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Vintage YosemiteYosemite National Park 1890-2010: Then, Now and Forever California’s Heritage Wilderness

HISTORYYosemite & Highway 120

ACCOMMODATIONSLodging for your Discovery

TOURSYosemite via Highway 120

2010 Stay & Discover Yosemite 120/120 Tour Packages

Naturalist John Muir & Robert Under-

wood Johnson, editor of Century Magazine, lob-bied the US Congress for the Act that created Yosemite National Park on October 1, 1890.

During the Gold Rush, SR 120 was originally known as Big Oak Flat Road, after the village of Big Oak Flat through which it passes in the Sierra foothills.

It was a pack trail from Stockton which became popular with prospectors about 1849. By 1874 it was a wagon road, which extended to the Yosemite Valley.

Our Partner Hotels offer a wide variety of choices for your visit

to Yosemite National Park during the 120th Birthday Anniversary Celebra-tion from September 2010 through December 2011.

You’ll have the opportunity to stay in Sonora or Groveland. Each community offers unique dining, shopping, recreation, cultural and historic discoveries.

Vintage Yosemite Lodging PartnersBest Western Sonora OaksThe Gunn House HotelThe Sonora Days Inn

Inns of California, SonoraThe Groveland Hotel

Discover Tuolumne County before and after your excursion to Yo-

semite National Park. These tours are scheduled from Sonora and Groveland and will last 8 to 10 hours depending on your tour choices. Rates are per person and include 1 or more nights accommodations, and round trip via Linkline, our transpor-tation partner, in a comfortable 8,16 or 24 seat passenger mini-bus into the park including entrance fee.

Each package includes a signed com-plimentary copy of Christine Tuohy’s soft-cover book, Vintage Yosemite: Then, Now & Forever California’s Heritage Wilderness.

‘True Blue’ - Yosemite Today, ‘Photo Credit: Blue World Photos, Sonora, California

120 Yea

Yosemite National Park Celebrates its 120th Birthday this coming fall with a unique companion in California’s his-

tory: California’s State Route 120, Tuolumne County’s Scenic Gateway to the northern entrance to Yosemite National Park. From the San Francisco Bay Area and Central California. Highway 120 is also the fastest route to Yosemite and one of Tuolumne County’s best kept secrets!

In recognition of Yosemite National Park’s impor-tance in California’s history, its preservation as a national park and its value as an international tourist destination, Vintage Yosemite 120/120 will be a year-long international celebration of Yosemite and its discovery via Tuolumne County’s historic route SR 120.

These tours will focus on Yosemite’s history as a tourist destination in popular culture as captured by professional and amateur photographers for the past 120 years. Visit www.vintageyosemite.com for all details or call

209.588.9625 for information & reservations.

Vintage Yosemite 120/120 is presented by: Blue World Photos of Sonora; Explore Sonora Magazine; The Historic Sonora Chamber of Commerece

with support from the Tuolumne County Visitors Bureau.

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Vintage Yosemite120 Yea The Spirit of Adventure Those born to the new and expanding world of

the mid-nineteenth and early twentieth century were instilled with a pioneering spirit of exploration and discovery in every walk, picnic, outing, or camp-ing and packing trip as an adventure. There was always an element of daring to these explorations. And if you fell off a cliff, it was your own fault for get-ting too close to the edge.

Perhaps it was just plain fool-hardiness, but there were

few fences, gates, warning signs or threats of po-tential lawsuits or pros-ecutions to prevent us from seeing every angle of our beautiful world and capturing that experience with that newest innova-tion of the modern era, the camera..

It had only been a generation or two

since the settling of the West and charting of its Wilderness. With the ad-vent of railroads, steamships and the touring car, these modern modes of transportation only fueled the thirst for more adven-ture and further into the newly discovered wilderness.

Through the individual and collective experience of places like Yosemite Val-

ley, these 19th and 20th century explorers developed a deep appreciation and affec-tion for Wilderness and its preservation.

Vintage Yosemite invites you to discover its unique history and experience why

Yosemite after its 120th year as a National Park remains California’s Heritage Wilderness.

Visiting The Yo-Semite Valley

We recommend this tours to everyone with the consideration some walking

is involved as well as boarding and unboarding at a number of sightseeing stops. We don’t recommend the group tours to children under 12 years of age. The tours includ-ing travel time will average 8 - 10 hours or longer depending on unforeseen delays. By special arrangement we can arrange for a special ‘Family Discovery Tour’ from

Sonora, with accomodations, guide and

dining options. We will accommodate familys with a minimum of 6 passesngers.

