Illegal BASE Jumpers Head to El Capitan During Shutdown

With the federal government shuttered, Yosemite National Park's usual restrictions have loosened in practice, giving thrill-seekers new opportunities. On the first day of the shutdown, climber Charles Winstead, perched on El Capitan, saw several BASE jumpers parachuting from the iconic, 3,000-foot cliff—a rare sight given the usual ban, the New York Times reports, and a symbol of a government breakdown. Through last week, Winstead said he'd seen about 20 jumps. That doesn't thrill the National Park Service, which pointed out in a statement that BASE jumping is illegal in all its parks because of "the significant safety risks it poses to participants, the public and first responders."

But much of the park's staff is furloughed now, putting a crimp in enforcement of the ban on BASE jumping, which involves leaping from a fixed object with a parachute. Elisabeth Barton, cofounder of a guiding service in Yosemite, said jumps used to take place at dusk or dawn, when few people were around. She's seeing jumps at noon now. "Is it any more legal right now? No, not at all," Barton said. "They're just less likely to get caught, or at least there's that assumption." She also said she's had more than a dozen customers ask during the shutdown if they can get away with climbing Half Dome without a permit. "Essentially nobody asked" before the shutdown, Barton said.

In addition to physical harm, jumpers risk a $5,000 fine and up to six months in jail, per the Washington Post. In the past, park veterans said, jumpers would go one or two at a time. Now teams are jumping at once. They're cheered by climbers suspended at various points on the rock formation on their way down. A climber was killed on the first day of the shutdown in a plunge from El Capitan; the park said rangers and emergency personnel were able to respond quickly. Among the unstaffed parts of the park are the ranger booths at entrances, allowing visitors to cruise past them without paying the usual $35.