Yosemite Reservations

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YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK CELEBRATES EARTH DAY WITH INTERACTIVE FAMILY EVENTS
Yosemite News Release
17 April 2008
DATE: Friday, April 18 through Sunday, April 20 and Tuesday, April 22, 2008

LOCATION: Yosemite Valley & Wawona, Yosemite National Park

EVENT SUMMARY: Yosemite National Park will celebrate Earth Day with four days of special events geared to educate and enlighten young and old regarding environmental best practices, eco-friendly products, nature exhibits and interpretive programs.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:

Friday, April 18, 2008 - Launch of Earth Day Weekend!
7:00pm - 8:30pm Earth Day Family Night! Join Park interpreters and educators for an evening of song, entertainment and fun - launch the Earth Day weekend off right! Yosemite Lodge at the Falls Amphitheatre.

Saturday, April 19, 2008
8:30am - 9:30am Family Nature Walk at Wawona. Spend an hour around Wawona with the family using all your senses to discover the wonder of our critters in Yosemite. Meet at the Wawona Hotel Fountain — walk will last 1 hour.

9:00am Photography Walk with the Ansel Adams Gallery (AAG). Join a photographer from the AAG for a walk around the park. Information/sign ups at the AAG.

10:30am - 2:30pm
Yosemite Village Mall Celebration. Wander between the Village Store and the Visitor Center to learn more about the National Park Service’s (NPS) bear patrol and sustainability practices, electric vehicles from the Delaware North Companies Parks and Resorts at Yosemite’s (DNC) transportation fleet, Yosemite Institute, Yosemite Association, DNC’s “GreenPath” efforts, and more. Stop by and pick up your Yosemite Earth Day souvenir!
Children’s Tent. Make crafts from recycled products! Face painting, drawing & activities.
Earth-Friendly Products. The Village Store sells nearly 200 organic or sustainable items, and over 40 percent of its cleaning products are environmentally friendly. Stop by the Village Mall to visit with vendors and receive free samples.

11:30am - 12:00pm Porch Talk: Ansel Adams the Conservationist. Join Evan Russel on the side steps of the AAG to hear about the environmental contributions of this great man.

12:00pm - 2:00pm Sustainable “Salad Bar” Tasting. DNC has a company-wide initiative to incorporate sustainable practices into all business decisions. Come by the tables in front of the Visitor Center to sample some of the organic and sustainable foods used within DNC’s kitchens.

1:00pm - 2:00pm Earth Day Cake & Lemonade. Enjoy Earth Day Cake in front of the Valley Visitor Center!

2:00pm Earth Day Family Walk - Energy and Evolution: Nature’s Power Sources. Bring the entire family for a journey through time that will take you from the farthest reaches of the vast universe to the inside of the tiniest flower in Yosemite Valley. Learn the connections they each share. Meet in front of Valley Visitor Center.

4:30pm – 5:45pm Poetry and Parks: A Walk and Reading. NPS Ranger Margaret Eissler will take visitors on an easy stroll sharing poetry readings. Meet on The Ahwahnee’s south lawn.

8:00pm - 9:00pm American Indian Stories and Flute. Join NPS Ranger Ben Cunningham-Summerfield to learn more about Yosemite’s Miwok culture. Yosemite Lodge at the Falls Amphitheatre.

Sunday, April 20, 2008
Yosemite Valley Activities
10:00am - 12:00pm: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams Walking Tour. Join an Ansel Adams Gallery staff photographer on a walk retracing Ansel’s footsteps around the valley floor. Learn insight about his philosophies and techniques as you visit a number of locations from which Ansel Adams composed images that helped motivate the American environmental movement, and which inspired reverence for the Earth’s unique gestures. Sign up/info at the AAG.
8:00pm Planet Earth: Seasonal Forest.Come discover other locations in the world that share Yosemite’s most important ecosystem — the temperate forests. From the award winning Discovery Channel miniseries “Planet Earth”, this film will travel the globe illustrating the unique adaptations that life exhibits in order to survive the harsh seasonal changes that come with these forests. Yosemite Lodge at the Falls Amphitheatre.
Wawona Activities
10:00am Golf Course Talk. Did you know Wawona operates a golf course that is certified with the Audubon Society? Come meet at the Golf Shop for a short talk about what DNC does to take care of Yosemite, while still offering a place “fore” golfers!
6:00pm - 7:30pm Earth Day Craft. Join Interpreters at the Wawona Sunroom to make your own free Earth Day craft! All ages welcome; a guardian must accompany children.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - Earth Day, 2008!
9:00am - 11:00am Stewardship Project. Join Yosemite Resources Management and Science staff for an Earth Day work party. Assist in the restoration of the majestic meadows and open spaces of Yosemite Valley by removing non-native Himalayan blackberry to allow native plants and animals to reclaim the areas. Meet in front of the Visitor Center and we’ll provide all tools and gloves. Closed-toe shoes required.

2:00pm - 5:00pm Pedal, Play and Protect Bike Ride. JoinPark staff for this fun and educational scavenger hunt by bicycling to Valley sites to learn about earth-friendly projects and initiatives in Yosemite. Cost is $5/person, which includes bike rental (participants may also use their own bike). Advance reservations required. Info/tickets at any tour desk.

7:00pm - 9:00pm EarthDance Film Festival. Presented by the Oakland Museum of California, EarthDance is the largest collection of environmental shorts in the USA. Join us for films recounting personal stories that invite you to celebrate and explore your relationship to the natural world. Donations will be accepted as admission; Visitor Center Theatre.

MORE INFORMATION: For more information regarding Yosemite’s 2008 Earth Day events and activities, call 209-372-1445. For information on lodging, reservations and other park activities, contact Reservations at 801-559-4949 or go online at http://www.yosemitepark.com/ ( http://www.yosemitepark.com/ ).