Tunnel View Photos – Yosemite Valley At Its Best

Yosemite’s most popular tourist vista – arrive at the right time, and capture unforgettable waterfall landscapes. Arrive a bit later – you’ll battle the heat, the crowds…and be stuck with a bland, dried up trickle. Here are some Tunnel View photos to illustrate the change in seasons…

From above in early May, through a manzanita tree - Tunnel View Photos — Up above Tunnel View in early May

Tunnel View In Spring

Yosemite Valley with Bridalveil Fall Flowing Strong, late April - Tunnel View photos (Black and White) — Yosemite Valley with Bridalveil Fall Flowing Strong

Ding ding ding! You’ve hit the jackpot, my friend. In spring you’ll find temperate weather, a green valley, beautifully flowing Bridalveil Fall, and light to moderate tourist crowds. The two photos above reflect this…

Late May tourist crowds on sunny day - Tunnel View photos — Growing tourist crowds (& diminishing falls)

By late spring / early summer, the crowds start to increase…and the waterfall begins to grow thinner and thinner. Notice the difference?

Summer

By August’s monsoon season, the water slows down to a trickle. Admittedly, the clouds are nice to add some drama to the scenery, though. If you’re wondering about Fall, it’s no better (in terms of flow). However, crowds will have thankfully decreased by then.

Highway 41 (Wawona Rd) and dried up waterfall view — Highway 41 and dried up waterfall view

This picture shows Bridalveil Fall almost completely dry. It’s even hard to make out when you quickly scan over the valley.

Winter

Beautiful dusting on the peaks + low flowing Bridalveil Fall in December — Beautiful dusting on the peaks

Winter snow brings a beautiful blanket to Yosemite Valley’s granite mountaintops. If you’re lucky, there’s a chance that a warm winter could melt some of that snow and add a little oomph to Bridalveil Fall. Don’t hold your breath, though.

More than likely it’s done until the first few warm days of spring the following year…so plan carefully!

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About My Photos

The images on this website are available for licensing and/or sale as framed prints. If you’d like to purchase them for a blog, news article, or gift, feel free to contact me with the specifics. This way you’re supporting photographers such as me directly (as opposed to buying from a faceless stock photo corporation).

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– Nathan Allen

About Me

I’m Nathan Allen, photographer / creator of YosemiteParkPhotos.com (Yosemite Photos) and international travel site I Dreamed Of This. In truth, I lived in San Francisco, New York, & Singapore…but nothing compares to life in the mountains. I share my experiences HERE.