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Tioga Pass Road At Yosemite National Park Reopening Monday

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK (CBS / AP) -- After a winter of light snow, a major road in Yosemite National Park is set to open on May 7, nearly six weeks earlier than last year.

Officials say Tioga Pass Road will be cleared by noon Monday, allowing visitors to enter through the park's east gate.

Tioga is the eastern gateway to the park, and a popular, scenic east-west crossing of the Sierra Nevada.

It normally closes for the winter. At nearly 10,000 feet, it's the highest highway pass in California and snowfall is generally so deep that road crews are unable to plow it until late spring.

Park officials warn that snow and icy conditions still exist at higher elevations.

All campgrounds and commercial services will remain closed.

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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