A couple of new Congressional studies show Yosemite National Park can regain hundreds of campsites lost in a 1997 flood. The studies suggest the tens of millions of dollars it would cost, on top of several likely legal hassles, might not be politically feasible. For example, one study predicted it would cost at least $104 million to build 788 campsites outside Yosemite Valley. Inside the park, the study showed about 144 new sites in the areas inundated by the flood could be accommodated.

But that would cost at least $18.7 million and would likely run into several environmental restrictions.