Yosemite official says: Expect to wait up to three hours for a parking space this weekend

The snow piled on mountaintops is melting, the rivers are roaring high, and the meadows are turning brilliant green and blooming with wildflowers.

After a winter of unrelenting storms, Yosemite National Park is waking up, flaunting its natural beauty and moving full-speed into its busy season.

The park expects a crush over the Memorial Day weekend, and visitors will navigate its trails, roads, campgrounds and attractions more easily if they know what's open, closed, fully booked, and to be avoided.

"We want people to plan in advance," says park spokesperson Jamie Richards. "If they don't, they can expect to wait up to three hours to get a parking space."

Park officials are advising visitors to arrive before 9 a.m. or after 4 p.m. to miss rush-hour congestion. Valley parking will fill up fast and you'll more easily find a spot at Half Dome Village and the newly expanded lots at Yosemite Village and Yosemite Falls.

To reduce valley traffic, "visitors are encouraged to not move their car once they come in and park," Richards says.

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Yosemite National Park officials expect crowds Memorial Day weekend 2017. (Photo: Cars and visitors fill the Tunnel View lookout, in Yosemite National Park, Calif., on Sat. August 15, 2015.) Yosemite National Park officials expect crowds Memorial Day weekend 2017. (Photo: Cars and visitors fill the Tunnel View lookout, in Yosemite National Park, Calif., on Sat. August 15, 2015.) Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 42 Caption Close Yosemite official says: Expect to wait up to three hours for a parking space this weekend 1 / 42 Back to Gallery

The park can be accessed from the north and west via Highway 120 (Big Oak Flat Road) and Highway 140 (El Portal Road) and from the south by Highway 41 (Wawona Road). You can park outside any of these gates, and take YARTS (Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System) with multiple drop-off and pick-up locations inside the park.

The eastern entrance is closed as crews are still removing snow from Tioga Road, which connects Yosemite with Highway 395. The route is typically open the Friday before Memorial Day weekend, but after a winter with record snowfall, Richards doesn't expect it to be clear until late June or early July.

"We have road crews actively clearing the road," she says. "We still are shooting for as soon as possible and I don't know exactly when that will be."

While Glacier Point Road is open, many trails along the route are snow-covered and the 4 Mile Trail from Glacier Point to Union Point is closed.

All reservable campgrounds are booked solid for the weekend, and the park's first-come, first-served campgrounds will fill early. You'll have better luck finding places to stay overnight outside the park. Tenaya Lodge still had rooms as of Thursday afternoon.

Many trails are open, but you'll hit snow at higher elevations and should be prepared with the appropriate equipment. The cables usually go up on Yosemite's Half Dome the Friday before Memorial Day, but not this year. These have also been delayed by the severe winter.

"There's still a lot of snow and it's rather hazardous and icy conditions on the way up to Half Dome," Richards said." It's not safe to put up the cables at this time. We're shooting for early June."

The iconic Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias is also closed until fall 2017 for a restoration project.

The good news is that while the park will be thick with crowds and some roads and trails are closed, this vast wilderness is stunning right now. After five years of drought followed by the Sierra's wettest winter, the waterfalls are putting on spectacular shows, and Memorial Day weekend will offer peak viewing conditions.

"Yosemite is a green and magical place right now," Richards said. "You have water cascading down granite cliffs towering over your head. You have pools of water in the lush green meadows creating an extremely picturesque setting."