America’s national parks have been called “our best idea.” From the towering granite cliffs of Yosemite to the deep canyons of Zion, from the hissing geysers of Yellowstone to the quiet battlefields of Gettysburg, the National Park Service (NPS) protects the landscapes, wildlife, and history that define our nation’s identity. For more than a century, these places have been set aside for us and the generations to come. Are our national parks in peril?
Right now, the National Park Service is facing what many say is its biggest threat yet—and it’s coming not from wildfires or climate change, but from deep budget cuts that could permanently reshape, shrink, or even privatize the system we know today.
Numbers show our national parks in peril
Let’s start with the numbers. Despite making up less than one-fifteenth of 1 percent of the entire federal budget, the National Park Service delivers an astonishing return on investment. For every dollar the government puts into the parks, $15 flows back into the national economy. In 2024 alone, more than 332 million people visited park sites, bringing in a record $55.6 billion in visitor spending that supported over 415,000 jobs in gateway communities.
However, the current presidential administration has proposed the largest cut to the Park Service in its 109-year history: a $1.2 billion slash, representing nearly 40% of the agency’s budget. To put that in perspective, the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) warns this level of reduction could mean effectively shutting down 350 of the 433 national park sites across the country—wiping out more than 75% of the entire system. This, according to a story carried by forbes.com.
“These Trump cuts will devastate the NPS in a way that is not recoverable,” says John Donahue, a retired park service superintendent who spent 38 years working in the parks, starting as a gardener at Cape Cod National Seashore. “It may take another century to undo the damage our heritage is suffering.”
This isn’t just abstract budget talk. According to Forbes, the Interior Department has laid off 1,000 NPS probationary workers, accepted 700 buyouts, and is preparing to issue 1,500 more layoff notices in the next few days. The cuts come on top of a significant exodus as longtime staff have left under hiring freezes, early retirement offers, and restructuring mandates. That’s about 13% of the workforce gone—all while the department orders that parks remain open and fully operational.
How will that work?
According to Tim Whitehouse of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), it’s unclear whether the NPS can hire enough seasonal workers in time for the busy summer months. Forbes quotes Whitehorse, “There are just a lot of unknowns about how the seasonal program is going to work and whether it will be successful,” he says. Meanwhile, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has told park superintendents they will need approval from top leadership to close even a single trail or visitor center, adding another layer of bureaucracy to an already strained system.
What’s really behind the cuts?
Many conservation advocates worry this isn’t just about “efficiency.” Donahue suspects the deeper strategy is to cripple the agency so badly that some can argue it no longer functions, paving the way for privatization. “Cripple the agencies, then claim they can’t do their job—using that as a pretext to privatize the parks for the benefit of the wealthy,” he warns.
Indeed, the White House budget proposal suggests downgrading many national park units to state-run sites and slashing nearly $900 million from park operations. Another $158 million would be cut from the Historic Preservation Fund, which provides critical matching grants for tribal and local preservation projects. The administration argues that many of these programs are “duplicative,” ignoring the fact that these federal supports often unlock additional non-federal funding.
The cuts also threaten to eliminate the very regional offices that help parks operate efficiently, by providing contract officers, engineers, landscape designers, compliance experts, and other specialized staff that local park leadership often can’t manage on their own. As Donahue puts it, these support systems are essential for running the parks smoothly, and removing them just makes everything harder and more expensive.
300 billboards point to national parks in peril
The issue hasn’t gone unnoticed. On Monday, 300 billboards went up across the country calling attention to the struggles facing America’s national parks under the current administration.
The billboards are part of a campaign by More Perfect Union, a nonprofit advocacy group, aiming to show the public how the Department of Government Efficiency’s cost-cutting measures are actually causing more harm than good. The signs will appear in cities from Arizona to North Carolina, sending a clear message: The future of our national parks is at serious risk.
“Park system would be completely decimated”
The stakes go far beyond just operational headaches. Parks are more than just pretty landscapes or vacation destinations—they’re vital pieces of American history and culture, offering a shared space where people of all backgrounds can experience nature, learn about the past, and connect to something larger than themselves.
