National parks in Colorado and across the U.S. are seeing strong visitation numbers again this summer, even as the number of international visitors dropped by more than 40%.
At the most popular parks, visitors are navigating throngs of tourists, noise, long lines, and packed parking lots.
Michael Childers, associate professor of history at Colorado State University, wrote a book, “The Mountains Are Calling,” which detailed how the parks’ popularity and management policies have both shaped and harmed national parks.
Childers said it is harder to have meaningful experiences at the iconic sites because so many people want the same thing.
"But when you're at an overlook or in the valley or on a trail and it's so crowded that you can't hear yourself think, that you might as well be in Times Square, then that erodes that national park experience that we all expect," Childers observed.
High visitation numbers also take a toll on aging boardwalks, bridges, restrooms, and other infrastructure. The nation’s parks currently face a deferred maintenance backlog of more than $23 billion.
The single greatest threat to national parks — and the wildflowers and wildlife calling them home — is climate change, according to analysis by the National Parks Conservation Association. Park ecosystems are also challenged by the Trump administration’s decision to open more surrounding public lands to drilling and other extractive industries.
Childers noted the pandemic-era timed reservation system gave parks some relief by cutting visitor traffic by half in some cases but pointed out gateway communities did not want the restrictions, and those communities convinced the federal government reservations are bad for business.
"The Park Service just decided not to have its reservation system, meaning it's not going to govern the number of people going into the park. And that's largely due to pressure from local communities who see every car driving past as dollar signs," Childers explained.
Since October of last year, spending on national park projects outside Washington, D.C., dropped by 70%, $845 million less than the previous year, according to an Atlantic magazine investigation.
Childers added high visitation numbers are affecting park staff. Since January 2025, the National Park Service has lost nearly a quarter of its permanent workforce.
"The DOGE cuts really impacted the National Park Service. They've lost a third of their staffing in Yosemite alone," Childers stressed. "For all of us, picking up your own litter and staying within bounds and that sort of stuff is going to be really helpful."
