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Yosemite National Park

Unease Hangs Over National Parks As Partial Shutdown Continues

Sinking morale among the National Park Service ranks and accumulating human waste and garbage are just some of the symptoms of the ongoing government shutdown that has left many national parks open but without adequate staffing. Not so visible are the impacts being suffered in long-term environmental monitoring, work on visitor management plans and environmental impact statements, and even potential setbacks to the hiring of next summer's seasonal rangers.

Illegal Camping In Death Valley National Park, Anonymous Ranger Fears For Yosemite

Beautiful desert views. No crowds. What's not to like about camping in Death Valley National Park, especially when there are no rangers about to ticket you for camping illegally? Meanwhile, as the partial government shutdown continues to show the ugly side of keeping national parks open without adequate National Park Service staff, one Yosemite National Park ranger voiced concerns about managing crowds with a skeleton staff.

UPDATED | Traveler's View: Keeping Parks Open During Government Shutdown Is Bad Idea

Keeping most units of the National Park System open during the partial government shutdown is a bad idea, as accumulating human waste and garbage poses sanitation issues and some visitors are taking advantage of the lack of presence of rangers to do what they want, regardless of regulations.

UPDATED: Yosemite National Park Closes Hetch Hetchy Area, People Entering Closed Areas Being Cited

Like a slowly toppling row of dominoes, areas around the National Park System are closing to the public during the ongoing government shutdown because of the absence of maintenance crews to deal with garbage and human waste. At Joshua Tree National Park, officials also said resources were being damaged "by driving off road and other infractions."

Around The Parks: Higher Fees, Winter In Yosemite, Good Work In Grand Teton

Higher fees are coming your way for touring the Delta-O1 launch facility at Minuteman Missile National Historic Site, the Mariposa Grove at Yosemite National Park is open for winter, and friends of Cuyahoga Valley National Park have raised millions for a new visitor center. Those are just some of the stories from around the National Park System.

Traveler's View | Bears Ears And Grand Staircase-Escalante Are Today's Hetch Hetchy

Early in the 20th century there was a fight over the fate of the Hetch Hetchy Valley at Yosemite National Park. Would it remain an amazing, waterfall-rimmed valley that so very well complemented the Yosemite Valley, or would it be given over to a reservoir to meet San Francisco's utilitarian needs? The battle for wildness, of course, was lost at Hetch Hetchy. Today the battle is being repeated in Utah, where wildness and sacredness at Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments are being tossed aside not so much for utilitarianism as for profiteering.

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