Theresa Pierno, president and CEO of the National Parks Conservation Association—a non-partisan group, calls the proposed cuts “catastrophic.” “If enacted by Congress, our national park system would be completely decimated.”
For context, the NPS manages 85 million acres across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. These places include not just iconic national parks, but monuments, battlefields, seashores, rivers, and historic sites—all protected under a system designed to serve the public good.
So, where does that leave us?
As President Lyndon B. Johnson once said, “If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than contempt, we must leave them something more than the miracles of technology. We must leave them a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning, not just after we got through it.”
How will future generations view the history being sown today? Are our parks in peril? Will they be hollowed out, underfunded, and handed off piece by piece, until what’s left is only a shadow of what RVers and other visitors see today?
Editor’s note: WE ARE SIMPLY STATING THE FACTS.
YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOME, BUT ANY COMMENTS OR COMMENT CHAINS THAT BECOME TOO POLITICAL OR CREATE A HOSTILE OR NAME-CALLING “ENVIRONMENT” WILL BE DELETED AT OUR DISCRETION.
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Looking forward to the companion piece in 6, 9 or 12 months when 350 out of 433 National Parks have not closed down and country is flush with cash as a result of these austerity measures to get our financial house in order.
Also in that article, after the Gardner who advanced into management, and his opinion has been proven wrong that the negative impacts will be BEYOND recovery, can we hear from him again on how he as gardener, not an economist, he got his opinion published.
“More Perfect Union” is the authority…why not “Code Pink”? LOL 😂🤣😂🤣
Just more hyperbole!!!🤣😂
It is a little ironic that the “More Perfect Union” is non profit, so they don’t pay any taxes to support the national parks, and all donations are a tax deduction! Lol!
Congratulations on being so optimistic about the future. If the country is going to be flush with cash, and for every dollar the NPS spends the economy gets $15, why make big cuts to the NPS and turn federal land over to local and state governments that are unlikely to have the budget to manage them?
Lets assume the 1$ spent for $15 of revenue is accurate. Taking in the same $15 quoted for half the cost to generate it is just good business and creates $30 for every $1 invested. Just math.
Happy trails ✌️ 😎
There’s that optimism at work. Getting more out a dollar is a great goal, but if you don’t have the dollar to spend, you get back $0 instead of $30. You seem to think the cuts are made to inefficiencies while I think they are unconsidered slashing, indiscriminatingly gutting both good and bad. Hopefully that will get sorted out over time, but the damage that could have been avoided is done upfront.
I agree with much of what you are saying. We simply had to start this process at some time with a fresh perspective and some fresh ideas of the how to start it. I’m am simply willing to give it a year or 2. If it fails, I will accept that and I will admit I was wrong but we had to try before the entire house comes crumbling down.
Be careful looking at “economic activity” as a benchmark. Welfare drives economic activity but none of us would say that ALL of us getting welfare would be a good thing. While economic activity is a good thing, if people couldn’t go to Nat’l parks, they would spend their money elsewhere and that would drive economic activity.
The best current info I could find (Frommers) showed that in ’24 fees collected by the NPS were anticipated to be $365M. So while economic activity happens, they aren’t self supporting.
Don’t get me wrong…I really don’t like seeing these cuts, but I also don’t know all the details I would need to know what cuts could be handled.
What cuts are occurring IN THE PARKS?????
Why are so many here willing to buy the garbage headline- “DEVASTATING CUTS”.
The cuts are in DC!!! REGIONAL bureaucracies.
NOT THE PARKS.
There are actual people in the field that have been laid off. Cuts are to front-line workers as well as management both locally and in DC.
A simple Google search will yield show this to be the case.
What we read from this is the cover of the story. Has any ordinary citizen taxpayer seen the “books” for the NPS? Not to condemn nor condone what is happening to the NPS budgets but there are two sides to every coin. Could RVTravel publish the NPS audited financial statements and reports as a matter of public record?
