Google your way through California parks

As if Google hadn’t simplified our life enough, they’ve now given us the ability to sit at our computer gazing at the gorgeous stretches of land that make up California’s spectacular parks.

No need to leave your couch, Google has brought to you the sun setting on Big Sur’s famous Bixby Creek Bridge, snow-capped Sierras, and sweltering desert landscapes from Death Valley.

After receiving permission from the U.S. Department of the Interior to begin filming in May, Google took to the roads of Yosemite, Sequoia & Kings Canyon, Redwood, Death Valley, and Joshua Tree national parks in vehicles rigged with 15-lens cameras that point in all directions.

Once back at Google HQ, software stitches the images together in a unique panorama.

Hopefully the crisp images encourage more people to actually visit state and national parks in California, because we all know that even pictures can’t compare to actually touching a 200-foot historic Redwood tree.

Evan Rapoport, the Street View project manager told The AP:

“Everyone likes to take a road trip through a national park. Bringing unique places to people that they might not go in the real world is unique to Street View. Part of our goal is to inspire people to see these places in person.”

No detail was spared in these high-quality images that take viewers from the depths of Yosemite Valley to Inspiration Point to the dense forests of Redwood National Park.

Candace Tinkler, chief interpreter at Redwood National Park told The AP:

“I often wish we could get the word out on some of the park system’s lesser-known wonders. This is a wonderful opportunity for people around the world to connect to these places.”

You can check out all the never-ending panoramic views on Google’s blog.