Sunday Drive-Yosemite’s Tioga Road
SUNDAY DRIVE – YOSEMITE’S TIOGA ROAD
Tom Stienstra
The San Francisco Chronicle
June 21, 2009
What you’ll see: The gateway to Yosemite’s high country, Tioga Road, is clear, with major campgrounds opening this week. As warmer weather finally arrives, waterfalls in Yosemite Valley are again peaking as the final three feet of snow melts off in the high country. After touring the showpiece of the world, Yosemite Valley, take the hour and 20-minute drive up Tioga Road to Tuolumne Meadows. You will pass Olmstead Point and Tenaya Lake, the two most photographed panoramas in the Yosemite high country.
Snow: There’s still a surprising amount of snow above 8,000 feet. Gaylor Lakes, a popular day-hike destination, is frozen over and has two feet of snow around it, with as much as six-foot cornices on the ridge. Open domes, such as Lembert and Fairview, are largely clear. But in shaded, forested areas, such as below Fairview Dome, you’ll find a few feet of snow.
Camping: In the high country along Tioga Road, Crane Flat, White Wolf and some of the sites at Tuolumne Meadows just opened, Tamarack Flat is projected to open in the coming week. The campgrounds at Yosemite Creek will likely open by July 4.
Directions to Yosemite Valley: From San Francisco, take the Bay Bridge to the split and bear right on Interstate 580 east. Take I-580 east for 46 miles to I-205 East. Take I-205 for 14 miles to I-5 north, merge and go 2 miles to the exit for Highway 108/120-Manteca/Sonora. Take that exit, turn right on Highway 108/120 and drive about 100 miles to the exit for Highway 120/Groveland. Bear right on Highway 120 and drive (take the shortcut up Old Priest Grade) through Groveland and continue to the Big Oak Flat entrance station. Continue for 30 minutes into Yosemite Valley.
To Tioga Road: Exit Yosemite Valley right on Big Oak Flat Road and drive about 20 minutes to Crane Flat and the junction with Tioga Road/Highway 120. Turn right on Tioga Road and drive about one hour to Tuolumne Meadows.
Lodging: Central Reservations, (801) 559-4884 or yosemitepark.com.
Cost/map: $20 entrance fee per vehicle, good for seven days; map/brochure at entry kiosk.
Hint for hungry: If you continue over Tioga Pass and down toward Mono Lake, stop at the Mobil at the junction of Highway 120 and U.S. 395: best fish tacos around (with mango salsa).
Information: Yosemite National Park, (209) 372-0200, nps.gov/yose.
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