environment August 24, 2023

At the base of Yosemite National Park’s 7,573-foot-tall El Capitan lies a grove of black oak trees. As the wind blows, their leaves rustle like whispers to each other. Meanwhile, passersby stumble off the beaten path, seeking an up-close view of El Capitan’s pure granite rock face. These wanderers create social trails, as they’re called, which occur when park visitors repeatedly veer off planned routes and follow trotted-down footpaths through meadows and other grasslands. They’re one of many threats to this black oak grove that is sacred to the seven traditionally associated tribes and communities of Yosemite: the Southern Sierra Miwuk Nation, the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians, the Bishop Paiute Tribe, Bridgeport Indian Colony, Kutzadika’a Mono Lake Indian Community, North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians of California, and the Picayune Rancheria of Chukchansi Indians.

• Text of this article

• Images in this article