Marshall Miller, described as a professional athlete, performed an unprofessional and unlawful BASE jump in Zion National Park that possibly endangered protected falcons and California condors with his flight over a nesting area, for which he’ll pay the price.
Miller, who jumped off the Great White Throne wearing a wingsuit on March 28, flew a distance before deploying a parachute and landing in an area below Angels Landing, the National Park Service announced Wednesday.
The cliff face below Angels Landing is a known nesting area where California condor chick No. 1,000 took its first flight from its nest last September, marking the first wild-hatched chick to successfully fledge within Zion since recovery efforts began in the late 1990s and likely the first in Zion in over 100 years.
Climbing routes on the Great White Throne were closed to all visitors March 1 due to nesting peregrine falcons, which are sensitive to disturbances during nesting season.
“BASE jumping near nesting falcons and condors increases the chances of these parents being displaced or flushed from their nest or roost site which will increase the nest’s vulnerability to predators and could potentially result in nest failure,” said Zion National Park biologist Janice Stroud-Settles.
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On March 28, Zion rangers received a tip that three were planning to BASE jump off either the Great White Throne or Cable Mountain, and they staked out these locations. One jumper was observed on the former. Miller initially eluded rangers but was apprehended later that night.
BASE jumping is illegal in all national parks. Miller, of Salt Lake City, pled guilty to this and to violating a climbing closure. He also admitted to illegally jumping off Lady Mountain in January 2018. Miller was ordered by the court to pay a $5,000 fine and was banned from Zion for two years. He was also threatened with jail for any subsequent offenses.
“BASE jumping is an extremely dangerous sport,” said Zion National Park Chief Ranger Daniel Fagergren. “When a fatality occurs, the Search and Rescue Team often has to manage an additional amount of risk while recovering the body from the extreme vertical terrain. We would like to thank the United States Attorney’s Office in Saint George, Utah, for their support in prosecuting this important case.”
Two people have died BASE jumping in Zion since 2013.
“The people in the park were awesome to work with and I’ll respect their wishes not to have BASE jumpers in the park,” Miller told the Associated Press.
“I do this in a safe way, but unfortunately in our beautiful national parks it’s illegal to do this activity. I wish it was legal, of course, but that’s a little above my pay-grade to change the laws on that.”
Photo of the Great White Throne is from Wikipedia Commons. Zion park sign courtesy of Rhona Wise/AFP/Getty Images. Photo of Marshall Miller flying in wingsuit courtesy of the National Park Service.