Camping? No way!!! signed, "America"

[Cowperson]

As America's population blows through 300 million, we find interesting stats today where the National Parks Service is reporting fairly sizeable drops in the number of visits to the woods.

By the service's own reckoning, visits to national parks have been on a downward slide for 10 years. Overnight stays fell 20% between 1995 and 2005, and tent camping and backcountry camping each decreased nearly 24% during the same period.

And

Typically, families with children recede from the parks in the fall. Now, the retirees who traditionally take their place in the fall and winter are choosing to go elsewhere. Last year, about 569,000 vacationers went to Yosemite in July, nearly 20% fewer than in the same month in 1995. In January, there were 94,000 visitors, about 30% fewer than in January 1995.

Agency officials admit that national parks are doing a poor job attracting two large constituencies — young people and minorities — causing concerns about the parks' continued appeal to a changing population.

A study commissioned by the park service and released in 2003 found that only 13% of the African Americans interviewed had visited a park in the previous two years.

http://www.latimes.com/news/la-me-na...iewed-homepage

Is the wide open yonder obsolete?

Cowperson

[jolinar of malkshor]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

As America's population blows through 300 million, we find interesting stats today where the National Parks Service is reporting fairly sizeable drops in the number of visits to the woods.

By the service's own reckoning, visits to national parks have been on a downward slide for 10 years. Overnight stays fell 20% between 1995 and 2005, and tent camping and backcountry camping each decreased nearly 24% during the same period.

And

Typically, families with children recede from the parks in the fall. Now, the retirees who traditionally take their place in the fall and winter are choosing to go elsewhere. Last year, about 569,000 vacationers went to Yosemite in July, nearly 20% fewer than in the same month in 1995. In January, there were 94,000 visitors, about 30% fewer than in January 1995.

Agency officials admit that national parks are doing a poor job attracting two large constituencies — young people and minorities — causing concerns about the parks' continued appeal to a changing population.

A study commissioned by the park service and released in 2003 found that only 13% of the African Americans interviewed had visited a park in the previous two years.

http://www.latimes.com/news/la-me-na...iewed-homepage

Is the wide open yonder obsolete?

Cowperson

Thats because they are making it to expensive to visit.

[fredr123]

We spent a day in Yellowstone this past summer. It was relatively expensive to get in there. We only stayed a day and didn't camp over night, mostly because we had places to go and people to see. From our tour through the park, though, it seemed quite busy (July 4th weekend, mind you) and all the good camping sites were packed.

All this has to do with the internet. It used to be that you had to camp out in a wilderness area for a few days to see a bear mauling a tourist. Now, all you have to do is surf over to youtube. Ergo, it's all Al Gore's fault.

For Bobblehead: "You know what I blame this on the breakdown of? Society."

[V]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

Is the wide open yonder obsolete?

Geez, I hope so. It seems to be getting harder and harder to find a nice quiet corner of the wild to relax in. I really hope less and less people visit K-Country, for example.

[JohnnyFlame]

Originally Posted by jolinar of malkshor

Thats because they are making it to expensive to visit.

Yep right in our own neck of the woods I used to take the family up to Banff and surrounding area often. Then they slap the stupid high fee on visiting the park. I know the whiners will say that they need the money for making sure the animals don't get hit on the highway or whatever but I think it's rubbish.

With the prices of everything else skyrocketing that fee was just enough to have me say that a trip to say Heart Creek is a better alternative.

And virtually every friend and relative I have(I can't think of any who haven't) has altered the way they even go through the park. I used to include a side trip to Banff or Johnston Canyon or etc. everytime I went through. Now I stop in Golden and leave Banff National Park to the tourists.

[Red Mile Style]

I wonder what the statistics are for Parks Canada. I don't think there has been one time when I went to a National or Provincial Park for that matter, without it being ridiculously crowded.

[Bobblehead]

Originally Posted by fredr123

For Bobblehead: "You know what I blame this on the breakdown of? Society."

Not quite sure where that came from?


Anyhow, I was in Yosemite in early May '92. It was a traffic jam there. The camping sites were packed. I was definitely beautiful, but way too crowded. That was a shock because I had tented in some Lake Tahoe area campgrounds before that and they were empty.

