With the government shutdown that began over a spending bill now nearing a full month, national parks are starting to see far-reaching impacts.
While the park themselves remain largely open to the public, the Trump administration’s staff furloughs have led to everything from limited service at visitor centers to slower garbage collection and response times in remote areas.
At famed Yosemite National Park in California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains, both visitors and remaining workers have drawn attention to a dangerous trend. Some visitors have been using the limited staff presence to engage in activities that would normally get them banned from the park and criminally charged.
With fewer staff around to monitor, national parks see spike in BASE jumps
An extreme form of parachute sport in which people jump from the edges of cliffs and buildings, BASE jumping is against the law on all national park land and could lead to a fine of up to $5,000, a park ban, and a federal misdemeanor charge.
As first reported by local outlet SFGate, the lack of staffing has led to a spike in visitors attempting BASE jumps from the granite cliffs for which the park is known, and the 3,000-foot El Capitan peak in particular.
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“More BASE jumpers!” local hiker and nature blogger Charles Winstead wrote in the caption to an Instagram video showing a winding line of people waiting to take a BASE jump off one of the cliffs at Yosemite.
“Definitely feeling some freedom to flout the rules due to the shutdown. Second group today.”
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“Our law enforcement rangers remain efficient, effective and vigilant”: NPS
With National Park Service (NPS) employees overseeing law enforcement and emergency response largely spared from Trump administration cuts, some enforcement is going on. On Oct. 24, a local court convicted three park visitors for BASE jumps that they attempted earlier in the year prior to the shutdown.
Still, the visible dearth of staff has emboldened many to at least attempt illegal jumps.
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“We do not tolerate illegal activity in Yosemite National Park,” Yosemite Park Superintendent Raymond McPadden said in a statement first reported by SFGate.
“Convictions demonstrate the professionalism and dedication of Yosemite’s protection team in upholding federal regulations,” McPadden added. “Our law enforcement rangers remain efficient, effective, and vigilant 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.”
Park visitors, however, have consistently reported witnessing a visible increase in people BASE jumping at Yosemite since the start of October.
Visitors to Zion National Park in southwestern Utah have reported similar sightings. The sandstone cliffs for which that park is known often draw those attempting illegal BASE jumps.
Both parks have seen a number of deaths when BASE jumpers underestimate their landings and plummet onto cliffs.
“There are lots of squatters in the campgrounds,” an anonymous former NPS employee told SFGate. “There are lots of people that truly believe they can do whatever they want because of the lack of rangers. They’ve told us.”
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