Seventeen forest fires are burning out of control in Nahanni National Park Reserve this week, but officials say the park is still open to tourists.

The fires have been burning in remote parts of the park since July 29, when lightning struck the area. Staff are monitoring but not fighting the fires at this time, Parks Canada spokesman Mike Keizer told CBC News.

"The conditions have changed in our favour, I guess you could say. The fire danger has gone from extreme down to low," Keizer said Tuesday.

"They've had some precipitation. We're getting, of course, the shorter days of the fall and we've had morning fog, so all of those have helped."

Keizer added that staff have not seen open flames on any of the fires during monitoring flights, although they have seen smoke on some of the fires.

Fire is a natural part of the park's ecosystem, so Parks Canada's policy is not to fight wildfires unless nearby communities, people or structures are threatened, Keizer said.

Some potential areas of concern include a sport-hunting lodge, as well as the Virginia Falls campground and boardwalk.

Virginia Falls is a prominent feature of the park reserve. Every year, about 1,000 visitors hike along the boardwalk, which protects the park's ecosystem and provides viewing opportunities of the falls.

Despite the fire and smoke in the park right now, tourists are not cancelling their plans to visit, Keizer said.

"The park's open for business. We're still having river trips. There's some people on the river as we speak, and we've got staff at key points along the route to inform them of anything that they need to know."