[RougeUnderoos]

Your National Parks Pass:
-Provides admission into any National Park requiring an entry fee.
-Is valid for one full year from first use in a National Park
-Will admit you and any accompanying passengers in your single, private, non-commercial vehicle, where a per vehicle fee is required.
-Will admit spouse, parents, and children at those Parks where a per person entrance fee is required.
A National Parks Pass costs $50.


That sounds pretty cheap to me.


https://buy.nationalparks.org/Default.asp?

[RougeUnderoos]

The equivalent national park pass for Canada (get your whole family into every park for a year) is $123.80. One adult is 62 bucks.

While obviously a lot more than the Yanks charge, it's still pretty cheap.

[JohnnyFlame]

Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos

Your National Parks Pass:
-Provides admission into any National Park requiring an entry fee.
-Is valid for one full year from first use in a National Park
-Will admit you and any accompanying passengers in your single, private, non-commercial vehicle, where a per vehicle fee is required.
-Will admit spouse, parents, and children at those Parks where a per person entrance fee is required.
A National Parks Pass costs $50.


That sounds pretty cheap to me.


https://buy.nationalparks.org/Default.asp?

Trip to Heart Creek costs me nothing --that to a guy with four kids sounds better -- Way better!!!

[RougeUnderoos]

Fair enough.

I still don't think it's a "cost" issue. Especially in the States. $50 for the whole family to go to the park as many times as they want -- that kind of money isn't going to keep anyone away. It costs $53 to get a 3 year old into Disneyland for one day.

Maybe it's the price of gas?

[mykalberta]

Its the changing attitudes in our society.

People would rather fly to Florida and stay in a hotel than drive somewhere, setup a tent and "rough" it.

You dont want to know what I had to do to get my girlfriend to hike up to LandSlide Lake this summer (no fotze-esque comments please). And I would rather hike somewhere than go to a resort any day of the week.

MYK

[jolinar of malkshor]

Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos

The equivalent national park pass for Canada (get your whole family into every park for a year) is $123.80. One adult is 62 bucks.

While obviously a lot more than the Yanks charge, it's still pretty cheap.

Thats just the park pass. You have every other fee on top of that. I think the last time I was in Waterton it cost $17 a night to camp. Why the hell I am going to spend that kind of money to go camp on a lawn crowed with a hundred other people when I can go down to a forest reserve and camp for free and have no one around?

[JohnnyFlame]

Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos

Fair enough.

I still don't think it's a "cost" issue. Especially in the States. $50 for the whole family to go to the park as many times as they want -- that kind of money isn't going to keep anyone away. It costs $53 to get a 3 year old into Disneyland for one day.

Maybe it's the price of gas?

Don't know but I can get the whole clan a Zoo pass for around $100 and it's 15 minutes away and it's great bang for the buck. What used to enthuse me about Banff was it was costing me nothing and then virtually nothing to go there. Heck even wandering around the Basin was free and now they even charge for that. They jacked the price of the Hot Springs, Sulphur Mtn. as well. Next will be a charge to walk up Johnston Canyon.

Used to be an inexpensive fun trip with a walk around town and ending up at the Candy Store on Main St. Now it's yet another good thing that got taken over by the rich and greedy or the do gooders and forces those with families and living on a budget to look elsewhere.

Thankfully there are still a lot of places where they don't charge you just to go and take a freakin walk around.

[RougeUnderoos]

Originally Posted by jolinar of malkshor

Thats just the park pass. You have every other fee on top of that. I think the last time I was in Waterton it cost $17 a night to camp. Why the hell I am going to spend that kind of money to go camp on a lawn crowed with a hundred other people when I can go down to a forest reserve and camp for free and have no one around?

Geebus. Calm down there ace, I don't care where you want to camp and I'm not the National Parks Advertising Service. I just pointed out what the price of an annual pass is.

[jolinar of malkshor]

Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos

Geebus. Calm down there ace, I don't care where you want to camp and I'm not the National Parks Advertising Service. I just pointed out what the price of an annual pass is.

And all I am doing is pointing out how much more you have to pay on top of that. Didn't mean to seem like I was being rude.

[habernac]

If people don't want to pay, that's fine. More wilderness for me, thank you very much.

[fredr123]

Originally Posted by Bobblehead

Not quite sure where that came from?

A Simpsons quote for every topic.

[Bobblehead]

Originally Posted by fredr123

A Simpsons quote for every topic.

Ahh - Very good! (Frosted Krusty Flakes got me where I am today.)