Tioga Pass, the busy back door to Yosemite, is finally cleared and is opening to vehicles Thursday

June 28, 2017 7:45 AM PT

Tioga Pass, Yosemite’s busy back door, will finally open to vehicles at 8 a.m. Thursday, a month later than usual. Bike riders and hikers can begin using the road at 8 a.m. Wednesday.

The Tioga Pass reopening comes just in time for the busiest summer weekend. It is the latest opening since 1998, when snows closed the pass until July 1.

It is particularly significant for Mammoth Lakes residents and visitors, since it is their gateway to Yosemite National Park.

What users need to know

There will be minimal services available for several weeks.
No drinking water will be available.
Visitors should use the vault and portable toilets located along the roadway to help protect water quality in the Tuolumne River watershed.
There is no mobile phone service yet and 911 will not be operational.
With no gasoline available along Tioga Road, visitors should purchase gasoline in Lee Vining and at Crane Flat.
Tamarack Flat Campground is the only campground that is open along Tioga Road. This campground is first-come, first serve and fills early in the day.

Winter conditions on trails

The National Park Service also suggests that anyone planning to hike near Tuolumne Meadows and in all high-elevation areas of Yosemite should be prepared for winter conditions. Trails are still affected by snow and ice. In addition, rivers are high and difficult to cross.

There are several high-water areas affecting the Pacific Crest Trail and the John Muir Trail in Yosemite National Park, the park service said.

More information

For updated 24-hour road and weather conditions for Yosemite National Park, call (209) 372-0200 and press 1.

For maps and visitor information, visit the Tuolumne Meadows Wilderness Center, open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

For more information on routes between Yosemite Valley and U.S. 395, including Mono Lake, the ghost town of Bodie and Devils Postpile National Monument, contact Mammoth Lakes Tourism or Mono County Tourism.

Snow had been 3 stories high

The roadway had been blocked by snow three stories high, and crews have been skimming away the blockage, from top to bottom, for months. Adding to the challenge were avalanches, boulders and fallen trees, even the occasional late-spring blizzard.

Past opening dates in years of heavy snow:

1998 – July 1

2010 -- June 52011 – June 18

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Chris Erskine

Chris Erskine is a nationally known humor columnist and editor who retired from the Los Angeles Times in 2020. Previously he wrote for the Sports, Travel and Saturday sections and edited with the paper’s features staff. As an editor, he has been a part of two Pulitzer Prize-winning teams at The Times (for his graphics work on the Northridge quake and the North Hollywood bank robbery). He is best known to readers for his weekly humor pieces on life in suburban Los Angeles. His latest book, “Daditude,” released in 2018, is a collection of his favorite Times columns on fatherhood. He has written two other books, “Man of the House” and “Surviving Suburbia,” which reached the Los Angeles Times bestseller list. The Chicago native has also worked for papers in New Orleans and Miami.