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The next time you and your family pack up for another family getaway to Yosemite National Park, make sure you leave that unmanned aerial vehicle at home. The National Park Service released a statement on Friday warning visitors that drones are prohibited, saying that drones "can be extremely noisy, and can impact the natural soundscape." Park officials also cited the possibility that drones could interfere with emergency rescue operations and could have a negative impact on the wildlife of Yosemite.
Park visitors have been using drones to film climbers scaling the famed cliffs of Yosemite Valley and capturing aerial views of the park. As the LA Times pointed out, many of these videos are a quick YouTube search away, making us wonder why people who bring drones to Yosemite would even bother driving all the way there in the first place.
However, as sensible and well-intentioned as this ban may be, some have pointed out that the legal basis on which it is founded is rather specious. Whether it is actually illegal or not, you should probably leave that drone at home out of consideration for the rest of us.
