Imagine forests of snow-covered trees and the famous Yosemite spires and domes covered with their own delicious white frosting. If the views won’t do it, try this. Yosemite comes alive in winter. It may be its best season of all.

Step into Ranger Shelton Johnson’s outdoor theater. It was 19 degrees at snowy Ahwahnee Meadow recently, and he was speaking almost poetically about the stormy end of autumn.

“Last week, it looked like Vincent van Gogh had been here, painting the alders, Pacific dogwood, cottonwood and California black oak,” he said. “Then on Monday, poof, the trees are covered in white.

Yosemite’s Chefs’ Holidays® at The Ahwahnee®, held each year in January and February, feature some of the world’s most innovative and acclaimed chefs. These culinary adventures provide a showcase for the range of styles, personalities and trends that characterize the American cuisine scene.