Category Archives: Park & Land Management

Some States Re-opening Federal Parks on State Dime

Park & Land Management

This is an update to the Federal Parks closure report (due to the political logjam delaying passage of the current Federal budget.)

Some states are taking park matters into their own hands and ponying up the needed funds to re-open them. No surprise, Utah with some of the best known parks (Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Zion) is first to act. Colorado looks like it’s going the same way.

Back home here in Florida, Rick Scott our governor has given an unambiguous order to NOT fund any Federal short falls, parks included. So it looks like we’ll all just need to be patient while 536 people in Washington tasked with passing and signing a budget already a week late fiddle at it a bit more.

That’s all the dirt for now.

National Park Shutdown

News, Park & Land Management

Good morning, the park is closed… take your camping, fishing, hiking and sight seeing somewhere else (at least for the time being)

As part of the Federal government’s partial shutdown the following National Parks, forests and Preserves appear to be closed until further notice from the National Parks Service (Department of Interior) and National Forest Service (Department of Agriculture). For off road enthusiasts the Ocala national Forest and Big Cypress closure (which contains the Bear Island unit) are particularly disappointing.


    Under the National Parks Service

  • Everglades National Park
  • Big Cypress National Preserve
  • Biscayne National Park
  • Dry Tortugas National Park
  • Canaveral National Seashore
  • Fort Caroline National Memorial
  • Castillo de San Marcos National Monument
  • De Soto National Memorial
  • Gulf Islands National Seashore
  • Fort Matanzas National Monument
  • Timucuan Ecological and Historical Preserve


    Under National Fish and Wild Life Service

  • Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
  • Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge
  • Ten Thousand Island National Wildlife Refuge
  • J. N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge


    Under the US Forest Service

  • Apalachicola National Forest
  • Osceola National Forest
  • Ocala National Forest