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Delays In Seasonal Hirings Affect Hours At Zion National Park Visitor Center And Museum

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Published Date

April 12, 2017

The extended summer hours of the Zion Canyon Visitor Center and Human History Museum (pictured here) will take a little longer to kick in due to staff shortages/NPS

A hiring freeze implemented by the Trump administration that has been slow to thaw has forced Zion National Park officials in Utah to delay the usual extension of operating hours for the Zion Canyon Visitor Center and Human History Museum until month's end.

Park officials say that due to delays in the seasonal hiring process, and fewer than normal staff, the visitor center and musem hours won't be extended until Saturday, April 29.

For now, the museum will open at 10 a.m. and close at 4 p.m. Monday – Friday, and then on the weekend close an hour later at 5 p.m. The visitor center will open daily at 8 a.m. and close at 5 p.m. The Wilderness Desk will be open for permits 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Zion Canyon Visitor Center Bookstore will be open 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. This schedule will be in place until Friday April 28.

Starting April 29, both the Zion Human History Museum and Zion Canyon Visitor Center will remain open daily until 6 p.m.

“Like most national park sites, Zion National Park depends on a seasonal workforce to help with visitor services,” said Aly Baltrus, Zion’s chief of interpretation and visitor services. “Next week, several of our new seasonals start their six-month appointments. Once they complete some intense training, they will be able to assist visitors and we will be able to keep the doors open later.”

President Trump instituted the hiring freeze shortly after taking office. In late January the National Park Service received word that seasonal employees would be exempt from the freeze while the Office of Management and Budget produces a long-term hiring strategy for the administration. For many warm-weather parks, the exemptions came late in the normal hiring process, leaving some parks scrambling to fill seasonal positions, as is now the case at Zion.

There still has been no word on when the freeze on filling permanent, but vacant, government positions might be lifted.

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Comments

Submitted by Lee Dalton on April 16, 2017 - 9:13pm.

I've long wanted to hike out to Cable Mountain from the East Entrance in Zion and thought I might try it next month.  I just tried to reserve a campsite in Watchman Campground and discovered that ALL 90 sites are completely full for the entire summer.  The current "reservation window" closes in October with only occasional single night vacancies throughout.

Time to invent Plans B, C, and D.

There are going to be some overworked rangers out there this summer.


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