Sentinel Dome is a
granite dome in
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The p ...
, United States. It lies on the south wall of
Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley ( ; ''Yosemite'', Miwok for "killer") is a U-shaped valley, glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in the western Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada mountains of Central California, United States. The valley is about long a ...
, southwest of
Glacier Point and northeast of Profile Cliff.
The view from the top offers a 360 degree view of
Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley ( ; ''Yosemite'', Miwok for "killer") is a U-shaped valley, glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in the western Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada mountains of Central California, United States. The valley is about long a ...
and surroundings. One can see
Half Dome,
El Capitan
El Capitan (; ) is a vertical Rock formations in the United States, rock formation in Yosemite National Park, on the north side of Yosemite Valley, near its western end. The El Capitan Granite, granite monolith is about from base to summit alo ...
,
Yosemite Falls,
North Dome,
Basket Dome, and much more. Sentinel Dome provides a 360 degree view of the night sky and it and nearby
Glacier Point are popular places for stargazing.
History
The original
Native American name of Sentinel Dome, in the
Southern Sierra Miwok language, was pronounced "Sak'-ka-du-eh". The
Bunnell survey named it "South Dome", but the
Whitney survey renamed it Sentinel Dome (from its likeness to a watch-tower).
Hiking trail
The trail to the base of Sentinel Dome is a relatively easy hike. The trailhead, the same as the
Taft Point trailhead, is located from
Bridalveil Creek on the
Glacier Point road. Once at the base, hikers traverse the less imposing northeast granite slope to the summit.
In winter, Sentinel Dome can be reached from Badger Pass by a 10-miles ski tour.
Jeffrey Pine
Sentinel Dome is known for a
Jeffrey Pine
''Pinus jeffreyi'', also known as Jeffrey pine, Jeffrey's pine, yellow pine and black pine, is a North American pine tree. It is mainly found in California, but also in the westernmost part of Nevada, southwestern Oregon, and northern Baja Califo ...
that grew from its peak. The pine was photographed as early as 1867 by
Carleton Watkins, and was the subject of a well-known photograph by
Ansel Adams
Ansel Easton Adams (February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984) was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his Monochrome photography, black-and-white images of the American West. He helped found Group f/64, an association ...
. The tree died during the drought of 1976,
but remained standing until August 2003.
Jeffrey Pine
''Pinus jeffreyi'', also known as Jeffrey pine, Jeffrey's pine, yellow pine and black pine, is a North American pine tree. It is mainly found in California, but also in the westernmost part of Nevada, southwestern Oregon, and northern Baja Califo ...
photographed August 7, 1968
File:Jeffrey Pine on Sentinel Dome dead Yosemite CA 2001-07-26 0025.jpg, The dead Jeffery Pine in 2001
File:Sentinel Dome fallen tree.jpg, The Jeffrey Pine shortly after it fell in 2003
References
External links
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{{Yosemite National Park
Mountains of Mariposa County, California
Granite domes of Yosemite National Park
Tourist attractions in Mariposa County, California
Hills of California