Yosemite National Park is a US national park in California, bounded by the Sierra National Forest to the southeast and the

Stanislaus National Forest to the northwest. The park is managed by the National Park Service and covers an area of      759,620 acres

(1,187 sq mi; 3,074 km) and sits in four counties – centered in Tuolumne and Mariposa, Mono to the north and east and Mono to

the south. Extends to Madeira County. Designated as a World Heritage Site in 1984, Yosemite is internationally recognized for its

granite cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams, giant sequoia trees, lakes, mountains, grasslands, glaciers, and biological diversity.

About 95 percent of the park is designated forest. Yosemite is one of the largest and least fragmented habitat blocks in

the Sierra Nevada, and the park supports a diversity of plants and animals.The geology of the Yosemite area is characterized

by granite rocks and older rock remains. About 10 million years ago, the Sierra Nevada was raised and sloped as its unique slopes

increased the steepness of the stream and river bed, resulting in the formation of deep, narrow valleys. High-altitude

glaciers formed about a million years ago that eventually melted and eroded downward, cutting and carving the U-shaped valley that today

attracts so many visitors to its beautiful vistas. Yosemite National Park was discovered in 1851 by European American settlers.