Federal staff, volunteers and projects are experiencing effects of the federal government shutdown on national scenic trails running through Wisconsin and the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore.
The National Park Service has furloughed almost two-thirds of its 14,500 employees during the shutdown, including staff for the Ice Age and North Country National Scenic Trails. Around seven employees have been affected between the two trails.
Aside from furloughs, one of the key concerns has been the loss of liability coverage for volunteers, said Luke Kluberdanz, executive director and CEO of the Ice Age Trail Alliance.
Volunteers who sign a service agreement are offered similar protections as federal employees while building and maintaining trails, but that coverage doesn’t exist during the shutdown.
“We have implemented a waiver program, which is a patch, but not a fix,” Kluberdanz said. “What that does is just helps the volunteer know they no longer have that extension of the liability coverage and that they are taking some risk on their own.”
The trail has around 2,000 volunteers. The North Country trail is facing similar challenges with its more than 1,200 volunteers, said Andrea Ketchmark, executive director of the North Country Trail Association.
“That means if our volunteers get injured, they are not covered,” Ketchmark said. “And one of the things that’s most frustrating for our volunteers is they won’t be recognized for their service.”
Even so, Ketchmark said volunteers are allowed to work since the trail crosses nonfederal lands. That decision has been left up to Wisconsin chapters of the association and individuals, said Peter Nordgren, a volunteer for the Brule-St. Croix Chapter. He and his son maintain around 5 miles of the North Country trail southwest of Superior.
“As long as people are out there enjoying the trail, we like to keep it in good shape and maintain it so that people enjoy their experience out there,” Nordgren said.
On the Ice Age Trail, volunteers continue to build and maintain trails regardless of the shutdown, including Lisa Pence, who volunteers for the Washington/Ozaukee Chapter of the Ice Age Trail Alliance. She signed a waiver along with more than 150 volunteers who spent days building nearly 2 miles of new trail on the Cedar Lakes Segment in Washington County.
Pence said the waiver didn’t concern her.
“I’m sad that there’s a shutdown. I’d like it to get over with. However, the events that I’ve been involved with have gone on and have gone well,” Pence said. “Everybody seems to be positive and likes to be outdoors and wants to get this work done.”
Even so, Kluberdanz noted that around 40 volunteers were no-shows, which he attributed to the waivers and lack of coverage.
The North Country National Scenic Trail spans around 4,800 miles across eight states, cutting across northwestern Wisconsin. The Ice Age National Scenic Trail runs across roughly 1,200 miles in Wisconsin from Polk County in western Wisconsin to Door County on the eastern side of the state. Millions of people use the trails each year.
Federal funding makes up a portion of the operating budgets for the North Country Trail Association and Ice Age Trail Alliance. Both Kluberdanz and Ketchmark said there may be long-term effects of the shutdown as projects or plans are delayed.
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In far northern Wisconsin, visitors to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore may see little difference since the shutdown. Visitor centers in Bayfield and Little Sand Bay usually close in mid-September.
Even so, behind-the-scenes work that includes planning and maintenance has been put on hold, said Jeff Rennicke, executive director of Friends of the Apostle Islands. He noted a project to improve accessibility at Meyers Beach was set to be bid out to contractors on Oct. 1 and has been delayed. The $750,000 project will replace a 45-step stairway with an all-accessible walkway as part of the Access for All initiative.
“All we can do at this point is ask our government to do its job so that we can continue to do our work to help make the park better for everyone,” Rennicke said.
Staffing at the national lakeshore was already down sharply before federal employees were furloughed. Rennicke said the number of permanent staff has dropped from 36 to 13. The reduction includes retirements prior to cuts led by the Department of Government Efficiency, as well as layoffs and deferred resignations. He added that the Apostle Islands hired half its usual 25 to 30 seasonal employees this year.
Around 253,000 people visited the Apostle Islands last year.
The National Park Service said in a statement it’s committed to maintaining as much access to park lands as possible.
“At all three of those locations, we are currently operating with trails mostly open but buildings and visitor’s centers are closed,” the agency said.
The agency said staffing will continue for law enforcement, emergency response, fire management and visitor safety operations during the lapse in appropriations.
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