This will go down as one of Yosemite's best years.   The heavy snowfall in the high country means the falls will be flowing well into the season.  Though the drought of the last 5 years killed off many of the pines in the valley, spring of 2017 has seen much of the park return to it's lush greenery.   It's stunning in the valley and we are in the midst of one of the best dogwood blooms in years.  

Dogwoods of the SierraEach springtime a small somewhat ordinary tree that grows below the pine trees shows off in a beautiful floral display of Dogwood Flowers. The bright white blooms of the Sierra Dogwoods brighten up the forest and valley floors near streams. Yosemite Valley is especially beautiful when decorated in these delicate white flowers which bloom along the Merced and a number of other streams where shade from evergreens dominates the sky. Later the flowers will turn to berries and in Autumn the trees will once again put on a display of colors as the trees turn from green, yellow, orange to bright red before going into winter hibernation. For a short time the trees will continue to bloom below the waterfalls and then moving up the cliffs to higher elevations.

With the large amount of snow in the Sierra, Yosemite Valley has turned lush again and that means the Dogwoods are back and boy are they back.   They are blooming throughout Yosemite and that includes the Valley floor.    It's a great time to make a trip but be aware there is still a lot of work going on in the park.  The roads have a number of detours and the main parking lot is still under construction.   Spring crowds are showing up and there may be long waits at the gates.  

Don't you hate it when you visit a site and it says "under construction" and there isn't much of anything to see?  Well, that is not the case this time.  You can still visit all my images and browse the store but there are a few changes under the works, and one is, of course, this blog which will feature new images, where I am and what I am doing, and maybe if I get ambitious some tutorials.  

-Darv

Darvin Atkeson
YosemiteLandscapes.com