1. SEQUESTRATION:
Budget chaos blows into Rocky Mountain National Park, neighboring communities
ESTES PARK, Colo. -- Aside from the blustery wind, it was calm at Rocky Mountain National Park on a recent weekday morning. On the last day of February, the slowest month for tourism, when the park sees about 62,000 visitors, snow-covered campgrounds were open but uninhabited, and only an occasional vehicle parked at the scenic overlook at Many Parks Curve. But behind the scenes, park officials were preparing for two incongruous events: the peak annual influx of visitors, which begins this month and stretches through September, and sequestration-mandated budget cuts.