High Sierra Topix

By many metrics, seniors in this country have the most disposable income and yet they pay only $10 for a lifetime pass.

The increased fees also make the $80 yearly pass a better bargain.

All in all though, $30 for whole car full of people for a week of fun in the most beautiful place on earth is a pretty good deal.

Thank you very much for the ¨welcome back¨

gary c. wrote:I'm one of those that believe our national parks and forests belong to everyone and that access should be free to the public. At the same time I understand that heavily used parks also have exceptionally high maintenance costs. Why shouldn't the people that actually use them pay something extra to visit? I know that everything does not run perfect in Yosemite but every time I go there I am impressed with the care, organization, and services that the park service provides considering the amount of people that visit there. Lets face it, there are a lot of people with out any care, consideration or respect abusing our national parks. If it takes an extra $10 for the parks dept. to continue to protect and provide I'll pay without complaint. If it's just another way for the politicians to squeeze more money out of me to use somewhere else that is something different.

Well said. I feel the same.

Looks like I will do more sneaking into parks early and late like I have in the past.

Even the 20 dollar fee might not seem like much to some but it can be the difference between someone being able to actually go to the park or not. My dad and I once ran out of gas coming back from Death Valley because one of the booths happened to be open that day and took our last 20 dollars.

I can also recall at least one Yosemite visit being so tight on money we were only able to do it by going in and leaving when the booth was closed.

I love the statement about inflation though. Wouldn't it be nice if I could give myself a 50% raise due to inflation. F&*k the U.S. government...

Get an Inter Agency pass for $80. That's what we did every year for many years until we could get a Senior Pass. With the raised fees, if you enter Yosemite or SEKI more than be 3 times a year, it will save you money. And you'll be legally entering the park, not sneaking in. We would not have National Parks and wilderness areas without the federal government.

Between SEKI and Yosemite, Pinnacles, and using the IA pass as a parking permit in SoCal where it can substitute for the adventure pass... $80 is a deal. Saves me a lot of money every year. By March I would have spent 80 in admission fees already.

Also some of the BLM properties take the Interagency - one low elevation area within a half hour's drive will take the pass instead of their day use fee.

No supervision, and we would have no wilderness. The hoards already cause too much damage - can't begin to imagine the fires that would rage and the trash piles not to mention the poaching, that would be rampant otherwise. Some of the local anarchists already haul around bolt cutters and take full advantage of public resources - there is a huge difference between people who are responsible and understand that public property does not mean "I get to do anything I want" - the public is also responsible for protecting and maintaining. Until we can banish selfish jackasses to some deserted island, I will happily fund and volunteer in the federal lands.

I'd like to see much greater support given to the National Parks, but regressive taxes are not a fair way to do it. The guy making $60K after taxes earns enough in about an hour to pay the $30 entrance fee. After taxes, the guy making minimum wage has to work about 6 hr. (Note to tax denialists - I'm talking about all taxes, not just income tax.)

I'm not totally against user fees, but they shouldn't price people out of their right to enjoy what is supposed to be available to all of us. Unfortunately, we have redefined our priorities since WW2 (favoring empire and endless war), or at least our politicians have, and the National Parks are toward the back of the federal budget line.

Congress to the National Park System and the average guy " "

The senior passes are disgusting. Completely unfair.

These high fees definitely discourage a lot of people from going to the parks, especially people with kids and limited income---who should be encouraged to enjoy our parks!

Somehow raising fees doesn't count as a tax increase. I don't get it.

Sorry for my ill temper.

I know that there are people who live in Fresno or Lee Vining that can visit Yosemite on a half a tank of gas. Just the same, I don't think it's too far out to guess the majority of us can expect to burn thru at least $150 dollars worth of gas alone to visit the park. My point being is that considering the cost of a family style visit to Yosemite $30 is a drop in the bucket. Trying to say that a $10 increase is going to prevent anyone form visiting doesn't really fly. If you really want to save the cash just drive up to Angeles NF where as long as you have an Adventure Pass they do have no fee camping. The only problem is that you may spend your evening cleaning empty beer cans and diapers out of the fire pit while you listen to the bang of poachers gunfire.

New post by tie on Tue Oct 21, 2014 6:43 pm
The senior passes are disgusting. Completely unfair. *Disagree.*

I agree the 50% increase is unfair as the inflation rate does not dictate that. The senior pass enables retired people; perhaps on a fixed income to enjoy the parks. They perhaps are pretty mobile and can use it more often than the average working stiff. Besides, consider many of those seniors have put in there "dues" by working longer than youngins; and perhaps kept you safe and enable you to live freely enough to be able to go to the parks by graciously serving in the military. Payback and a perk.