Yosemite High Country Still Covered In Snow Mid-Summer

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK (KCBS) – While it's the middle of summer, many trails and campgrounds in Yosemite are still covered by snow from the incredibly wet winter. That's making it tough on backpackers, hikers and campers trying to get to the park's high country.

"Yes, we're still seeing winter and spring camping and hiking conditions in the high country," Yosemite Park Ranger Jamie Richards told KCBS.

"Snow has been a great challenge for us. It's been a great snowpack year, we saw a 200 percent increase in average snowpack this year, one of the highest years for snowpack on record in the higher elevations at Yosemite," Richards went on to say.

Richards says camping on the valley floor is okay but be careful around swollen streams. You can also get lost when the dirt trail you are following is suddenly covered by snow.

"It certainly a year to go down in the record books. But it is still having some operational impacts as far as getting into your favorite campsites," she said. "In Tuolumne Meadows, Tuolumne meadows campground is still closed. We're hoping to have it open in August, but we're still working on getting that campground cleaned up and open to the public."