You may have to pay $70 to visit the Grand Canyon and 16 other national parks

[jason]

The National Park Service proposes more than doubling the entrance fees at 17 popular national parks, including Grand Canyon, Yosemite, and Yellowstone, to help pay for infrastructure improvements.
Under the agency's proposal, the entrance fee for a private vehicle would jump to $70 during peak season, from its current rate of $25 to $30.
The cost for a motorcycle entering the park could increase to $50, from the current fee of $15 to $25. The cost for people entering the park on foot or on bike could go to $30, up from the current rate of $10 to $15.
The cost of the annual pass, which permits entrance into all federal lands and parks, would remain at $80.

Full Story
http://www.cnn.com/travel/article/national-park-service-fee-proposal/index.html

 

[ppine]

The National Park Service is busted. They have a lot of deferred maintenance. Their campgrounds mostly will not accommodate RVs. If you want to go, you have pay. Simple.

 

[Grandpa]

People think creating these huge monuments maintained by the Park Service will protect the land. The exact opposite is true. For instance, Bears Ears, as recently established, takes out two Primitive Areas, two Wilderness designated areas, and a huge national Recreation area. These wilderness and primitive designations are the best protection there is. There is room for a small Monument in Bears Ears, particularly in the Mule Canyons and Butler Wash but to claim more than a million acres is ridiculous. The Grand Staircase NM is another example of a huge area being mis-managed due to monetary shortages. Since it's inception, the Park Service has done nothing, deferring instead to let the BLM manage it for them. The BLM has its own problems so the Staircase is being severely abused.

 

[Cappy]

It's truly sad. Fund mismanagement and corruption is mostly to blame. I hope this does not effect our Golden age passport. If you ole timers aint got one you aughta get it.

 

[Grandpa]

It's truly sad. Fund mismanagement and corruption is mostly to blame. I hope this does not effect our Golden age passport. If you ole timers aint got one you aughta get it.

Grandma and I both have ours in case one gets lost. They have been $10 for life for a long time but it will be jacked to near a hundred now. Best investment I ever made except for that marriage license with grandma.

 

[Roybrew]

I wouldn't think that keeping up some reasonable national parks would hurt our economy. We pay plenty enough in taxes. There really are people that look to get in a position where they can steal money from us, and then claim that some of the benefits that our taxes pay for are unsustainable and need to be eliminated. Its really disgusting. So far, knock on wood, the Cherokee National Park in my area appears to be ok, but I do have my fears it's going to be going down hill. It cost nothing to enter, my camp spot was 6 bucks a night and there was a pit toilet (fancy outhouse) near by. I saw some individual camp sites along the road every half mile or so that I think are free, but I don't know for sure. Every thing looked well maintained. There was no graffiti (words of wisdom) on the outhouse walls.

 

[jason]

Anyone notice that an annual pass is still $80, but peak season entrance pass is $70. Why not just buy an annual pass?

 

[Grandpa]

Anyone notice that an annual pass is still $80, but peak season entrance pass is $70. Why not just buy an annual pass?

Kinda like a 20 oz Pepsi down at the CC store is $1.89 but the liter is 2/$3.00

 

[dinosaur]

Interesting isn't it? Our National Parks, preserved for all Americans to enjoy. Well, maybe just those with a fistful of cash.

 

[Cappy]

still can camp pretty cheap at state campgrounds thank the Lord.

 

[Grandpa]

I'll stick to the wilderness. Besides, if they can build a road through it, they call it a national park. All the good stuff has to be reached on foot.