Fewer Tourists Seeing the Falls

Officials unsure why number of visitors continues to drop.

by Mark Grossi
Fresno Bee - January 10, 2005

While visits to landmarks like Yosemite Falls are dropping,Yosemite concession operators have reported good business. Fresno Bee File

When final numbers for last year are released this week, the park is expected to report less than 3.4 million visitors, almost a 20% drop in the past seven years.

Park officials are at a loss to explain the continuing decline.

"It's generally consistent with other national parks," said spokesman Scott Gediman. "There were no major fires or rock slides. We saw increases in spring; however, it went flat in summer."

For some businesses along roads leading to the park, it's not helping the bottom line. But there's a silver lining,say those who are more concerned with natural wonders.

"I don't think it's a bad thing," said Mariposa-area resident Bart Brown, 72. "Maybe people don't enjoy a crowded experience."

Some businesses report they did well despite the visitation slump. The company operating Yosemite hotels, stores and other amenities, DNC Parks & Resorts, had a good year. So did Oakhurst-area hotels along Highway 41, which leads to Yosemite's busy south entrance.

DNC is adjusting by encouraging groups to visit, especially at times other than midsummer when the park has the most visitors.

Officials said the Oakhurst area benefits from being in the most-traveled highway corridor.

While no one is certain why Yosemite visitor numbers continue to slip, there is little doubt about how the slump began.

Eight years ago this month, a large flood filled Yosemite Valley and shut down the park for many weeks. Visits tumbled from almost 4.2 million in 1996 to 3.8 million in 1997.

Until then, visitor numbers had been growing steadily through the 1980s and early 1990s.

The National Park Service was struggling to protect meadows and other natural features while allowing as many people as possible to experience the park.

The same year as the flood, entrance fees quadrupled from $5 to $20.

Two years later, the horrific Cary Stayner murders again dulled enthusiasm for Yosemite.

Then there were the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York City and the Pentagon. They were blamed for holding down the number of international visitors in 2002.

Now the park service is rebuilding flood-damaged buildings and replacing a vast utility system, which has attracted criticism and a long-running lawsuit over how many people can fit into Yosemite Valley without trampling nature.

But there was no obvious reason for the lower visitor numbers this year, Gediman said.

"It could have had something to do with the gas prices in summer," he said.

The park's concession operator, DNC, said corporate groups and associations are making a difference. The groups are encouraged to visit the park during the "shoulder seasons," before and after summer.

"The groups want things like catering service and guided tours," said DNC spokeswoman Kerri Holden. "Leisure visitors are dining more in our restaurants."

On the Highway 120 corridor through Tuolumne County, the Groveland Hotel had an up-and-down year, said owner Peggy Mosley.

"We had a killer season going until August when some repair work started on Hetch Hetchy," she said. "Then November and December were soft for us."

Along Highway 41 in Oakhurst, motel business was up 5%, said Dan Carter, executive director of the Yosemite Sierra Visitors Bureau. He noted the traffic through the south gate of Yosemite on Highway 41 actually increased.

"We're bucking the trend," Carter said.