Should I Still Visit Yosemite? And Other Questions About National Parks During the Shutdown

More than a week in, the federal government shutdown has affected national parks in an often-confusing variety of ways.

While many National Park Service sites are fully open, like Alcatraz, other sites are completely closed during the shutdown — including Muir Woods National Monument.

And then, there are the other parks that remain technically open but with vastly reduced staffing levels and limited services. What’s more, with many NPS staff furloughed, these parks’ websites are not being updated during the shutdown, making it even more difficult to find up-to-date information, especially for first-time visitors.

If you have plans to visit a national park soon — having secured a coveted camping Yosemite reservation, for example — it might feel hard right now to know what’s happening on the ground at parks, and how you can prepare for your trip.

We talked to the experts, who shared what you should know about visiting national parks during the shutdown.

Jump straight to:

• Should I still go to a National Park during the shutdown?
• Will my reservation be honored?
• How will I know if a trail is open or closed?
• How can I recreate responsibly?
• Where else can I go on my vacation?
• How can I support National Parks right now?

Should I still go to a national park that’s open?

First things first — check whether the park you’re planning to visit is actually open, as several parks have experienced something of a back-and-forth with closing and opening in the last week.

If the park of your choice is open, make sure you know of any other closures that may still be in place within it, like bathrooms, parking lots, campsites and other amenities.

For example, Yosemite has open gates but no rangers on duty at the entry to collect fees, and all visitor centers are locked. A full list of closures of Golden Gate National Recreation sites in the Bay Area can be found here.

Remember that many national parks websites are not being updated during the shutdown. What’s more, communications staff for parks have been furloughed, with many only checking email for urgent safety issues — so updates to the public, including on social media, will be slow to get out.

Mark Rose, the National Parks Conservation Association’s Sierra Nevada program manager, said his organization is encouraging visitors who can change their plans to do so.

Canceling your trip isn’t just to protect the park, he said — but also because you may miss out on some attractions like visitor centers, ranger programs and museums that aren’t operating during the shutdown.

But, “if you have a reservation, or this is a once-in-a-lifetime trip and you’re flying across the country, we’re not going to say, ‘Don’t go to the park,’” Rose said. “If you are going to go, do everything you can to plan ahead and be prepared.”

However, he did warn against taking on a more risky adventure right now — like a multi-day backpacking trip — because staffing is low and response times may be delayed in an emergency.

As for more local and urban national park sites like those within the Bay Area, Chris Lehnertz, president and CEO of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, said it’s OK to visit, but be sure to focus on minimizing damage.

“I think people should continue to go to parks — and they should be thoughtful visitors,” she said.

Will my national parks reservation be honored?

It should be. But if it isn’t, you may unfortunately have trouble finding out ahead of time.

Since the government shutdown on Oct. 1, reservations for NPS lands — like camping sites and backcountry permits — have been thrown into confusion, with Reddit threads like this one full of people struggling to find definitive answers on whether their reservations will be honored.

The simplest answer is that if the park is open, you can still go — and your reservation should still be valid. But Rose warned that due to reduced staff, there may be fewer rangers available to check that everyone is complying with the reservation system.

In a worst-case scenario, this could mean there’s nobody to make sure someone isn’t taking your campsite, either inadvertently or deliberately.

A message on Recreation.gov, which manages reservations for national parks, states that the agency isn’t able to keep track of current closures, and that understaffing may, in fact, cancel your reservation even at a park that’s otherwise open.

Cory Goehring, outdoor programs manager and senior naturalist at nonprofit Yosemite Conservancy, said that while services are limited within the park, he’s heard that people are generally respecting reservations — and hasn’t seen reports of overcrowding or damage just yet.

Wilderness reservations for backcountry trips are still valid, Goehring said. But most wilderness centers — other than the one in Yosemite Valley — won’t have rangers there to help you register your trip ahead of time.

This means it’s important that you self-register your trip and let others know about your plans ahead of time in case of an emergency, Goehring said. You’ll also need to bring your own bear canister, as rentals will not be available outside of Yosemite Valley, and be sure to abide by food storage regulations.

How will I know which trails are open in a park?

