Yosemite in the springtime
ENTRANCE FEES, CONTACTS
Cost: motorcycle; $30 per $60 vehicle, annual good pass for from a week; date $25 of purchase. per Free entrance: April 21, first day of National Park Week. Road conditions: Caltrans, (800) 427-7623, www.dot.ca.gov/cgi-bin/roads.cgi; in snow conditions, you must carry chains to gain entry into Yosemite National Park. Yosemite snow sports, Badger Pass: Nordic Center rents snowshoes, cross-country skis, and offers guided trips; snow conditions, (209) 3721000, www.yosemitepark.com — click on “winter.” Note: The Yosemite Ski and Board Area will not open this winter. Info: Yosemite National Park, (209) 372-0200, www.nps.gov/yose.
LODGING, CAMPING
Yosemite Hotel, Big Housekeeping www.TravelYosemite.com, Trees Yosemite Lodge lodging: Camp (in Valley Wawona, Includes (opens Lodge, then April The opens Half click Majestic 14). Dome next on Reserve lodging Thursday), Village, Yosemite at (available Lodging outside dates listed) the park: or (888) Groveland 413-8869. Hotel, (209) 962-4000, www.groveland.com; Tenaya Lodge (near Wawona at Fish Camp), reserve at www.tenayalodge.com (available dates listed) or (888) 514-2167. Other lodging in Mariposa, El Portal, Groveland, Fish Camp at www.Yosemite.com. Camping in Yosemite Valley: Upper Pines, RVs up to 35 feet, trailers up to 24 feet, plus tent sites, $26 per night; Camp 4 (walk-in tent sites only), firstcome, first-serve, $6 per person per night. North Pines projected to open March 26, Lower Pines projected to open March 30. Camping outside Yosemite Valley: Hodgdon Meadow on Highway 120 near Big Oak Flat entrance station (best camp for access to Hetch Hetchy), $26 per night; Wawona (south end of park) on Highway 41, $26 per night; both first-come, firstserved. Info: (209) 372-0266. Wilderness: The Tuolumne Meadows Ski Hut is open for cross-country ski arrival, with firewood and eight bunks available on a first-come, firstserved basis. No phone service. Info/permits: Yosemite Wilderness office, (209) 372-0740, www.nps.gov/yose, click on “Plan your visit” and “wilderness permits.”
HOW TO GET THERE
Arch Rock entrance: Drive to Merced and the junction of Highway 99 and Highway 140. From Merced, take Highway 140 east for 37 miles to Mariposa. Bear left (still 140), drive through Mariposa and continue east 30 miles to the park boundary at El Portal. Continue ahead (past park kiosk) 6.4 miles (through Arch Rock and tunnel) to Southside Drive and continue into Yosemite Valley. Driving notes: Highway 140 goes through Mariposa, along the Merced River and through El Portal to Arch Rock entrance (2,850 feet) and don’t climb above 4,000 feet (where chain controls are rare). This is the best winter route. Along the Merced River, a one-lane detour provides a bypass around a rockslide area. Another route, to the Big Oak Flat entrance station, runs along Don Pedro Reservoir and through Groveland, and requires drivers to carry chains. Yosemite Valley to Badger Pass From Yosemite Valley: From Yosemite Valley, take Northside Drive west out of the valley to a junction with El Portal Road. Turn left on Southside Drive and drive 0.2 of a mile to Wawona Road/Highway 41. Turn right on Wawona Road and drive 9.2 miles to Glacier Point Road. Turn left on Glacier Point Road and drive 5 miles to Yosemite Ski and Snowboard Area at Badger Pass. Turn right to parking, rental service for showshoes, cross-country skis. Park shuttle bus: A free shuttle bus operates from Half Dome Village to Badger Pass. Distances To Half Dome Village in Yosemite Valley: 80 miles from Merced, 156 miles from Dublin, 163 miles from Sacramento, 169 miles from Concord, 185 miles from San Mateo, 188 miles from San Francisco, 195 miles from San Jose, 199 miles from San Rafael.