Saddlebag Lake, just outside of Yosemite National Park

After a record snow year, finally Tioga Pass, has opened! It's the latest the Yosemite National Park thoroughfare has opened in 34 years, when it opened on the same day (June 29) in 1983. 

According to park officials, after years of drought, the waterfalls are "roaring back to life" thanks to this year's record snowfall in the Eastern Sierra. Yosemite Falls - one of the tallest in the world and the tallest in North America at 2,425 feet - is expected to be flowing through the end of August as opposed to drying out in the end of June or early July.

We've traveled far and wide and Yosemite still takes the cake in terms of absolute, awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping beauty, wildlife activity and boundless adventure opportunities. Those traveling from San Francisco to L.A. or Vegas have discovered that taking a detour through Yosemite, then making a quick stop in Mammoth Lakes - just 45 minutes south of the Tioga Pass East Entrance - is time well spent.