National Parks Traveler

Colorado officials quickly followed Utah in working out an agreement Friday with the Interior Department to reopen Rocky Mountain National Park on Saturday.

Five national parks in Utah, plus one national recreation area and two national monuments, will reopen, temporarily, under a deal the state reached with Interior Secretary Sally Jewell.

When does a purported act of civil disobedience turn into criminal mischief in the National Park System? That's a good question as visitors across the country are turning a blind eye to closure signs and barricades.

"By the numbers" stories are usually intriguing and interesting, though the following numbers on the impacts of the shutdown of the National Park System are sobering and disconcerting.

Paddling trips in the national parks, either by canoe or kayak, expose you to a lot of sunshine. So much that it'll bake you if you're not careful. That's where a good hat, comfortable shirt, and sunscreen, can help you enjoy the day to its fullest.

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said Thursday she would consider reaching a working agreement with states to open national parks within their borders if they have the financial resources to pay for the National Park Service staff in the parks.

Imagine Yellowstone National Park as your own private backyard...and you're not allowed to explore the landscape. That, in essence, is the situation employees of the National Park Service and of concessionaires find themselves in.

The Yellowstone Association, a non-profit cooperating association that conducts field schools in Yellowstone National Park and runs gift shops there, is losing tens of thousands of dollars due to the ongoing government shutdown.

Another state suffering from the loss of fall tourism has raised its voice, House members are seeking answers from the National Park Service, and a Democratic congressman is petitioning to halt the oil flowing out of park units. Those are just some of the topics involving shuttered national parks.

Despite the estimated loss of $76 million a day, the furlough of more than 20,000 federal and non-profit employees, and the ruination of countless vacations, 94 Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives want to know how many rangers it takes to keep the World War II Memorial on the National Mall closed.