The walk through Cook’s Meadow lasts a bit over an hour. There are options, including

possible, rainy days. Once we arrive on the valley floor, the Yosemite Visitor’s Center, Yosemite Muse-um, the Ansel Adams Gallery, the Nature Center at Happy Isles, even a visit via free shuttle to the famous Ahwahnee Hotel, are well worth a visit. In September and October the weather should be beautiful and comfoortably in the mid to high 70’s or a little warmer or cooler.

Breakfast 7:30 A.M.

Start your day with a either a light or hearty breakfast. The Groveland Hotel and Gunn House

Hotel offer an Innkeeper’s Breakfast for their guests. The Best Western Sonora Oaks offers a Fulll Break-fast to satisfy your morning appetite.

Depar t for Yosemi te 9:00 A.M.

Put on your walking shoes or hiking boots for your Yosemite

Adventure. You’ll depart with a cup of Joe courtesy of Sonora Joe’s Coffee Shoppe in Historic Downtown Sonora to brace you for the scenic drive to Yo-Semite! Times listed are approximate and may vary based on weather and traffic or the unexpected! Arr iva l in Grove land 9:45 A.M.

Entering Groveland via Cal-

ifornia State Route 120 is Tuolumne County’s Scenic Gateway to the ‘Big Valley’. As we enter Groveland you’ll note the Iron Door Saloon, the oldest continuously operated saloon in California. It began serving liquor in 1852 as the Granite Store.

Smi th S tat ion Road 10 :15 A.M.

We’re officially inside the park at the intersection of Smith Station Road,

which has recently (June 5, 2010) been des-ignated as the John Muir Highway. Muir entered the Yosemite Valley via this route from Coulterville during his second trek in 1869. From this point on you’ll discover what he discovered and was deter-mined to protect for generations to come.

Crane F lat Bears 10 :30 A.M

If we’re lucky there’ll be an opportunity to see bears in

the meadow off to the right or to the left in the forest edge. American black bears are not black but brown or even blond or reddish brown and you can distinguish their age by color. This is the Highway 120/Tioga Pass Road open only in sum-mer. Nearby Crane Flat is the

Tuolumne Grove of Giant Sequoias and is worth another summer visit for a 1 to 2 hour hike.

Br ida l Vei l Fa l l s 1 1 :00 A.M

When we stop briefly to for-mally enter the park and we

will provide guests a map of Yo-semite for the tour. Shortly there-after you’ll be inclined to gasp as we approach Bridal Veil Falls.

WalkingActivity

Board BusBus Stop

Historical Interest

Photo Op

Restrooms Available

SeatingArea

Legend

PicnicArea

CoffeeStop

www.vintageyosemite.com

www.exploresonora.com11

E X P L O R E BEST WESTERN SONORA OAKS

Sonora Oaks Hotel and Conference Center19551 Hess Avenue, Sonora, California, 95370-9720

INNS OF CALIFORNIA Historic Sonora350 South Washington Street Sonora, Ca 95370 (209) 532-3633 (800) 251-1538

We’re nestled in heart of the historic gold country foothills, only sixty miles from Yosemite National Park!

Free Continental Breakfast • Heated Pool & Spa • Air Conditioned • In-Room Brewed Coffee • Guest Laundry Game Room • 24-Hour Courteous Front Desk • Free High Speed Wireless Internet • www.sonorainnsofcalifornia.com

Terms and Conditions1) All Packages are purchased exclusively through the Historic Sonora Chamber of Commerce in the form of a redeemable voucher for a specific date.2) All Packages are limited in availability and will not be held or reserved without deposit or complete payment in advance..3) All Packages are for Sunday thru Thursday only. Fridays or Saturday may be available at an additional charge.4) Hotels for each tour may change due to special events, conventions or other reasons beyond our control.5) The Picnic Lunch provided will include some Vegetar-

ian options. Other diets can not be guaranteed but in most instances you can order appropriate items when you provide notice by 4 p.m. the day before the tour.6) Upgraded packages inclusive of dinner may be limited in a choice of menu options.7) Advertised packages are priced for Standard Rooms only, which in most cases includes 1 Queen Bed. Additional beds, sizes, room features may incur additional charges.8) Packages, unless otherwise indicated, are for 1 Night only, including the Yosemite Travel Voucher.9) Package prices exclude all room charges and taxes

which are paid at Check-out.10) We encourage you to add an one or more addi-tional nights at the specially discounted rates with each hotel, well in advance of the tour to guaran-tee availability.Payment. Deposit of $100 per person is due within 30 days of making reservations, balance 30 days be-fore travel. Full payment is due upon making reserva-tions for tours booked less than 30 days in advance. For Credit Card payments we request signed authori-zations for the deposit and the final payment. Travel vouchers are mailed upon receipt of full payment. Extra charges apply for overnight delivery.