Bill,
The National Park Service publishes detailed budget requests. Each year is a download you can get here:
https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/budget.htm
In addition to the very detailed funding request, there is info on prior year actuals. Enjoy!
Side note: ’23 actual was $4.7B. ’24 4.7B. Fiscal ’25 4.8B “President’s Budget.” So, not sure how $1.2B is a 40% cut. 🤔 Other articles I read stated 20%, which looks to be correct. Still very large, but nowhere near the 40% quoted here.
I would love to see a list of positions stating where they are located and their salaries!
Bill, it’s all published in great detail by the NPS. I have a response, pending review and approval, that will give you the URL. In short, $4.7B spent ’23, $4.7B ’24. A $1.2B cut is 20%, not 40%. Still very large, but not 40%. They even give headcount in Full Time Equivalents (FTE) total by year.
This article was great! Thanks so much for writing it. Unfortunately you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make them drink it. Not many on this site want to believe that what is happening to our country is a crying shame.
Remember when the debt ceiling was repeatedly in limbo and park personnel were not getting paid for weeks on end? Remember when Yellowstone was allowed to burn for months? The “experts” swore the demise unrecoverable as if every park were on fire or every wage not paid. No disrespect but you didn’t get your fill of that water?
Here’s an inconvenient truth that shows just how panicked the NPS truly is – https://www.indherald.com/2025/04/01/congress-proposes-new-national-park-for-scott-campbell-counties/
Yellowstone burned for months due to policy, not the lack of $$$$$$$. It was “natural” and the environmentalists demanded it be left to burn. The same thing happens in the wilderness areas.
I truly appreciated this article and it was brave of RV travel to report. Lets hope the current administration does not push to shut RV travel down also. Free speech is disappearing from all media sources
Bless your heart, Sherry.
Bless your heart too, Cancelproof. 🌺
We have a $36 trillion federal deficit and I support many of the cuts being made. BUT, I don’t support cuts to National Parks or federal campgrounds because,these places actually make money by charging fees to enter or for camping. Plus,they bring in revenue to the local economy. So instead of complaining, write to your republican congressman and senators. Explain to them why these places should stay open. I have.
Personally, I doubt that all this Fear Mongering encompasses any facts. From what I have read, most of the information included in this article is biased.
I am writing to my democratic congresspeople as well. All of our representatives need to know what we expect of them.
This article is begging readers to square off on political views. Please just report the facts and not what someone sees in their crystal balls, which are usually biased. Or just close the comment section entirely.
Absolutely correct!
Do we really need government officials in order to walk around the woods? I know a few pick up garbage and point out where the mountains are.
Apparently we do: “National park saw ‘irreparable’ damage including vandalism, ruined trails and trees cut down” when NPS officials were not there.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jan/28/joshua-tree-national-park-damage-government-shutdown
“The Guardian”? LOL hahahaha…. that explains a lot.
Is this more palatable?
https://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/american-national-parks-vandalized-ruined-visitors-take-centuries-remedy-report
Absolutely!!!
I’ve had it with this newsletter. Nothing but politically bent articles by the same two authors. Over and over again.
Gotta admit that I don’t read it every day like I used to do and articles like this are the biggest reason. But this is contemporary journalism, opinions first, facts a distant second.
Can we add some FACTS to the discussion?
1. Cuts are to the DC bureaucracy.
2. Park staffing will be greater than anytime in history.
3. Interior has stated ALL seasonal worker are being hired in greater numbers than ever.
NGO’s pay NO taxes and do not meaningfully support our Parks.
When this summer season is over we will realize the focus of the National Parks Service is the Parks, not the bureacracy. It is way past time for this refocusing
Please cite your sources for this, I would like to read them myself to make an informed opinion.
This seems as idiotic as tearing statutes down. Destroying or ignoring history. Nobody wins.
This article does report the facts from Forbes and really is no different than a warning of an impending recall or notification of NPS closing a road a year from now. These terrible things are happening to all of our treasures including our liberties. You voted for megalomaniacs who in turn are voting on a huge tax cut for themselves and their wealthy friends. RV travel is not a political publication. What possible reason would they have for jumping into this discourse except warning their readers like they would warn them of any future problems effecting us. Get out of your magical thinking bubble and see what your votes last November have caused.
