Dry conditions impacting Yosemite National Park

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (KFSN) -- Yosemite National Park is off to a busy start of the season with tourists filling the campgrounds.

More than tens of thousands of people are expected go visit Yosemite this Memorial Day weekend to take in the sights. Park rangers say some attractions and animals will be out earlier than expected for this time of year.

The waterfalls are flowing in Yosemite National Park. Marty Jones of Missouri planned his trip to Yosemite six months ago, hoping for this picture perfect moment.

"Luckily all that was melted. But we wanted to come while most of the falls were still running and I guess we hit this one," said Jones.

This is the third consecutive dry year for the park. This past winter, the mountains received 30 percent of its average snow pack, which has meant faster melting snow and earlier waterfalls.

"Right now is an excellent time to come out and see the waterfalls. They're at just about peak levels. Temperatures have been warm, so the waterfalls are flowing at about the best they're going to get for the season," said Yosemite National Park Ranger Ashley Mayer.

The low snow pack has also affected some of the animals.

"Some bears did not hibernate at all this year, and those that did hibernate were out weeks earlier than we would normally expect to see them and that's because their hibernation changes with food availability," said Mayer.

The waterfalls are expected to run until mid-July instead of mid-August. Park Ranger Kari Cobb says the conditions are a mixed bag.

"This is kind of good and bad in a couple of different ways," said Cobb. "Number one it's good because it opens up a lot of our hiking trails earlier than normal, but of course it's bad because we will see drier conditions this year. The waterfalls will dry up a little bit quicker than normal, and then of course at the end of the summer, we'll probably have to instill fire restrictions."

Despite the drier conditions, rangers say there is still much to see and do inside Yosemite. Nearly 4 million people are expected to visit the international destination this year.

With tourism season expected to bring hundreds of thousands of visitors to the park, rangers want to remind people to be careful around water, to bring the proper equipment, and to stay safe on trails.