TRAVEL ALERT: Highway 120/The Big Oak Flat Road within Yosemite is temporarily closed west of the Merced Grove Trailhead due to road failure. The road is scheduled to reopen with delays on Saturday, June 10, barring any unforeseen complications or weather delays. There is not direct access to Yosemite Valley from Tuolumne County destinations until that time.
The Hetch Hetchy Reservoir area of Yosemite is OPEN, 7:00am to 9:00pm.
Evergreen Lodge and Camp Mather are accessible.
Yosemite Valley can be accessed via Highways 140 and 41.
Call ahead 209-372-0200 for current updates or go to nps.gov/yose.
For some ideas of other things to do in Tuolumne County, click to view 21 Things To Do In Tuolumne County.
Over half of Yosemite National Park is in Tuolumne County--it’s the least crowded half too.
Highway 120 through Tuolumne County is the most direct route into Yosemite National Park from the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento and all of Northern California.
Walk in the majesty of towering giant sequoias in the Tuolumne Grove of Giant Sequoias
Other highlights of the park include Yosemite Valley with its iconic cliffs like Half Dome and El Capitan and towering waterfalls, Wawona’s Pioneer Yosemite History Center and Glacier Point with spectacular view of Yosemite Valley and the high country in the spring through fall.
1. Purchase your Park Pass online ahead of time to save time at the gate.
2. 95% of visitors see 5% of Yosemite; explore the less visited and uncrowded areas outside the Valley Floor – like Hetch Hetchy and the Tuolumne Grove of Giant Sequoias.
3. Go early in the morning (avoid park entrance traffic between 10am and 12pm).
4. Visit the park October through April when it is much less crowded, and you’ll get the best of fall colors and beautiful winter scenes.
5. In the busy summer months, take alternate transportation like YARTS (Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System) or utilize a specialized tour provider.
Stay right next to the entrance of Yosemite National Park for an once in a lifetime experience!
The total Yosemite experience doesn't begin or end at the park boundary. More outdoor adventure extends onto the adjacent Stanislaus National Forest and in the High Sierra, and unique discoveries are made when you're transplanted back in time in California's Gold Country.
