I came across this 2 days after we got back from Lake Mohave.....
LAKE MEAD NATIONAL RECREATION AREA News Release
For Immediate Release: Oct. 1, 2013
Release No.: 2013-70
Contact: Christie Vanover, (702) 293-8691
GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN FORCES CLOSURE OF LAKE MEAD NATIONAL RECREATION AREA
BOULDER CITY, Nev. – Because of the shutdown of the federal government caused by the lapse in appropriations, the National Park Service has closed all 401 national parks, including Lake Mead National Recreation Area.
Lake Mead National Recreation Area is located within Southern Nevada and Northern Arizona and includes Lake Mead, Lake Mohave, a portion of the Colorado River and 1.3 million acres of land.
Visitor facilities, such as the visitor center, campgrounds, marinas, trails and launch ramps are closed. Park roads, including Northshore Road and Lakeshore Drive, are closed, and access to the park is restricted, until the government reopens.
Overnight park visitors will be given until 3 p.m. Oct. 3 to make alternate accommodations and leave the park.
Those with personal property within the park, such as boats, trailers or cabins, will be allowed access into the park to either remove their vessels or trailers or to remove belongings from their property. Boats may not be removed from slips for recreation purposes within the park, and overnight stays are prohibited after Oct. 2.
C.A.S.T. for Kids and all other park programs have been canceled. The Slam the Dam Open Water Swim, scheduled for Oct. 5, has been canceled at this time. The American Bass Association Fishing Tournament, scheduled to begin Oct. 4, will be canceled if the shutdown continues. Services offered via commercial use authorizations, are also to cease operations within the park.
As the fifth most visited unit of the National Park Service, Lake Mead National Recreation Area hosts 14,500 visitors on average each day in October; nationally, more than 715,000 visitors a day frequent the National Park System. Gateway communities outside Lake Mead National Recreation Area see about $500,000 per day in total sales from visitor spending that is lost during a government shutdown.
At Lake Mead National Recreation Area, 170 employees are on furlough because of the shutdown and dozens of concessions employees are similarly affected. About 60 National Park Service employees remain on duty to ensure essential health, safety and security functions at the park and its facilities.
Because it will not be maintained, the National Park Service and Lake Mead NRA websites will be down for the duration of the shutdown. For updates on the shutdown, please visit www.doi.gov/shutdown.
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