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As the government shutdown drags on, concerns over the health of national parks and the safety of visitors continue to grow.
Surfaced photos and videos have shown visitors to Yosemite National Park BASE jumping from El Capitan and climbing Half Dome’s cables without permits.
“It’s like the Wild Wild West,” said John DeGrazio, founder of the tour company YExplore Yosemite Adventures.
In one post to Instagram, climber Charles Winstead filmed visitors BASE jumping from El Capitan. His caption encourages other BASE jumpers to take advantage of the lack of rangers, reading, “More base jumpers! Definitely feeling some freedom to flout the rules due to the shut down. Second group today.”
In Colorado, nonprofits that work closely with the U.S. Forest Service have received mixed messages about whether volunteers are allowed to work. The Eagle-Summit Wilderness Alliance—a nonprofit that works on the White River National Forest—was told by the Forest Service that all volunteer activities should cease during the shutdown, but a local ranger district has since told the group that volunteers are allowed to work.
The conflicting guidance has left members worried that they could get in trouble for volunteering, or that the workers' compensation usually offered by the Forest Service might not cover them if they were injured while volunteering.
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For the future of our natural places, I hope this is not the trajectory we remain on, where we’re all just trying to scramble to protect the places we love.”
