Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

Tioga Pass is open!

Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

Happy Tioga Pass opening day! Tioga opened this morning at 10:00am all the way through Yosemite National Park. Will you be making a trip over to visit Mono Lake any time soon?

Due to the drought and an extremely low snowpack, this is the third-earliest Tioga Pass opening date after 1977 (April 8 ) and 1976 (April 10).

There are no visitor services open between the town of Lee Vining east of Yosemite and Crane Flat, on the western side of the park. All campgrounds, the gas station, the store, and the village grill are closed, with no anticipated opening dates yet. Due to the high elevation of Tioga Pass (nearly 10,000 feet above sea level) it’s still very early spring up there, with snowy and icy conditions along hiking trails. Also, Tioga Pass may close temporarily if there’s any weather in the forecast, so always check road conditions before you drive.