One Day Entry Fee Increase - RMNP

4runnerguy wrote:
My goodness. What a lot of commotion over $2.00. How much did you spend to fill your fuel tank last time? How much did your rig cost? How much do you spend a night at your last stop at an RV park?

This timed reservation system is in place to make for a better-quality visit. So more time sightseeing and less time waiting in line at the entrance and easier to find parking once in the park. With the timed reservation system in place at Arches, I'd guess the line at the entrance station is 25% of what it was a couple of years ago.

From their website, visitation at RMNP increased 42% in seven years. But there wasn't a 42% increase in parking spaces nor will they be making Trail Ridge Road four lane anytime in the near (or even distant) future.

You can do like we did at Arches: ride your bike into the park. No timed entrance permit required. The ride up Fall River Road is quite scenic and the coast back down from the top of Trail Ridge Road is exhilarating.

Yes, $2 here ,$2 there it all adds up. I have the class A I have because I watch what I spend.
And the times reservation system doesn’t make for a better quality visit for me, I wanted to get into RMNP early, but because I had no cell coverage I lost out on an early visit so I was stuck with 3:00. So yes, it is a piss poor idea.

^if you want Bear Road access entry before 5am is unregulated and non Bear Road access is unregulated before 9am so you could have actually done exactly as you desired.

But you're lack of planning doesn't mean the system doesn't provide a higher quality visit for many or most or is a "piss poor idea."

The $2 goes to rec.gov to support the web page and the many phone service personnel they employ.

Crowding is just a fact of life, get over it.

Thom02099 wrote:
In addition to the fee increase and the continuation of timed entry, the shuttles are also coming back. Will also be starting the weekend of May 27th and run into October. Free shuttles, easy to get to Bear Lake area from a variety of starting points.

Read the press release in the Estes Park News this week. Even the Hiker Shuttle is subject to the timed entry fee.

Thunder Mountain wrote:

Thom02099 wrote:
In addition to the fee increase and the continuation of timed entry, the shuttles are also coming back. Will also be starting the weekend of May 27th and run into October. Free shuttles, easy to get to Bear Lake area from a variety of starting points.

Read the press release in the Estes Park News this week. Even the Hiker Shuttle is subject to the timed entry fee.

Correct. This was released after my original post. Also, it looks like the shuttle will be running direct from the EP Visitor's Center to Bear Lake as an express, with no stops at the campgrounds or other hiking trailheads. I'll need to check further on this as I was counting on the shuttles from Glacier Basin to Bear Lake area.

dodge guy wrote:
Yes, but it sucks because they are charging for something we are already paying for!

True, we are paying for the NP's. Unfortunately the money we're paying isn't going to the parks. It gets re-directed to the usual "Pork Projects".

Same for State Parks where I live.

Here's an interesting read on what's happened to National Parks over the years:

https://www.perc.org/2016/04/25/national-parks-lost-in-the-wilds-of-neglect/

One thing to note, fees collected at a park don't remain in the park (budget). They go to wherever the political winds blow them.

Microlite Mike wrote:


Unfortunately the money we're paying isn't going to the parks. It gets re-directed to the usual "Pork Projects".

One thing to note, fees collected at a park don't remain in the park (budget). They go to wherever the political winds blow them.

That's not what the NPS says.


https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/fees-at-work.htm

cptqueeg wrote:

Microlite Mike wrote:


Unfortunately the money we're paying isn't going to the parks. It gets re-directed to the usual "Pork Projects".

One thing to note, fees collected at a park don't remain in the park (budget). They go to wherever the political winds blow them.

That's not what the NPS says.


https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/fees-at-work.htm

This tells a little different story:

https://www.npca.org/articles/832-background-the-economics-of-national-parks

There has been more than a 7%, or $173 million reduction in the account to operate national parks and more than a 12%, or $364 million reduction in the total budget for the National Park Service over the last five years in today’s dollars.
The park service’s deferred maintenance backlog has steadily been growing, now at $11.5 billion. Projects are continually added to the backlog in part due to insufficient operations funding to ensure needed day-to-day maintenance. The backlog has also grown because of a steady decline in the ‘construction’ account. Over the last decade, there has been a 62% or $227 million decline in that account in today’s dollars.

Microlite Mike wrote:

cptqueeg wrote:

Microlite Mike wrote:


Unfortunately the money we're paying isn't going to the parks. It gets re-directed to the usual "Pork Projects".

One thing to note, fees collected at a park don't remain in the park (budget). They go to wherever the political winds blow them.

That's not what the NPS says.


https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/fees-at-work.htm

This tells a little different story:

https://www.npca.org/articles/832-background-the-economics-of-national-parks

There has been more than a 7%, or $173 million reduction in the account to operate national parks and more than a 12%, or $364 million reduction in the total budget for the National Park Service over the last five years in today’s dollars.
The park service’s deferred maintenance backlog has steadily been growing, now at $11.5 billion. Projects are continually added to the backlog in part due to insufficient operations funding to ensure needed day-to-day maintenance. The backlog has also grown because of a steady decline in the ‘construction’ account. Over the last decade, there has been a 62% or $227 million decline in that account in today’s dollars.

Nowhere in your cited 7 year old article does it say that the park fees are going anywhere but to the NPs which is your contention.

That doesn't mean Congress can't cut additional funding as it sees fit which is what the article you posted says.