Rock tunnel on road with 'Turn On Lights' sign

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The lure here is the sign itself: a plain warning to drivers to turn on their headlights before entering a rock tunnel, a small piece of roadside instruction that shows how early park roads had to manage visitors unfamiliar with dark, narrow passages. Yosemite's tunnels were carved through granite along routes such as Wawona Road and the Tioga Road, where early motorists faced long stretches with little light and no shoulder. Signs like this one reflect the park's effort to keep traffic safe on mountain roads built for horse-drawn travel and later adapted for automobiles. The tunnel and its sign are worth a closer look as a record of how the park adjusted its roads to the growing number of cars.

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