Zen Den Friday

Yosemite National Park was established in 1890 through the efforts of John Muir. In this Zen Den, you can take a peaceful virtual tour through gentle giant Sequoias, past waterfalls and through the soft light peering through the sky-brushing branches. A few interesting facts about Yosemite:

• Giant Sequoias which grow in Yosemite National Park are the biggest living things on the planet. However, the seed for the Giant Sequoia is only the size of a piece of oatmeal. Grizzly Giant is the name of the oldest Sequoia in Yosemite Park.
• Yosemite Park was the first area of land set aside by the US government for preservation and protection.
• Though Half Dome and El Capitan are Yosemite’s most well known summits, Mt. Lyell is actually Yosemite’s highest peak.
• Yosemite National Park covers nearly 1,200 square miles. However, only a tiny fraction of that land is traversed by visitors. The vast majority of the park is largely untouched and uninhabited by humans.
• California has approximately 7,000 known plant species. Yosemite contains twenty percent of those species.
• Galen Clark was the first designated Guardian of Yosemite. He used to hike through the park barefoot and was quoted as saying that shoes are “cruel and silly instruments of torture, at once uncivilized, unhuman and unnecessary.”

Check out more Zen Dens at Explore.org.