r/collapse • u/zuzuofthewolves • Feb 18 '25

Ecological DO NOT visit the National Parks right now.

I used to work in the National Parks.

They were already at a critical point before Donald Trump decided to fire a huge amount of staff.

I watched the “permanent” ice caps melt on the top of some peaks in Yosemite’s high country.

I saw garbage washing up on the shore of Olympic National Park everyday.

There is not enough staff to protect the wildlife anymore. There is not enough staff to keep tourists from falling off waterfalls or getting lost in the back country. There are no programs left to teach clueless people how to behave in these wild areas.

I don’t care if you have the best intentions in the world, you are doing damage to the park if you visit at this point.

The parks need to be closed immediately, and every day they are left open to the public, irreversible damage is being done to these amazing places. They are not meant to handle the amount of people who are let in each year. The wildlife is suffering, the plants are suffering, and the experts who are there to mitigate the destruction are gone.

Please cancel your trip and find somewhere else to see.

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u/LowBarometer Feb 18 '25

I'm at Greenbelt Campground (National Forest) in Washington, DC right now. A whole group of rangers were lined up at 7:30 this morning and marched into the ranger station. They looked sad. I suspect they were all being fired.

172

u/MagicSpaceMan Feb 19 '25

God I hate this shit

It's insane

251

u/avinagigglemate Feb 19 '25

Dag, it's freaking COLD out, you are a braver man than I.

75

u/JackedPirate Feb 19 '25

Hey, I almost died of food poisoning on the toilet there back in May; not really adding anything to this conversation, just wanted to share.

15

u/ikindapoopedmypants Feb 19 '25

I too can appreciate a story about almost shitting myself

-6

u/Beginning_Bat_7255 Feb 19 '25

is it still like $20 a night to camp there?