tenaya and some of other members of the tribe, and sent them to a reservation, whereas other Natives did not fight American troops.

Today, Yosemite National Park is a tourist attraction known for its natural beauty. In terms of activities, it mostly focuses on hiking, climbing, and in the winter, downhill skiing. However there are also opportunities for biking and other activies within this park (all information courtesy of Wikipedia.com, image courtesy of Amadscientist / CC BY-SA).