Category: Yosemite Photographs

YOSEMITE PHOTOGRAPHS

These are a selection of photographs taken by me, Paul Edmondson in and around Yosemite National Park and Mono County, California.

I am the author of the historical novel, Great Spirit of Yosemite: The Story of Chief Tenaya.

I took these photos on my visits to Yosemite and used them in my book, as an accompaniment to the story. 

Fascinated by the history of Yosemite and its indigenous people, I set about to tell their story. The book is a mixture of true events and fictional storytelling. It tells the epic tale of the Chief of the Ahwahneechees, Tenaya,  and his people who lived in Yosemite Valley for millennia. They were driven from their homes in 1851, at the time of the California Gold Rush. The State Governor of California authorized the formation of the Mariposa Battalion in 1850.  It was to drive out the indigenous populations from their homelands. Subsequently, to send to Indian reservations.

For all intents and purposes, the stunning natural beauty, flora and wildlife, and sheer magnificence of Yosemite are the same today as it was at the time the Ahwahneechees lived there.