NPS incidents and reservation system: National Park Service and county representatives briefed the Fish Camp Planning Advisory Council on visitation trends, reservation‑system data, gate cameras and staffing. NPS said the park’s first‑quarter incident count is roughly 600 calls higher than a decade average for the same quarter, citing increases in calls for service, search and rescue and medical responses.
Park and county staff described how the park is using reservation data, gate cameras and an adaptive‑management approach to shift capacity and parking: cameras monitor wait times and traffic flows and reservation counts inform adjustments to reservation availability. Park staff said the reservation data are used to “adapt” limits and try to smooth arrivals; county and park officials said the system is producing operational data that will be used to tune the program over time.
Staffing and operations: NPS said seasonal staffing is below historical levels and that short staffing has reduced some capacity (seasonals are employed only for limited months). Park seasonal and permanent staffing shortfalls have increased workloads and may have contributed to higher incident rates.
Wawona Hotel assessment: Park staff reported the Wawona Hotel is undergoing structural assessments that include partial wall removals and other inspections to determine needed roofing, seismic and structural repairs. Officials said the park plans a comprehensive assessment across outbuildings and the main lodge, and that the intent is to evaluate repairs holistically rather than piecemeal; park staff said the full rehabilitation will likely take multiple years and contract planning is underway.
Implications and next steps: County and park staff said they will continue to use camera and reservation data to inform traffic and gate operations and that the park is pursuing a ‘global’ assessment approach for Wawona Hotel to limit inefficiency from repeated short repairs. County staff emphasized coordination with the park on visitor management and recommended continued information sharing on staffing, reservation data and operational plans.