If you’ve ever dreamed of backpacking in Arches National Park, then you better just wake up and let that dream fade away, because Arches National Park no longer allows backpacking indefinitely. According to a brief statement on the NPS website for Arches, a backpacking moratorium is in effect until further notice.
Why? According to the NPS, the current Backcountry Management Plan for the park was completed in 1988. But in the past 10 years, the number of backpacking permits issued has increased more than 500%. As a result, park managers decided that “it is time to examine the resource impacts caused by this increased use and to update the Backcountry Management Plan.” Therefore, no overnight backpacking permits will be issued until the new management plan is formed.
In fact, there’s even a possibility that backpacking will never be allowed in Arches National Park again. According to TrailMob.com, the National Park Service says there is “no definitive answer to when or if backcountry permits will be issued.”
So you wanted to backpacking in Arches, but now you can’t. Where to go instead? The NPS suggests you overnight in nearby BLM and US Forest Service land, or at neighboring Canyonlands National Park.
What do you think about the NPS decision on placing a moratorium on backpacking in Arches National Park? Is it the right call to study environmental impacts? Or is this just another example of the Park Service managing parks more tightly and restricting access?