Yosemite National Park: Snow-swamped Tioga Road to open Saturday
Tioga Road, which provides key access to Yosemite National Park‘s back country, has been cleared of snow and will reopen at 8 a.m. Saturday, according to a news release from the park. But nearby campgrounds, a gas station, stores and other services along the road remain closed with no opening date set.
California Highway 120, as the road is officially known, will have other limitations too. The park statement said visitors can expect to find several no-stopping zones marked along the road, which has been buried under nearly twice the normal snowpack this year.
The long task of snow plowing, plus a cool spring, delayed the seasonal opening, which is the latest for the roadway since 2005, when the date was June 24.
The news doesn’t signal the start of the summer hiking season in the back country. Tuolumne Meadows, at 8,775 feet, remains under several feet of snow. Park officials said hiking in the area is “extremely limited,” citing icy conditions and treacherous stream crossings.
Among the campgrounds that remain closed are Crane Flat, Tamarack Flat, White Wolf, Yosemite Creek, Porcupine Flat and Tuolumne Meadows, the park’s website says. And the opening of the temporary High Sierra Camps, also accessed by Tioga Road, are being delayed at least until July.
For updates, check the Current Conditions section of Yosemite’s website.
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