Major Roadway Into Yosemite Set To Reopen

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) -- A major road into Yosemite National Park is set to reopen this weekend after a delay because of heavy winter snow.

Officials say Tioga Pass Road will be cleared by 8 a.m. Saturday, allowing visitors to enter through the park's east gate.

It'll be the fourth-latest opening since officials began keeping records in 1980.

At 9,945 feet, Tioga Pass Road is the highest east-west crossing of the Sierra Nevada. A snowpack almost twice what is normal has hampered road-clearing crews, who usually have the pass cleared by Memorial Day.

While the road itself will soon be open, campgrounds, stores and the gas station along the road will remain closed for now. Officials don't know yet know when those will open.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)