Award-winning filmmaker Ken Burns is once again working with Tauck, one of the world’s top tour operators, to tell the story of America’s Buffalo Soldiers as part of a new Tauck itinerary. The program explores San Francisco and the National Parks of Northern California, including Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon.
The Buffalo Soldiers were African-American U.S. Army troops who served in the American West and elsewhere during the late 1800s and early 1900s.
The history of the Buffalo Soldiers in the parks is one of several cultural narratives that Tauck will highlight in its new, all-inclusive, eight-day guided journey, “Yosemite And Sequoia: John Muir’s California.” Other themes weaving through the Tauck itinerary include the story of visionary naturalist John Muir and the creation of America’s National Parks system, Tauck says.
Tauck’s “Yosemite And Sequoia: John Muir’s California” itinerary begins with two nights in San Francisco, where guided sightseeing will include a visit to the historic Presidio where the Buffalo Soldiers were garrisoned. At the Presidio, Tauck guests will learn of the Buffalo Soldiers’ roots in the post-Civil War era, their service with Teddy Roosevelt’s “Rough Riders” in Cuba, and their role in the Philippine-American War.
In Sequoia National Park, Tauck guests will hear the story of Buffalo Soldiers commander Charles Young, the third African-American to graduate from West Point and the first to oversee one of America’s National Parks. Guests will also get Burns’s own personal perspectives on the Buffalo Soldiers during a special 20-minute film produced exclusively for Tauck, featuring interview footage with Burns and special excerpts from his National Parks documentary.
Burns, who created the award-winning documentary series “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea,” sees the story of the Buffalo Soldiers as a way of weaving African-American history into the National Parks experience.
Tauck’s Yosemite tour (from $4,290 per person, double-occupancy, plus airfare) begins with a two-night stay at The Weston St. Francis in San Francisco, complete with guided sightseeing. The itinerary next includes a pair of two-night stays at “inside-the-park” lodges in Sequoia and Yosemite National Parks (with daily sightseeing and other activities), before concluding with a final night at the Fairmont San Francisco.
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