The authors need to be more balanced. Every issue has two viewpoints.
Wow just the facts? I don’t think so. Why not report the real facts of how the NPS budget has ballooned with multiple layers of high dollar administration and bureaucratic leadership turning the park service into an Environment advocacy political machine instead of increasing the numbers of “hands on”employees running the actual parks day in day out. Its time all the resources are diverter back to the parks, monuments etc. and the fat cut from the top!!
BINGO!!!!! You hit the nail squarely on the head
Do you have anything to support your claim of the real facts? Like proof? I mean this seriously, I’d like to be able to verify it myself.
Lisa, when an entire article is based on opinion and conjecture with opinion presented as facts, an opposing opinion based on conjecture is suitable. The article is written purely using “could happens”, “might happens” and “potentially happens” in an effort to present an absolutely devastating outcome including “unrecoverable damages” with a retired gardner as the source of that opinion.
What evidence would you like that could prove a negetive?
An opposing opinion to an offered opinion is the clear standard. James’ statements are founded in common knowledge so no backup is needed for honest debate, same as saying the sky is blue and we all know it is, no “cite your source” needed.
AGAIN, 100% ACCURATE!
100% ACCURATE!!!
I’ve read some other articles across various news sources that do a much better job of telling both sides of the story in a “not so inflammatory” manner.
There are over 400+ units managed by the NPS, but only 63 of those are Nat’l Parks & 138 Nat’l Monuments. So, half are neither of those. We have to be careful to not loosely use the term Nat’l Parks. The administration’s contention is that there are a lot of small managed sites that are very local, state, or tribal in nature that should be funded and managed at that level.
I’m sure none of us want any of the 400+ sites closed, but we also don’t want raised fees, more taxes, or a growing deficit. 🤔 What should we cut instead?
THE SKY IS FALLING THE SKY IS FALLING !!!!!!!!!!!
Yup…
Do you remember Lost In Space? Danger! Danger, Will Robinson!
By this time next year, we will all realize that this Forbes story was nothing but a bunch of BS!
I found all this fearmongering ironic as it seems every National Park or campground I have visited in the last 25 years is run by a private concessionaire and the only park employee I see is at the main gate, if I see one at all.
There are park employees managing the concessionaires, making sure they abide by the terms of the concession contracts and provide a safe experience for you, pay the proper amount to the park and gets the required support for park property maintenance. Probably in Denver or DC, overseeing multiple park campgrounds and other activities.
I’ve enjoyed many starlight presentations by park rangers and met many while hiking the trails.
You are uninformed. Every park is managed by a superintendent, and if there is a concessionaire, they have a contract negotiated with the Park, and are monitored by the Park superintendent, or their deputy.
Thank you. 👏🏻🦬
I am appalled what the voters in this country are allowing to their government to do to the rich heritage this country. The NPS is a vital part of our history and needs to be protected from the short sited people running the show now. I would hate to say to my grand children that you should have seen this or that park before all the trees were cut down or all the war monuments were turned into condos and the grand canyon was great before all the mining and drilling destroyed the views. Hopefully I will be long gone when this great country is remembered like the Roman Empire of the past.
This is a disclaimer. “Editor’s note: WE ARE SIMPLY STATING THE FACTS. ”
As far as I’m concerned, this is a Fear Mongering Opinion : “Right now, the National Park Service is facing what many say is its biggest threat yet”
What is factual about claiming “many say” ? Those must be the experts talking. Too many experts are claiming what they don’t have a clue about or what they have some vested interest in.
Stop panicking and see what happens. I’m not claiming I know what will happen, but I haven’t pulled the Fire Alarm, either.
Did you know that a single billboard average cost is $800-$1200 for a 3 month term?
Do the math and multiply by 300. Take THAT money and invest it in the parks. Problem solved!
