Yosemite is a ‘winter wonderland.’ See pictures, video of snow in national park

With its flowing waterfalls, pristine lakes and towering granite cliffs, Yosemite National Park is considered one of the most beautiful spots in the nation.

When it snows, the park in Central California is even more magical.

The dreamy winter wonderland features snow-laden trees, frozen lakes and majestic mountains with gleaming white caps.

According to the National Park Service, snow can fall in Yosemite as early as September or October.

During a typical year, the first snows of autumn are usually light and melt within a few hours or days, according to the National Park Service.

In a normal year, the ground is usually cold enough for snow to accumulate by mid-November particularly at elevations above Yosemite Valley at 4,000 feet, the Fresno Bee previously reported.

While the Yosemite Valley floor may not always be snowy, you’re more likely to encounter drifts of the white, fluffy stuff at higher elevations.

Yosemite enthusiasts had to wait longer than usual to get their snowy weather fix this winter, with flurries finally showing up in late December and early January.

A Reddit user identified as hc2121 shared celebrated a “rare snow day on the Valley floor” on Jan. 5 by sharing a screenshot from a Yosemite Conservancy webcam set up just east of Yosemite Village.

“Little Yosemite Valley was an easily-accessible winter wonderland,” Reddit user solaerl wrote in a Jan. 4 post, sharing photos of the park taken on Dec. 29.

As of Wednesday, Jan. 14, Yosemite National Park webcams showed snow dusting Half Dome and the banks of the Merced River at Happy Isles, with a healthy helping of snowfall at Badger Pass Ski Area.

Snow and ice was still present at the Pohono Bridge on the Valley Loop Trail as of Friday, Jan. 9, according to photos shared by Reddit user lobocodo.

Yosemite receives 19.3 inches of snow per year on average, according to the National Weather Service.

When will more snow fall in Yosemite?

Yosemite National Park likely won’t see snow in the next few days, according to the National Weather Service.

However, an inch or two of snow could fall in the park in the next two weeks, according to weather prediction website OpenSnow.

OpenSnow has sensors set up at Badger Pass Ski Area, which typically opens to the public sometime in mid-December, “conditions permitting,” according to the National Park Service.

When will Badger Pass Ski Area open for winter season?

This season, Badger Pass Ski Area delayed its opening date by weeks due to dry weather.

The ski area opened for Nordic-style cross-country skiing and snowshoeing on Friday, Jan. 9.

Badger Pass will open for downhill skiing and snowboarding on Friday, Jan. 16, officials said in a Jan 13 Facebook post.

See pictures, videos of Yosemite National Park in the snow

Check out these fun, frosty photos and videos of Yosemite National Park as a winter wonderland, courtesy of The Fresno Bee, The Modesto Bee and Merced Sun-Star:

This story was originally published January 16, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Yosemite is a ‘winter wonderland.’ See pictures, video of snow in national park."

Brooke Baitinger

McClatchy DC

Brooke Baitinger is a former journalist for McClatchyDC.

Fernanda Galan

The Fresno Bee

559-441-6005

Fernanda Galan covers Central Valley and California news as The Fresno Bee’s service journalism reporter. Before joining The Bee in 2024, she reported in Milwaukee, Arizona and Los Angeles. She is a graduate of Arizona State’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.