The National Park Service has announced plans to change access to the Petroglyphs National Monument to curb damage caused by visitors to the sacred site which protects one of the largest petroglyph sites in North America .
KRQE reports officials are closing off 30 unofficial access points into the area as part of their “Visitor Use Management Plan” enacted to help preserve the delicate landscape and native artwork.
An NPS spokesperson said they have assessed 140 miles of informal trail use into the monument and reduced that to a 39-mile trail system. The decision was made after years of damage to the site caused by off-leash dogs, people not picking up dog poop, littering and illegal dumping.
The national monument still has five access points. The park service is asking visitors to only use the designated points of entry to help preserve the thousands of petroglyphs contained at the site.