Yosemite National Park's popular Tioga Road open for the season

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK - A popular east-west passage in Yosemite National Park that takes drivers across the Sierra Nevada mountains is opening for the season.

Yosemite National Park Superintendent Don Neubacher says Tioga Road will open at noon on Wednesday.

He urges motorists to travel with caution due to ongoing roadwork and warns of the possibility of ice in some places, especially in the early morning hours.

Neubacher says there may also be ice on hiking trails at higher elevations.

He urges visitors to prepare for snowy conditions and possible treacherous stream crossings while hiking the backcountry in the early season.

Yosemite, which encompasses nearly 1,200 square miles of wilderness and is visited by millions of people each year, is one the nation's most venerated national parks.

Yosemite Valley was set aside for protection by President Lincoln in 1864.