Mount Rainier 'limited' during short-lived shutdown

A temporary shutdown of the federal government ended Monday, preventing an extended possibility of Mount Rainier National Park being open to the public but with few employees on the job.

During the shutdown that began last Saturday due to the lapse of federal appropriations, all national parks were to remain as accessible as possible. At Mount Rainier, many areas were available, but additional visitor services weren't.

Tracy Swartout, Mount Rainier's acting superintendent, said the Nisqually entrance near Ashford and the Longmire area – including the National Park Inn – inside the park were open, but the Paradise rereation area and lodging were closed.

In other areas of the park, visitors could use the Carbon River parking area and trails, as well as the park’s east and westside backcountry areas, but with reduced visitor services.All visitor centers, ranger contact stations and permit desks were closed, as were full-service restrooms.

Swartout urged all visitors to use "extreme caution" in the park during the shutdown, as personnel will not be weren't on duty for emergency responses. Cell phone coverage is sporadic or unavailable at various locations in the park, adding to the situation that gave visitors "sole risk" of being inside the park while employees were temporarily furloughed.

The Mount Rainier workforce is among more than 20,000 National Park Service employees and hundreds of thousands throughout the federal government who were affected by the shutdown.

On Monday, Congress passed a short-term funding plan that would keep national parks and other government agencies functioning.

An impasse in Congress that led to the shutdown involved largely partisan disagreements on a variety of issues, including an immigration debate over young people affected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

Rep. Dave Reichert, whose 8th Congressional District includes Mount Rainier and other parts of south Pierce County, criticized the shutdown. He said keeping the government "operational and fully funded is critical to the day-to-day lives of all Americans," and he urged "both sides" in Congress to "come together."