$300,000 is a drop in the bucket
I noted this comment as a thumbs up – but it added one to the thumbs down!
Hi, Doug. I think that was probably because as you were voting thumbs up, two people voted thumbs down. It just shows the net count of the votes. Have a great day. 😀 –Diane
Exactly. Thank you Diane!
You’re welcome, NPV. (I see the handle you previously used to post comments under, BTW.) Thank you for your helpful information.👍 Just curious: Are you from Sequim originally? I like it over there. Have a good night. 😀 –Diane
Use an emoji 👍🏻 as a reply
there was a fundraiser of private citizens that paid for those billlboards… Don’t worry – none of yours spent to save our national parks…
I believe there is a “more recent” story that part-time staffing at the NPs is at a higher level this year than in years past.
As already posted, typical fearmongering.
I noted this comment as a thumbs up – but it added one to the thumbs down!
After the backlash from the mass firings in February, the park service announced they would hire up to 7,700 SEASONAL workers this year (prior 3 year average was 6,350). The NPS and DOI are struggling to hire and the seasonal workers will have less full time experienced workers to train and supervise them. The part-time staffing is lower, not higher, so far.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/suzannerowankelleher/2025/05/08/national-park-service-layoffs-budget-cuts/
There is also the concern that the federal government plans to handle less funding by selling federal land and turning over NPS sites to local and state governments (who often pushed for NP designation due to lack of funds).
100% accurate.
Yet, all the biased vote down.
So much for FACTS vs. bias.
Many commenters missed the current budget discussions in Congress.
None of this is currently happening, but may happen in the next months and years.
it already happened….
Another negative article by Russ and Tina
Also editors want us to be nice in comments but starts off by yelling at us ( all capitals)
I’m with the commenter about still reading newsletter but not nearly as much as I used too
I noted this comment as a thumbs up – but it added one to the thumbs down!
Same here.
Thanks NW/ND I’ve noticed the same thing when they have a controversial article but it’s their news letter guess they can be bias if they want to
Hi, Kev, No1Hunter, and DW/ND. The total just shows the net of the up and down votes. That means if one person votes up at the same time as two people vote down, it’s going to show one vote added to the down total. Have a great day! 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
It’s only because nobody ever reads our notes about comments and ignores them… as you can see from all the comments here. We’re not yelling, just trying to be visible. 🙂 —Emily
I am torn. On one hand I don’t want to see cuts at NPS. On the other, I see the current fiscal path of the US government is unsustainable and may cause more drastic cuts in the future.
Thank you for the article Russ and Tina. Many readers here seem unconcerned about the effects this will have on one of our most treasured shared resources, its foundation grounded in the vision, awe & love of nature Teddy Roosevelt held creating whats now the NPS, championing conservation. I wonder what he would make of what his party is proposing.
Some here are predicting a year from now much of these proposals won’t have happened. If so, it will be because articles like these and a free press resulted in an informed citizenry. And that citizenry can petition their elected leaders in opposition or support. Enough pushback, it won’t happen. Exactly as designed.
There is one FACT that the authors, of this article, seem to be either ignorant or purposely ignored. That is…$36T debt our country is facing. Like it or not, unless we take serious measures to reduce, we are heading towards bankruptcy which will affect far more of the population then just those NPS employees, an we, the people who enjoy their work. Many departments and agencies will face similar cuts. I seriously question their 100 year recovery numbers and would like to see what data they chose to use in making this statement. It’s reckless statements like this that make this article seems very biased, left-wing and anti-American.
The authors included that for every dollar the NPS spends, $15 goes into the economy. That seems like it would help the country and cutting the NPS below its current “less than one-fifteenth of 1 percent of the entire federal budget”, as stated in the article, would not be a serious measure to help with the debt.
The military, on the other hand, is 13 to 15 percent of the budget. The budget proposals in Congress are looking to increase the military budget.
If all true you two (and I don’t buy into your yelling fire in a crowded theatre) this is nothing compared to the gutting of government services of all kinds if the globalist bankers call the debt.
