Yosemite Valley is a mile-wide trench cut into the granite of the Sierra Nevada, with walls that rise three thousand feet or more from the flat, meadow-covered floor, and it is as astonishing in person as in any photograph. El Capitan, a sheer, blank face, stands on the north side, Half Dome, a sliced dome of granite, towers at the head, and waterfalls drop from the rim, most dramatically Yosemite Falls, which falls nearly twenty-five hundred feet in three stages. The Merced River winds through the meadows below.
Glaciers carved the valley's U-shape during the ice ages, working on a landscape of granite that had been uplifted and cracked. The Ahwahneechee people lived here for generations before settlers arrived, and they were driven out by a militia in 1851. In 1864, President Lincoln signed a grant that protected the valley, an early step in the national park idea, and John Muir, who came in 1868, argued for protection of the surrounding high country. Ansel Adams spent a lifetime photographing it, and his pictures helped to define the American idea of wilderness.
Tioga Road leaves the western end of the park at Crane Flat and climbs eastward over the Sierra, and in summer riders often start at the valley and take the road to the high country. The valley itself is slow, with heavy traffic, one-way loops, low speed limits and crowds of visitors, so expect delays, and in busy seasons the park has needed advance reservations for entry, so look at the park website before you set out. Parking is tight, but motorcycles can often squeeze into small spaces.
The valley has restaurants, a grocery store and lodging, but it is crowded and busy at weekends. Waterfalls are at their best in May and June, when snowmelt feeds them, and often dry up by late summer. Black bears are active, so lock food away. Spring and autumn, with fewer visitors and crisp air, are the best times, and early morning light on the cliffs is wonderful.