In central Calfornia there are two roads that cross the Sierra known for their legendary beauty. They are the Tioga Pass (SR120) much of which passes directly through Yosemite and the Sonora pass (SR108). Sonora very roughly paralells Tioga but is located further north. Tioga is only open part of the year because it’s a small road whose main use is passage into and through Yosemite National Park. Sonora is a larger road and is important access across the mountains so it is kept open longer.
We want to do both but right now Tioga is closed, so, we drove the Sonora pass.
It’s a gorgeous drive over the mountains cresting at 9,624 feet above sea level. And yes, in May, there is still a good amount of snow there. The road was clear the entire trip, so we had no worries about driving.
As you crest the pass, you see these signs. After this it’s a fairly short drive down to the 395 and Mammoth Lakes where our story continues the following day.