You loose credibility when you write with such political bias and fire alarm fashion and then warn you don’t want any inflammatory responses by your readers.
Obviously you have little respect for others views.
Great comments from the readers on this article. It seems most readers understand that it is a once in a lifetime, now or never opportunity to fix what we broke over the past 50+ years and most readers seem willing to take on the temporary discomfort that comes with finding a new baseline for NPS staffing levels.
It is a perfect system that allows the free speech of readers to offer corrections to the biased writing of articles like this one. My sincere compliments to RVtravel for inviting civil discourse and to all the readers that do not accept the author’s OPINIONS as unchallengable facts, even though the Editor’s note states ‘just the facts’… THEY ARE NOT.
Happy trails ✌️ 😎
I love the parks and agree that there are staffing problems but not the reasoning. Americans pay taxes to support this. Why not double the non citizens charge.. I have seen many busses full of them and many have no regard for rules of the park. Throwing trash around being the worst. Hiking with improper shoes is also of note. That requires extra services like more rangers etc. I have first hand experience with this. I do believe the park rangers should be payed more. This just needs more fiscal management like the rest of the gov. This is not aggravated by the current administration which appears to be trying to solve a long standing problem that needs attention!
Whether they are considered facts or opinions is subject to the reader. Also one’s personal experience will alter one’s view. As such, I have spent the better part of the last three years as an onsite volunteer for the NPS.
That gives me a front seat to witness and comment on the value of these good NPS stewards who assist the public in enjoying their own lands. These people aren’t getting rich (unlike some other public servants). They truly love what they do and want to share it with us.
Please go to a national park unit near you, there are over 400 of them. Talk to one of our rangers. I think you’ll personally witness what I have seen. And stay to volunteer, if you can.
In our last six years of working as volunteers at public parks, Washington State, NPS, BLM, and Army Corp of Engineers I have never felt that the parks were over staffed. The opposite in fact, I am also aware of the huge amount of training involved with becoming a law enforcement ranger. These are folks who have to deal with poachers, drunks, lost children, injured guests etc. You simply cannot hire or train a competent ranger for free. To see these young people cast off as if they are criminals is upsetting. And a warning. Privatization by nature excludes the public good. Services that were free are no longer. Our public lands generate more income than they spend.
As a fellow volunteer, thank you for being there. I completely agree with your comment.
Hands Off! How about if the government spends the NPS money that Congress already approved last year???
It’s wonderful seeing these comments! 🇺🇸
Thank you, Russ and Tina, for the information. In that I appear to be making comment #72, then I will wish you a great weekend and safe travels!
It’s going to be very difficult, but it does matter that the country is almost $37 trillion in debt, and may go bankrupt within about 10 years. We have to make cuts throughout the bureaucracy of the US government.. The one question we have is how could a 40% cut close 75% of the national parks? that sounds a little slanted to me.
And it’s not 40% if it’s $1.2B. It’s 20%.
Sounds like the national parks actually add money to the economy ….so since when is cutting the funding with a 2x – 15x return on every dollar a good idea? We have incredible natural spaces here in the USA that should be enjoyed by generations to come. No need to remove these wildlife corridors & breathing spaces for all of us. One of the things that makes the USA such a gorgeous country…. save our National Parks…..
🎯🎯🎯
Ok, here are some real facts, though they are rather dated (2015):
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE Salaries – 22,287 employee salaries
“Highest salary in NATIONAL PARK SERVICE in 2015 was $183,300. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE average salary in 2015 was $56,840.” 1536 made over $100k in salary alone, not counting benefits, in 2015. Can you imagine those salaries today?
My god! These park service employees actually want a living wage! My god when will it stop.
A simple internet search will give you the answer to your question.
A great fact. The salaries of ALL federal workers is 4.3% of the federal budget. Employees are not the problem, just an easy excuse.
You didn’t quote the entire statistic, it also said: “NATIONAL PARK SERVICE average salary in 2015 was $56,840. It was 26% lower than the state average. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE median salary in 2015 was $50,319. It was 18% lower than the state median.” LOWER.
