Road trips are popular with my family. Driving from location to location lets us enjoy travelling at our own pace. We often opt to eat al fresco – pack a cooler and stop when we want to enjoy the scenery, stretch our legs and experience the area.
Doing this at U.S. national parks is now off our list. In a recent trip through Oregon, we stopped several times along the state’s famous coast. There are numerous state park spots where vehicle travellers can pull off the road and picnic at no charge. Inland, at National Forest Region sites, day use areas post a $6 access fee.
Six dollars is not a lot of money, but for me, it’s the principle. National parks were established in Canada and the U.S. for the public good. Taxpayers funds these operations. Now, the U.S. Parks Service (and husky-voiced bear spokesperson, Smokey) are asking the public to pony up again for access to a picnic table.
In 1986, the U.S. government introduced its Recreation Fee Demon-stration program. That paved the way for new fees at national parks. These have been introduced gradually since that time. Access to Canada’s national parks, even just for a picnic, is also charged for. Day use at most provincial and municipal sites remains free.
I spent 35 years working in government and understand the need to find new revenue sources. Costs rise and taxpayers have grown weary of paying more every year. Yet, charging the public for basic access to parks seems wrong to me.
A fee for uses like overnight camping, where individuals get the benefit of a safe spot to spend the night, seems fair. Overnight use requires a degree of security and other amenities. Providing these has costs. As a limited segment of the public will camp overnight, those that do should offset the increased costs their use creates.
In the Parks Service’s defence, its fee posting read: “Access to day use area for over 30 minutes – $6”. So the public is allowed very limited free use of what they have already paid for.
In my view, Smokey was always a peaceful yet stern “spokesbear.” It pains me to think the U.S. Parks Service has turned him into a fee collector, ready to use the business end of his trademark shovel against picnickers rather than impending wildfires. The U.S. National Parks system is a treasure. Enjoy it; just don’t stay too long!