During the shutdown, those parts of parks that are already physically accessible are staying open. Think of it as “an open-air closure,” Lehnertz said.

So while certain visitor centers and entire welcome areas are closed, including parking lots, many trails remain open and technically accessible.

So long as there’s no “closed” sign, these trails can be accessed, but Lehnertz noted that since you may find some areas are unexpectedly closed, be sure to respect any signs you do see.

Basically, whether it’s at a park entrance or within the park itself, “don’t go past any sign that has the word ‘Closed’ on it,” urged Lehnertz.

She also warned that you could encounter slower response times if there’s an emergency due to reduced staffing, and amenities like bathrooms and trash cans may not be serviced as frequently.

How can I recreate responsibly?

“The most important thing to keep in mind is: these are public lands, and we all have a responsibility to tend to them,” Goehring said.

While Yosemite remains open, he urged visitors to follow Leave No Trace principles by respecting the park’s natural and cultural sites.

“Looking at the seven pillars of Leave No Trace, the very first one is to plan ahead and prepare,” he said. “That’s going to be the most important thing for people to do if they’re going to make their way to Yosemite.”

While the park’s website might not be fully up to date, Lehnertz recommended checking out the “Plan Your Visit” section to get advice ahead of your trip. Think about the timing of your visit, and what your bathroom and trash needs will be ahead of time. If you’re traveling with kids or pets, consider what their needs will be, too.

Most of all, don’t go off trails or damage the park, she reiterated.

A guide published by the Yosemite Conservancy also urges visitors to stay patient, as “fewer staff means slower or reduced service.” Goehring recommends downloading the park map and guide ahead of time, since no one will be there to give directions at the entrance of the park.

Many parks have limited cell phone service, so the National Parks Conservation Association advises bringing extra water and being especially careful to respect wildlife during the shutdown.

NPCA’s Rose urged visitors to store their food away from bears and to be extra cautious about wildfires amid limited staffing to help guard against those hazards. “All it takes is one bad actor” to “undo decades of progress,” he warned.

So far, Lehnertz said, who works with national park sites in the Bay Area, “our community members are being very respectful of park resources.”

I want to stay away from national parks during the shutdown. Where can I go instead?

While some national parks are closed or operating with limited staff, California’s 280 state parks are all functional and operating as usual. That includes more than 340 miles of coastline, 970 miles of lake and river frontage and more than 15,000 campsites and 4,500 miles of trail, according to California State Parks spokesperson Adeline Yee.

When it comes to state-run alternatives to popular national parks in the Sierra, Yee particularly recommended Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve near the eastern entrance to Yosemite.

For a taste of Gold Rush history and some very big trees, you can stop by Columbia State Historic Park and Calaveras Big Trees State Park near Yosemite’s western entrances, Yee said.

And amid the changing fall colors, state parks even published its own list of autumn recommendations to catch the best of the vibrant foliage, which includes Bay Area parks like Angel Island, Henry Coe and Castle Rock state parks.

See the list of all state parks within California and take a look at KQED’s other recommendations for Bay Area landmarks that aren’t affected by the shutdown, including the Presidio.

How can I support National Parks right now?

The NPCA estimates that parks could lose as much as $1 million per day while not collecting entrance and other fees during the shutdown. That’s not even including the potential impacts to local economies — an estimated $80 million daily — that will lose their own revenue as visitorship pauses, the organization said.

In addition to the nationwide nonprofit National Park Foundation, every national park has its own nonprofit arm that organizes volunteers, runs bookstores and often fills gaps left by the National Park Service. Some of those groups are even using their own funds to keep parks open, like Lehnertz’s group, which is now paying to keep Fort Point available to the public again on weekends.

Plus, these organizations are still operating their own programs within national parks during the shutdown. These include the Yosemite Conservancy, which is staffing its own centers in the park to field visitor questions and is continuing to run its art and guided tour programs.

So for those inclined to donate money or time, you can find information online on how to help the nonprofit affiliate for your park of choice.

NPCA is also urging park supporters to contact their members of Congress to call on them to pass a funding bill to keep the government open — and to support a Senate bill that averts future funding cuts for parks.