The Long Way
Yosemite Village
A campsite with picnic tables and a fire ring surrounded by trees.
Plate I. Yosemite Creek Picnic Area, Tioga Road Scenic Byway. From nps.gov
Heavy equipment clears snow from a mountain road.
Plate II. Snow plows clearing Tioga Road. From nps.gov
A red SUV drives along a winding mountain road.
Plate III. Car driving on Tioga Road. From nps.gov
A log cabin stands in a mountain meadow with visitors nearby.
Plate IV. Soda Springs cabin, Tioga Road Scenic Byway. From nps.gov
A scenic view of a wide valley with a winding river, dense forest, and mountains under a blue sky with a single lenticular cloud.
Plate V. Tuolumne Meadows along Tioga Road Scenic Byway. From nps.gov
A scenic view of a calm lake surrounded by a dense forest under a blue sky.
Plate VI. Siesta Lake, Tioga Road Scenic Byway. From nps.gov
A scenic view of mountains at sunrise behind a stone wall and a textured metal relief map in the foreground.
Plate VII. Olmsted Point, Tioga Road Scenic Byway. From nps.gov
A scenic view of a calm alpine lake surrounded by mountains and forests under a clear blue sky.
Plate VIII. Tenaya Lake along Tioga Road Scenic Byway. From nps.gov

Tioga Road/Big Oak Flat Road Scenic Byway

Yosemite Village, California. National Park.

Details

Where
Yosemite Village, CA. No street address stated. Directions
When
Open.
Season
seasonal winter closure typical; status open at check.
Getting there
The Tioga Road is the continuation of Highway 120 through the park.
Fees
Private Vehicle $35.00 for seven consecutive days; cashless.
Access
Expect 10-minute delays in Tuolumne Meadows, and 15-minute delays from 8 am to 3:30 pm, Monday through Thursday from Olmsted Pt to Tioga Pass No overnight parking along the road or parking lots starting October 15.
Walk-in or reserve
No timed entrance reservation system in 2026.
Phone
209/372-0200
Website
nps.gov
Managed by
National Park Service.
Established
National Scenic Byway.

Tioga Road (continuation of Highway 120 through the park).

Notable Events

  1. 1868In September 1868 a cartel of businessmen in Tuolumne County organized the Chinese Camp and Yo Semite Turnpike Company to construct a road from Chinese Camp to Yosemite Valley. en.wikisource.org
  2. 1874The old road was completed in 1874; the new road was built 1935-40 and 1959-61. en.wikisource.org
  3. 1882The road was completed in 130 days for a total cost of $61,095.22, about $1100 per mile. noehill.com
  4. 1883It was built in 130 days by 160 Chinese and white European laborers, covering 56.5 miles. nps.gov
  5. 1888No silver was ever extracted from the Bennettville mines and by 1888 the mining operations and road were sold at auction. nps.gov
  6. 1915In 1915 the road was acquired by the National Park Service and deeded over to the Government; that same year the highway was opened to motor car travel. noehill.com
  7. 1915Stephen Mather, soon to be named the founding director of the National Park Service, bought the road for $15,500 in 1915 and then sold it to Yosemite National Park for $10. nps.gov
  8. 1935The new Big Oak Flat Road was built by the Bureau of Public Roads. en.wikisource.org
  9. 1937In 1937 the section of road from the western boundary to White Wolf Lodge was realigned, bypassing Aspen Valley for a two-lane paved road via Crane Flat, on the Big Oak Flat Road. noehill.com
  10. 1937The Tioga Road remained an all-dirt road until 1937 when funds from San Francisco's rental of the Hetch Hetchy area were used to pave the road. nps.gov

People

  • Charles Cutting, secretary of the Chinese Camp and Yo Semite Turnpike Company.
  • George W. Coulter, president of the Chinese Camp and Yo Semite Turnpike Company.
  • Tom McGee, pack operator and saloonkeeper who reopened the western portion of the old trans-Sierran Mono Indian trail (about 1857).
  • Stephen Mather, bought the Tioga Road and sold it to Yosemite National Park; soon to be named the founding director of the National Park Service (1915).

Sources

  1. fhwaapps.fhwa.dot.gov/bywaysp/byway/2302
  2. nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/conditions.htm
  3. nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/fees.htm
  4. nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/reservations.htm
  5. nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/tm.htm
  6. nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/tioga.htm
  7. nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/directions.htm
  8. facebook.com/YosemiteNPS
  9. instagram.com/yosemitenps
  10. nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/tiogaopen.htm