On the first day of the government shutdown, a peppy old woman approached one of the only two workers at the visitors center in Arches National Park, asking the worker to direct her to Double Arch.
“I am unauthorized to answer any questions regarding visitors’ experiences,” they responded to her.
Confused, she pulled out her map, asking if they could just point to it on the folded piece of paper — but they couldn’t.
The worker told The Times-Independent they were only permitted to answer questions related to fire safety, which is deemed as an “essential” service, not visitor information.
The federal government has only been shuttered for two days, but it’s already leaving many visitors in limbo.
On Thursday morning, the visitors center was closed.
Visitors were left to wander outside, gathering in small groups as they discussed their plans. Many were forced to take pictures of the signs plastered outside, hoping that would suffice as a viable map when they explore the park.
“It’s a shame that we don’t have anybody to ask any questions,” said Janet Schneider, a visitor from Kentucky. “We don’t have anybody to tell us where to go.”
Schneider isn’t alone.
Claire Ramos of Chicago, who was visiting with a friend from France, shared similar concerns.
“I think it’s kind of a little bit unsettling to know that we’re gonna hike out into these far areas,” Ramos said. “And there’s not gonna be anybody out there.”
As of April, the National Park Service reported 50 seasonal and permanent employees work at Arches National Park. Since the shutdown, only three employees have been spotted — the two who are managing the Fiery Furnace front desk, and a lone park ranger who was parked near Devils Garden. On Wednesday, multiple cars were observed traveling above the posted speed limit — some going at least 20 over.
With the federal government shutdown, the state of Utah is committed to keeping the Mighty 5 open, but with limited services.
Anna Loughridge, public relations manager for the Utah Office of Tourism, told The Times-Independent the state is maintaining visitor experience while also preserving the national parks.
“We want to make sure that we are preserving our parks and ensuring that our local communities, our Utah communities and Utah businesses that rely on national park visitation are supported,” Loughridge said.
While the NPS website is down, the Utah Office of Tourism stepped in to provide regular key updates regarding the national parks.
“We’re trying to maintain the most up-to-date information for each park,” Loughridge said. “That’s a big piece of what we’re doing right now is making sure that we are messaging to visitors specifically so that they can be prepared for their trips [and] so that they can be respectful [and] thoughtful visitors.”
Despite the uncertainties in the evolving situation, many visitors told The Times-Independent they will continue their trips to visit the five national parks in the Beehive State.
The visitor experience at Arches National Park
The timed entry reservation system is down, allowing any visitor to enter the park, and for free. One particular visitor expressed dissatisfaction, saying he wanted his money back because he prepaid before the government shuttered. This led his friend to say “we can come at any time — we can come back at night.” Even the webcam that provides a real-time view of traffic at the entrance has been taken offline.
Meanwhile, another visitor who was left wandering outside the visitors center said the government is making them “save [their] money” because nothing can be paid for.
According to NPS, entrance fees range from $15 to $30, depending on the vehicle. NPS also just released their 2024 Visitor Spending Impact report, reporting that Arches National Park hosted roughly 1,500,000 visitors last year. Arches nearly earned $23 million to $45 million in entrance fees — depending on the vehicle type. This does not account for those who bought yearly passes.
The National Parks Conservation Association estimates national parks will lose nearly $1 million in fee revenue each day the government is shut down, creating a trickle effect on gateway communities — such as Moab — losing up to $80 million in visitor spending.
With the shutdown, Loughridge’s top priority is not only doing right by visitors, but also local businesses.
“These are visitors who are staying in our hotels, who are shopping at our stores and local businesses who are eating at restaurants and hiring our local guides and outfitters,” she said. “This is also coming off of what’s been a really challenging year for a lot of these gateway communities, and so it’s more important than ever that we ensure that the parks remain open and operating.”
Loughridge added state representatives are in talks with potential public and private partners regarding funding for the parks. It’s unclear how many federal dollars are available for the state.
Meanwhile, the conservation association warns irreparable damage could occur during the shutdown, which was seen during the last shutdown in 2018 going into 2019, marking the 35-day closure as the longest shutdown in American history, during Trump’s first term.
Cultural sites were damaged and human waste overflowed from toilets, which is what happened at Arches National Park during the last shutdown.
Many visitors showed dissatisfaction with the federal government, one man telling The Times-Independent the “government is pathetic.”
“I traveled all the way from Illinois,” the man said. “This is horrible, but I love Moab. I love Arches. Everybody should come here and see this place [but] once I’m gone so I don’t have to [deal] with the crowd.”
Schneider is also upset with the government. When she was walking past a visitor who was trying to open the visitors center’s locked doors, they said “they decided to close up” to which Schneider replied, “because of the government, our wonderful Washington, D.C.”
“It’s a shame the government is supposed to be serving the people, and the people want to be able to get into our national parks,” Schneider said. “If they can’t get something done in Washington, if they can’t compromise, then we have a poor, poor government.”
A family of three said it’s “disturbing” to see the visitors center closed.
“Whenever we go to a national park, the first thing we do is go to the visitor center and grab a map,” the mom said. “So definitely it is a little bit disturbing, but we understand that something is going on.”
Many visitors said they plan on recreating responsibly, and hope future visitors will be respectful of the park while the shutdown continues.
Note to readers • Lizzie Ramirez is a Report for America corps member covering local government and tourism in Grand County for The Times-Independent. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories. Please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by clicking here.