This year we had the opportunity to spend Christmas in Yosemite. Our son's family spent the holidays in Canada with his wife's family. It turned into an exceptional time for us since there were no crowds, probably due to covid and a large winter storm bearing down onto the park, the same storm that dropped 16ft of snow up on Donner Pass.

When we arrived, there was only a light layer of snow from a storm that came thru about a week earlier. We wanted a white Christmas and was concerned that the storm might be late. But the storm arrived on Christmas eve, easing our concerns. It started snowing non-stop for the rest of the week dropping about 5-6 ft of snow creating many many beautiful scenes in the park. I know that many in the midwest and east are tired of the snow but it's a treat for some of us out here on the west coast who don't see that much of it.

With all the new snow, the valley turned into a white winter wonderland. This was one of our best visits to the park ever. We spent our time hiking around the valley and up the Merced river toward the falls with cameras in hand. It was a photographer's paradise. It wasn't until after Christmas that I finally saw the photographers descend on the valley. But still the crowds never showed up until we were leaving the following weekend.

I hope you enjoy a few images from our trip. What I found especially fascinating was the interplay of the low clouds with the mountain peaks as they moved thru the valley. Periodically, the clouds would break for just a few moments exposing the near mountain peaks while obscuring the more distant peaks. But it only lasted for a few moments, then it was gone.

This year we had the opportunity to spend Christmas in Yosemite. Our son's family spent the holidays in Canada with his wife's family. It turned into an exceptional time for us since there were no crowds, probably due to covid and a large winter storm bearing down onto the park, the same storm that dropped 16ft of snow up on Donner Pass.

When we arrived, there was only a light layer of snow from a storm that came thru about a week earlier. We wanted a white Christmas and was concerned that the storm might be late. But the storm arrived on Christmas eve, easing our concerns. It started snowing non-stop for the rest of the week dropping about 5-6 ft of snow creating many many beautiful scenes in the park. I know that many in the midwest and east are tired of the snow but it's a treat for some of us out here on the west coast who don't see that much of it.

With all the new snow, the valley turned into a white winter wonderland. This was one of our best visits to the park ever. We spent our time hiking around the valley and up the Merced river toward the falls with cameras in hand. It was a photographer's paradise. It wasn't until after Christmas that I finally saw the photographers descend on the valley. But still the crowds never showed up until we were leaving the following weekend.

I hope you enjoy a few images from our trip. What I found especially fascinating was the interplay of the low clouds with the mountain peaks as they moved thru the valley. Periodically, the clouds would break for just a few moments exposing the near mountain peaks while obscuring the more distant peaks. But it only lasted for a few moments, then it was gone.

This year we had the opportunity to spend Christmas in Yosemite. Our son's family spent the holidays in Canada with his wife's family. It turned into an exceptional time for us since there were no crowds, probably due to covid and a large winter storm bearing down onto the park, the same storm that dropped 16ft of snow up on Donner Pass.

When we arrived, there was only a light layer of snow from a storm that came thru about a week earlier. We wanted a white Christmas and was concerned that the storm might be late. But the storm arrived on Christmas eve, easing our concerns. It started snowing non-stop for the rest of the week dropping about 5-6 ft of snow creating many many beautiful scenes in the park. I know that many in the midwest and east are tired of the snow but it's a treat for some of us out here on the west coast who don't see that much of it.

With all the new snow, the valley turned into a white winter wonderland. This was one of our best visits to the park ever. We spent our time hiking around the valley and up the Merced river toward the falls with cameras in hand. It was a photographer's paradise. It wasn't until after Christmas that I finally saw the photographers descend on the valley. But still the crowds never showed up until we were leaving the following weekend.

I hope you enjoy a few images from our trip. What I found especially fascinating was the interplay of the low clouds with the mountain peaks as they moved thru the valley. Periodically, the clouds would break for just a few moments exposing the near mountain peaks while obscuring the more distant peaks. But it only lasted for a few moments, then it was gone.

Thanks for viewing and your comments. My wife has already determined that the chapel is going to be our Christmas cards next year and I'm not arguing with her. I've taken pictures of that chapel in every season and from almost every possible angle. But I always wanted to get the image while it was snowing. I got extremely lucky to have snow falling and before anybody showed up, including the snow plows, to disturb the scene. But, there are sooooo.. many beautiful scenes in that park that it's hard not to come back with a lots of memories. The challenge is to take images that so many others have taken but make it unique.