Cancellation Charges and Refunds:,Complete de-tails are available at www.vintageyosemite.com/terms.Contractual Sale includes co-ordination, transpor-tation by tour coach worth $50.00 per day, admission costs as stated, hotel rooms without tax, certain meals with tax. It is our pledge to provide these services and our responsibility to make a refund only for the actual value of tour components we fail to deliver.We act as agents for hotels, restaurants or other places of business and transportation; we cannot be held liable in any way for loss, injury, or damage to person or property in those places or areas. We may decline the sale of the tour or to retain any person as a member of the tour at any time.

Discover Yosemite SpecialThe 120th on 120 for $120.00

The Sonora Days Innor The Inns of Ca l i forna

Tour Dates AvailableSeptember 27th or 28th 2010

Accomodations for 1 NightStandard Room (1 Queen)

Transportation from Sonora Yosemite Park Admission

including souvenier Park Map

Join Our Guided Tour or Discover Yosemite On Your Own

Yosemite Park Admissionincluding souvenier Park Map

Picnic Lunchwith Refreshments & Dessert

Complimentary Copy of the BookVintage Yosemite: Then, Now & Forever

California’s Heritage WildernessBy Christine Tuohy, Blue World Photos

Gallery Reception at Blue World Photos

Discover Tuolumne County Coupon Bo-

Book Extra Nights for $49.00

Reservation Code: DYS-120

Yosemite Diamond TourAAA Three Diamond Lodging Partners

Best Western Sonora Oaksor The Grove land Hote l

Tour Dates AvailableSeptember 29h or 30h, 2010

Accomodations for 1 NightStandard Room (1 Queen)

Transportation from Sonora or GrovelandYosemite Park Admission

including souvenier Park Map

Yosemite Photographer Jeff Nixonis your Tour Guide

Picnic Lunchwith Refreshments & Dessert

After Tour Dinner & Photo Exhibition Sonora Tours - Banny’s at Mt. Springs

Groveland Tours - The Cellar Door Alcohol, taxes and gratuity are additional

Complimentary Copy of the BookVintage Yosemite: Then, Now & Forever

California’s Heritage WildernessBy Christine Tuohy, Blue World Photos

Discover Tuolumne County Coupon Book

Book Extra Nights and save!Reservation Code: 3D-120

I Love Yosemite Tour19th Century Victorian Outing

The Gunn House Hote lor The Sonora Days Inn

Tour Dates AvailableOctober 4 or 6, 2010

Accomodations for 2 NightsStandard Room (1 Queen)

Transportation from SonoraYosemite Park Admission

including souvenier Park Map

Yosemite Photographer Jeff Nixonis your Tour Guide

The Teddy Bear Picnic Lunchwith Refreshments & Dessert

Complimentary Sasy Bears Teddy R. Plush Bear

After Tour Dinner & Photo Exhibition Christopher’s Ristorante

Alcohol, taxes and gratuity are additional

Complimentary Copy of the BookVintage Yosemite: Then, Now & Forever

California’s Heritage WildernessBy Christine Tuohy, Blue World Photos

Discover Tuolumne County Coupon Book

Book Extra Nights and save!Reservation Code: ILY-120

$120.00**$120.00 per person/Dbl. Occupancy

Price excludes room upgrades, room charges and applicable taxes.

$120.00**$120.00 per person/Dbl. Occupancy

Price excludes room upgrades, room charges and applicable taxes.

$120.00**$60.00 per person/Dbl. Occupancy

Price excludes room upgrades, room charges and applicable taxes.

Visit www.vintageyosemite.com for updated packages, information or to book tours online.

