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Yes, they are open and also part of a National Forest.chumley wrote:National Forests are open, but developed recreation sites are generally closed (there are some exceptions). But you can park at a trailhead and go hiking just as always.
The government can find the manpower to close and inforce the closure of these lands(that belong to US, our lands!!!) but not to keep them open 
It's the best we can think to come up with last minute....So although people on foot can still access the Lake, it becomes much more difficult if you're looking to launch a Boat....They shouldn't be able to cut off access like that, it just seems soooo wrong....It's a National Forest!!! Not a Park or a Monument...c'mon...!!!I had a discussion kind of like this with my wife last night. I was expressing my opinion that OUR public lands should not be closed off to us just because the government shuts down. My wife argued that if they don't close the park, what will stop bad people from going in and setting fires or causing other types of destruction? Now I'm not really sure what to think. It really is a difficult subject. I certainly think the park should be open to responsible people that will respect the land, but it would be heartbreaking if someone went in and really made a mess. I suppose that's why we have a National Park Service to manage our most sacred natural treasures, so that they don't get destroyed. There is very much an irony and an utter disservice to the American people not to mention an economic repercussion surrounding the closing of the parks, but the real flaw in the system that has come to light is that when the federal government "shuts down", it is really a "soft shutdown" in which the "non-essentials" stop. I'm sure we've all heard the joking of congressmen/women in the media about how the shutdown will be "fun". As my wife said to me last night, "If the government has to shutdown, it should be the whole government. Maybe then it would light a fire under their butts". ("their" meaning Congress). With all the discussion on the internet and elsewhere, I'm sure nothing I've said here will be new to anyone that reads it, but hey, since it was brought up I thought I would do my fair share of venting.friendofThundergod wrote:Does anyone see the irony in the fact that we are having to discuss whether a national park is closed....I mean really so the forest is closed? Has anyone notified the wildlife of the closures? Is this what Teddy Roosevelt envisioned when he helped kick-start our national parks? Does Old Faithful still work during closures?
*oh as a teacher, I realize I may be using irony wrong, I apologize
I fumed about this a couple years ago when NJ shut down its state parks in a budget battle. It cost more per day to keep them closed than to keep them open. It wasn't just a little bit, either, because instead of a few underpaid park staff when open, barricades were manned by an army of state troopers on overtime wages.Bradshaws wrote:I find the governments actions little hypocritical.