Sequestration Hits Timpanogos Cave

One of Utah's most treasured trails closed 2 weeks earlier than normal because of the sequestration. Timpanogos Cave National Monument sold out all weekend and rangers say it would have this next weekend too, if they had the budget to stay open. Almost 2,000 hikers went to the top of the mountain this weekend. They are the last visitors to see the cave this year.

Donna Barron, a hiker from Texas said, "We have these beautiful national parks and people want to be able to enjoy them as many months as possible so i would hate to see any reduction in the hours."

Since the cuts in Washington organizers have struggled all year to try and make the most of out of their funding. Rangers say they took a 5 % reduction in their budget., and that means cuts all across the board.

The Superintendent at Timpanogos Cave, Jim Ireland said, "We cut out all unnecessary travel. We cut our supplies budget, but really the bulk of our budget goes into our personal services."

The Timpanogos team would have stayed open over UEA weekend but they couldn't afford it, even after spreading the work among fewer employees and reducing programs.

Public Relations Ranger BJ Cluff said the kids are the ones really being impacted. She said "We've had fewer school groups that are able to come up and take advantage of going on field trips."

Timpanogos cave won't open again until next may. Until then, rangers will prepare the trails for winter and repair damage from recent rainstorms. Timpanogos administrators say they hope they'll have more money to work with next year, and if not they will continue to make cuts where necessary.