The AAA 3-Diamond Award Best Western Sonora Oaks Hotel & Conference Center is a great Yosemite lodging choice while visiting and exploring the Mother Lode.

www.bwsonoraoaks .com

Hi-speed Internet access • Deluxe continental breakfast • Restaurant • Lounge • Room servicesOutdoor pool • Spa • 24-hour front desk • Concierge Services • Seasonal Specials and packages

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The Anse l Adams Gal lery 2:30 P.M

We will conclude our.post-lunch

walk at the Ansel Adams Gallery in the heart of (if not the heart….) of Yosemite Village. You’re en-couraged to explore Yosemite on your own for the next 2 hours. You can hop a shuttle down to the Ahwahnee for a drink, relax, do a little shopping in the village or take an extended walk or hike.

Insp i rat ion Walk 2:45 P.M

For those inclined,

you may choose to go for a short drive with us to a mead-ow for a unique experience instead of going off on your own.

You’ll be awed and dumbfound at the scale of things. Most ev-erything around you will be 3,500 feet higher. We’re not saying anything more than that.

Gunn House HotelThe Historic

In the Heart of Historic Downtown Sonora286 S. Washington Street, Sonora, CA 95370 Reservations (209) 532-3421 www.gunnhousehotel.com

Built 1850

There is a picnic area adjacent to Bridal Veil just off the road and it’s an easy walk to the base. It’s just a half-mile and takes 20 minutes. Depending on our arrival time this is an alternate picnic site.

Lower Yosemi te Fa l ls 12:00 P.M

This is our sched-uled Picnic Lunch

is provided by our dining partner The Lighthouse Deli. You’ll find refreshments, fruit, veggies, sand-wiches and deserts, in-cluding a treat provided by The Candy Vault.

There’ll be a drawing dur-ing lunch for some very special gifts from Sonora area merchants and res-taurants!

Alternate stop: Get some vicarious thrills while we eat lunch El Capitan Picnic Area to see a squadron of climbers ascending El Cap, the largest granite monolith in the world.

SONORA DAYS INNThe Historic Hotel Choice in Sonora

160 S. Washington Street, Sonora, CA 95370 Phone: 209-532-2400 • Fax: 209-532-4542

www.daysinnsonora.com

Cook ’s Meadow Walk 1:00 P.M

A little over a mile and although on flat terrain and board

walks, the altitude on the valley floor is 4000 feet and some may want to consider this. There are other ways to see the sights. This will give you an opportunity for a meadow view of Yosem-

ite from the valley floor. The vistas are breathtaking. Here you’ll get a sense of what it might have been like 150 years ago without the pine and redwood trees, which have volunteered into the meadow and Yosemite of today, coming down in the flush of spring storm surges.

You’ll get a better view of the falls, and the Yo-semite Valley Chapel, the oldest surviving building built in 1879. There are staggering views from the Swinging Bridge and Sentinel Bridge.

Goodbye Yo-Semi te ! 4:30 P.M

On our departure we will take you

to, without exaggera-tion, the world’s best view, especially in late af-ternoon when sun gilds the scene in golden light. You’ll be able to see everything in the valley, all the way to Half Dome. Smile: This might just your holiday card for 2010…or forever.

Return to your Hotel 6:00 P.M - 6:30 P.M

We hope you’ve enjoyed your experience and you’re not too tired to have a really great meal.

Some of you will join us for a banquet style din-ner with a Vintage Yosemite and Today Photo ex-hibit in the company of photographers Christine Tuohy and/or Jeff Nixon, who for a select groups will guide our tours!

Telephone: 209-694-8747 F\ax: 209-588-9718

www./linklinecharter.com • e-mail: linklinecharter@aol.com

TCP# 0005467US DOT #1102834

DAVE & MICHELE DECHENEYOWNERS/OPERATORS

Our Partner

Tunnel View Overlook

(Bridal Veil Falls. continued) Photographer

Noted Yosemite photographer, Jeff Nixon, will lead several guided tours

through the park, reminiscing about his years living and working in the Valley.

In Jeff ’s 40 plus years as a photogra-pher career he also had the oppor-

tunity to work with renowned pho-tographer and environmentalist Ansel Adams and will share some of those experiences with tour guests.Learn more about Jeff by visiting his web-site at www.jeffnixonphotography.com.

Jeff Nixon

18767 Main Street • Groveland, CA 95321 • 209-962-4000 • 800-273-3314 • www.groveland.comThe Groveland Hotel is an ideal Yosemite lodging with the acclaimed Cellar Door restaurant.