It wasn’t quoted as it is a meaningless statistic. The parameters arriving at those figures are not disclosed. You know, like “state average.” The whole United States, a particular State, part-time verse full-time, like-kind jobs, etc????
That is why I used the actual salary figures, and it shows there is a lot of bloat at the top.
Yes there is a lot of bloat at the top but I won’t speak to that. As an NPS volunteer, I have lived in national parks for about three years. From my experience, being a park service employee is not going to get anyone rich.
These people work there because they love the outdoors and want to share it with the true owners of these amazing places – the American People. It is our right to visit them, and they need stewards like our park rangers to take care of them.
Save the parks! Glad about the billboards…we need to come together and realize that there no replacement for our National Parks. This is all absolutely shameful and despicable.
Billboards are no more that a politically motivated hit piece. Otherwise, the funds would have been put to more productive use.
I really don’t want to see our national park system go away. That said, (don’t eat me!) as “collectors” of NPs on our travels, I think changes need to be made. It has become too easy to get NP status. At one (unmemorable, we thought) park, an easel placed in the visitor center lobby asked “Why do you think ____ is a national park?” Some answers were, “Because of Senator _______.”
National Park Service volunteer here. Actually to become one of the 63 nationally recognized parks (out of 400+ park service entities) it takes a monumental effort on behalf of the local community, environmental studies, and politicians. I know this because I volunteered at Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park (OCMU) in Macon, GA which is trying to become the 64th nationally recognized park. It has been a ongoing, multi-year process for them. Have you been there yet to get your passport stamp? I highly recommend it.
Thank you Russ and Tina for posting this factual report. I have been monitoring the NPS along with proposed actions by this and previous administrations for many years. I have fully expected everything we are currently witnessing as it and more has been detailed within the 900+ pages of Project 2025. As with prior to the election, people continue to poo-poo the idea that any of what we are witnessing could or would ever happen. Well, we can only place our heads in the sand for so long before we find ourselves shot in the @$$. Thank you again..!!
I didn’t read facts, only negative speculation of what may, might, or could happen. But you guys are free to panic prematurely.
Amazing.
This web site likes to tell us they don’t accept political views, etc.
Yes this post runs and this article runs.
I read here with great skepticism. The jaundiced view is clearly political.
I am sorry to see all the cuts. The closest National Park to me is Yosemite. It is so mis-managed, it is unbelievable, Wawona campground had a water and sewer line break 20+ years ago, closing 1/2 that campground, no plans to fix, so no camping there. In the valley, 120 campgrounds removed in a flood 20+ years ago, no plan to replace. Can’t just go there like we did when our children were young. We camped there almost every weekend in the summer. We used to contribute to the Yosemite conversation society but cut off our funding when they decided to “preserve” Yosemite. I guess they are saving it for future generations so they can’t use it when they go there either! Denali Park, same thing.
Environmentalists have destroyed the experience. The Sierra Club literally dumped John Muir.
Denali Park, poorly managed. Drove motorhome there, over 2 million acres, no overflow parking, we’re self contained but wouldn’t let us stay in the park, no reservations, pushed across the highway to a private all gravel parking lot, $100 a night. How can you have 2 million acres, advertise for people to travel there and visit, and when you arrive, no room for you! Just stupid management. I think that the parks need to re-visit their mission.
So not sure I understand. Did you – or not – have a camping reservation there (“wouldn’t let us stay in the park, no reservations”)? 2 million acres doesn’t mean anything about camping availability. I would think a trip of that length would have involved some pre-planning.
Thank you. I am also a national park volunteer working mainly in visitor centers. Many people visit national parks without much planning or forethought. Most people know to plan in advance and their visit is much better for it. The Park Service is doing the best they can with the limited resources they now have.
The Parks services are not limited. Again, factually, greater staffing and up keep. If the discussion is about adding campsites,that is something most park superintendents and environmental groups don’t want.
“Might”, “may”, and “could” are not facts. As of now, they are merely panic inducing speculation. We were in Zion last week; plenty of rangers and staff. Construction projects and improvements were in full swing.
