So my wife and I have been planning to camp and hike around Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon. We came to Las Vegas, even went to bed early to start off our big adventure early tomorrow morning. The only problem is we now realize those parks will be closed due to the government shutdown due to the failure of Congress to reach a concession.
Does anyone familiar with this part of the country have any suggestion about how we can still drive and enjoy the surroundings without actually entering these parks? Ideas?
G'day Doc.
I guess I should not say this .... lol ..... but you got an FJ... the parks are unattended / unmanned, go bush ... must be another way into the parks ... hint hint ...
Then plead ignorance if challenged....
The sad thing is that my wife is knocked out, breathing hard, but not even snoring. I was in REM sleep when little sis called me from California to wake me out of a deep snore (that's okay, my sleep apnea does it many times at night) to inform me of the failed congressional stopgap and ensuing shutdown of our National Parks.
I was so enraged, I'm not even sleepy now, but you guys are all cheering me up. Thanks for the near midnight humor. You guys are awesome!
P.S. ...and so much for going undercover. With this bright magma FJ, everyone will be able to see me, even on Google Earth.
wish you luck, I`ll know in a little bit if the boat ramps are closed here later on...
yeah our retards in charge in the guberment have a way of really fcking up the country...
yay Obamacare... NOT...:flame:
The National Park I live in is closed . All employees are on leave except for the Armed Rangers . Got to protect the Park from someone stealing it . :lol:
Redboat
Hey, in your park, are guests of residents being allowed? Here in Yosemite, we can have guests (family and friends) enter the park and visit. It's amazing how many "old friends" I've heard from who now want to visit during a really quiet time in the park.
Check out lake Powell. They have tour boats that take you pretty far into the lake and they also offer dinner cruises.
Page Arizona would be the closest town.
The San Rafael Swell is one of my favorite spots here in Utah and is all BLM land. Black Dragon Wash, Buckhorn Wash, etc. Goblin Valley State Park is also amazing, as is Little Wild Horse Canyon which is accessible from Goblin Valley.
Fortunately there are tons of options in Utah aside from the National Parks. I rarely go to the parks anyway because they don't take kindly to my right hand man, Cochise the Boxer.
^^^ Those are all great suggestions. There is also Snow Canyon state park. It's close to Zion and has some hiking trails and such, but it's no Zion. :cheers:
Valley of Fire is great!
From what I am reading, visitors to Nat'l Parks can enter the parks by foot. If you plan on going to Zion, I would imagine that parking in the town before and just walking in should be OK. Here in Yosemite that's what people are doing, although there isn't much to see unless you hike to the valley floor from the main entrance. (not gonna happen)
The nice thing about Zion is the entrance is convenient to the town at the entrance. Worth a try maybe?
I want to thank everyone for the suggestions. The nice thing about a plan B is that planning and getting to point B is half the fun.
We arrived at the Valley of Fire, NV, less than an hour away from Las Vegas. Not sure if the silver FJ belongs to anyone on the forums, but he waived as he passed us.
The interesting red rock formations offer many photo opportunities.
The stairs lead to wall inscriptions known as petroglyphs (ancient drawings) thought to be about 4000 years old.
Hmm. I wonder why they call this Poodle Rock.
These ancient petroglyphs are the precursor to modern day SUV window decals.
No visitors are being allowed in. Rangers will be patrolling and enforcing the closures. There are back ways into a couple of Utah's parks, but is it worth the price of up to 6 months in jail and $500 fine for being caught in the park?
This is a good article to read about the impact of the closures.... National Parks Close As Other Public Lands Stay Open : NPR ....sucks for the guy that spent $16K and is sitting there watching his private Grand Canyon permit expire.
My wife and I are in the same boat. We have planned this vacation for almost a year and now are at the doorsteps of all these parks only to be turned away.
I was told this evening by two folks here in Kanab, UT that Zion NP is actually a highway and as such cannot be closed. One was at the park yesterday and said as long as your not staying long and just jump out to take pictures here and there- no one bothers you.
We just came up from Flagstaff, AZ and the mood there is bad. Most of the hotels are filled to the rim with tourists from all over the world who cant understand why they can see the Grand Canyon or other parks.
Were heading to Zion tomorrow
We visited the Valley of Fire in NM prior to leaving for AZ and then the parks closed. Otherwise we've hit White Sands and that's it. Just enjoying the drive from Houston and wheeling when I can.
At least here in Utah our government is trying to help out travellers/vacationers by accepting National Park passes at Utah State Parks. Any other states out there following suit?
Just an update on this. I went wheeling in Moab, UT over the weekend, and the Utah state government opened all of the National Parks in Utah on Saturday (10/12/13). Props to Utah for taking the initiative and telling the federal gov to F off. Arches was beautiful, and I'm very glad I got a chance to see it.
Maybe my dog can enjoy our Utah NPs if all the cats are away.... time for the mice to play:lol: I'm sure Cochise the Boxer would like to take a leak on some of the arches :lol:
So I didn't actually know you weren't allowed to have dogs at Arches, and no one told me otherwise, so my dog got to see everything . Wasn't until after we got back that a friend of mine who had been there before told me dogs weren't allowed. Whoops.
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