Late-season snow has delayed the opening of several campgrounds across Oregon’s mountains and has forced the cancellation of reservations for hundreds of Oregonians this Memorial Day Weekend.
As per a report, officials claimed at least 24 campgrounds, and likely more, have had to postpone openings and cancel reservations from Central Oregon to Mount Hood.
Many campers received a notification from Recreation.gov informing them their booking had been canceled because of the weather. But most also claimed to have received a full refund.
The biggest influx of cancellations was seen in Central Oregon’s Deschutes National Forest, where 21 campgrounds stretching from Crescent Lake to Three Creek Meadow saw delayed openings.
Additionally, three campgrounds close to Mount Hood–Trillium Lake, Still Creek, and Frog Lake were delayed until roughly June 10.
Officials said that the snow prevented campground managers from conducting safety inspections, maintenance and repairs, and hazard tree removal.
Due to the cool and wet April and May, the snowpack in Oregon is significantly higher than average. Oregon’s northern Cascade Range has a snowpack that is 151 to 266% of normal.
“In many cases, access roads to campgrounds remain impassable, and campgrounds themselves are still under snow. While some areas have very recently melted out, the short timeframe has not provided enough time for critical safety work to be completed ahead of the Memorial Day weekend,” said Jean Nelson-Dean, spokeswoman for Deschutes National Forest.
The majority of lower elevation campgrounds like those in the Cascade Foothills, Coast Range, and Oregon Coast are open. But it’s always a roll of the dice in the higher elevations in late May, said Heather Isben with Mount Hood National Forest.
Historically, it was typical for snowpacks to remain deep into Oregon’s summer. However, recent warm and dry springs have seen camping opening much sooner than in the past.
“We look at a mix of public expectations and average weather patterns for opening campgrounds,” Isben said. “Every year, we do our best to pick a good projected open date — we don’t plan to open in March, for example. But sometimes we have delays like this year because you need time to do all the things a campground needs, from repairs to hiring staff.”
This story originally appeared on Statesman Journal.