I wish all commenters would speak from actual experiences like you.
I’m leaving tomorrow on a 3 week trip to visit Wyoming, Utah, and Arizona (including the Big 5).
I too will report back with the “facts.”
Let’s hear from the Superintendent of one of the largest and busiest NPs.
Yellowstone Superintendent Cam Sholly spoke at the Cody Chamber of Commerce’s annual National Parks Day Luncheon on May 5. He said the park has more part time and full time employees than the past five years.
Additionally, after weeks of questions over Yellowstone’s fired federal workers, Sholly said the park is better staffed than in previous years and that all seven employees laid off earlier this year have returned.
Awesome, glad to hear that Yellowstone (one of the most visited NPS units) is doing well. What about the other 400+ park service units? I don’t think we can determine the health of the entire NPS system by one of it’s best performing parks. That’s why each one has it’s own superintendent who is responsible for their budget, and their specific needs.
Not true. The Parks will have more staffing this summer than ever.
FACTS are the cuts are in the bloated DC and regional bureaucracy – NOT the Parks. Taxpayer dollars are going where it is needed.
An example of how well (poorly) our national parks are managed and why most of what you read in the media is nonsense:
Decades ago and every since I was a child, my family tradition was spending Thanksgiving in Yosemite Valley. Often when schedules permitted, we’d arrive a day before Thanksgiving and leave on the Monday after to be able to spend more time in the valley and with family. In later years, we’d arrive at the toll entrance on Wednesday only to find it unmanned. There’d be a sign in the window stating that you could enter the park, but that if you would have to pay when you left. Strange, we thought, that they’d be doing this on one of the busiest weekends of the season, but whatever. The bonus for us was that since we usually left on Monday, we wouldn’t have to pay when we left either. So for several years, we paid no fee at all.
One time when walking about the valley, I struck up a conversation with a park ranger and brought this up. As he explained it, the park management thought better to deploy limited staff elsewhere about the park on other tasks. When I asked about the revenue lost to the park from people as myself, he said that since the park got a fixed budget from the government and whatever monies collected from tolls went straight to the government, it really didn’t matter to them all that much that tolls were collected at all! They got paid just the same no matter how much effort they put into collecting tolls, so there was little point in doing anything beyond the perfunctory.
I see no reason to believe that there are countless aspects to the management of our parks with this mindset.
I deleted a ton of comments because ya’ll are acting like playground bullies.
Any more of this name calling, posts that have nothing to do with the NPS, it’s budget and cuts to it, or any more bullying and we’ll shut off and delete ALL of the comments.
Be better.
Been traveling thru Nevada & California since April 5th. Five National Parks and campgrounds and Natl Rec Areas. Talked to 20+ employees running the campgrounds and visitor centers and NOT ONE of them had anything negative to say about any lack of help. Some were volunteers and some were paid employees.
I have contacted National Park Visitor Centers and Campgrounds in Oregon & Washington and have been told no problems with help… Ya’ll need to stop sitting at your computers commenting about all the problems out there unless you actually see it for yourself. By the way… one of the NP’s was Death Valley… Campgrounds were full almost every night we were there and the visitor center was well staffed and it was busy. 300 billboards mean nothing… Just more propaganda.
“Biden Illegally Snatched Up Public Land, But SCOTUS Can Give It Back” ~ read what is really happening to our public land.
“Biden Illegally Snatched Up Public Land, But SCOTUS Can Give It Back” ~ He did what???
I just visited yosemite. I’m not sure what is normal but what I saw was: a backpacking campground closed, certain places had reduced hours open like the information area, mirror lake had a reroute trail and the area needing work had no workers but this was a weekend, I barely saw any rangers, the signs in the village were confusing and people kept having to turn around and several roads were closed but this is likely due to snowy conditions. Mirror lake trail was in good shape and cleared well, the village cafeteria area and bathrooms there were nice and well functional and clean but primarily i think i saw less rangers than usual and the obvious were reduced hours at the information center.