Cozy Bear Cottage in Yosemite from $195/Night for 2 People

Year Purchased: 1996

About the owner: Neal and I just celebrated our 52nd wedding anniversary. We have 5 children who are grown now. We take so much pride in Cozy Bear Cottages. We built and decorated Cozy Bear all by ourselves. Cozy Bear is strictly a mom and pop run endeavor. We do not have anyone working for us. We do all of the cleaning and maintaining of Cozy Bear ourselves. We fell in love with Yosemite while on vacation when our children were young and returned year after year until we had the opportunity to purchase and build Cozy Bear Cottages. Cozy Bear was and is a labor or love. We love meeting people from all over the world. We have found that people are the same wherever they originate from. Everyone loves their children and wants them to learn and experience the majesty of Yosemite and the joy they experience in exploring and discovering the awesome beautify of Yosemite. Seeing Yosemite through the eyes of a child is like experiencing Yosemite for the first time even though you may have been here many times

Why the Owner Chose Yosemite National Park:
First, we built our own home here in Yosemite and planned on spending our retirement (golden years here.) Then, life stepped in and Neal's job of 27 years came to an end. The area that we were from became gang infested and we didn't want to raise our last child (twenty years difference between our first and last child) in a dangerous environment. It took some time to be able to make the move up here but when Neal's job came to an end we thought that it was the worst possible thing that could happen to us and i and it turned out to be the best possible thing that could ever have happened! We had one child at home who was eleven years old and didn't want to come up because all of her friends were down South. It didn't take long for her to make friends up here who are still her best friends ever! We have one daughter who married a young man from Yosemite and they also have vacation rentals up here and do what we do. We have another daughter up here who works for the company and is the retail manager of the South end of the Park Having two children already up here made it easier for us to re-locate. We have a son and daughter in Southern California who come up whenever possible and our youngest daughter has a real love for animals and will be graduating this June from UC Davis as a doctor of veterinary medicine. She loves coming up here and studying all of the wildlife.. Living in Yosemite has proven to be a wonderful and fulfilling life for Neal & me, our children and grandchildren. . The area that we were from became gang infested and we didn't want to raise our last child (twenty years difference between our first and last child) in a dangerous environment. It took some time to be able to make the move up here but when Neal's job came to an end we thoughtpped in and Neal's job of 27 years came to an end. What we thought was the worst thing that could happen turned out to be the best thing that ever happened.

The Unique Benefits at this House:
Seeing all the four seasons of Yosemite has been such a blessing. Spring time in Yosemite with the falls running so full. It is amazing to us the power that is in those falls. Watching the rainbows as they paint a spectacular picture across those magnificent falls. . Summer, we enjoy the hiking and rafting. Floating down the river and watching Half Dome and El Cap. and watching the families as they raft, picnic, and enjoy all of the beautiful flowers in the meadows and throughout the Park. Walking through the 'Big Trees' and remembering a poem that the man who built the Golden Gate Bridge who said 'Fall down oh traveler, on your knees. God stands before you in these trees. Fall is so beautiful and funny! The colors are changing and the leaves are falling. Squirrels are gathering food for the winter and we watch them as they build under ground condos throughout our property and claim it for their own. They drop pine cones from high up in the trees and sometimes it seems like they are waiting and aiming for us so they can drop the pine cones directly onto us. They are adorable! Winter, is the most beautiful season of all. We feel like we are in a Currier & Ives setting but more beautiful than any hand-painted picture could be. We watch as snow falls and icicles form in front of our windows and off from our deck. Badger Pass is running full steam and children are learning to ski. It is a very quiet and awesome experience that we feel so blessed to be a part of.