YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif., June 22 (UPI) -- Yosemite National park has decided not to open its five High Sierra Camps this summer due to deep snow in the backcountry.
Kerri Holden, a spokeswoman for DNC Parks & Resorts, said snowdrifts up to 15 feet deep have kept the concessionaire and the National Park Service from installing the necessary infrastructure to open the facilities, the Sacramento Bee reported Wednesday.
"People are very disappointed," she said. "We're telling them that we'll be happy to roll their reservations over to next year. They won't have to enter the lottery again. Or they can get a full refund."
About 4,400 people had reservations to stay in the camps this summer.
Yosemite ranger Adrienne Freeman said high-country campgrounds for backpackers will eventually open once the snow melts.
"We've had a couple of backcountry rangers up there, and they found waist-deep snow in some places and waist-deep water in others," Freeman said. "It's too early to tell when the campgrounds will open."
