Mount Rainier Moves Toward Privatization

Рет қаралды 5,990

Жыл бұрын

Mount Rainier National Park is making its move toward privatizing the entrance process to "The Mountain".
The park is required by law to announce this move, and to seek public input regarding the decision. So.... let's tell them what we think!
Here is a link to the press release, and below that is a link to the form that you can submit to obtain a link to the meeting. It is short and sweet, so go ahead and plan to attend this meeting if at all possible.
Mount Rainier Press Release: www.nps.gov/mora/learn/news/m...
Mount Rainier Virtual Public Meeting Link: forms.office.com/pages/respon...
Those who would like to send a message to their elected representatives in the House and the Senate can now visit the Democracy IO link below, which provides a quick, painless method by which you can find and message your reps in a matter of seconds.
Just go to the link below, as well as the Google Doc linked below that, copy the FLREA Letter to Reps in Google Docs, then paste that into the comment section in the Democracy IO link. This takes less than two minutes, and you'll rest well, knowing that you took action to affect change for the benefit of future generations of our people.
Democracy.io: democracy.io/#!/
Googel Doc - FLREA - Letter to Reps: docs.google.com/document/d/1Z...
Here is Matt Stoller's November article on the Rec.gov arrangement: mattstoller.substack.com/p/wh...
Thanks for your efforts.
Be sure to check out the most comprehensive National Park guide ever conceived by the human mind, cruise on over to: parkjunkie.com/national-park-...
Also, don't neglect the opportunity to stay up to date on Park Junkie's blog: parkjunkie.com/
Oh yeah, I just created a new Substack account dedicated to Public Land Access Issues: The Park Junkie Public Land Press - publiclandpress.substack.com/...
And if you'd like to support our efforts to maintain public awareness of issues that affect our enjoyment of our public lands, consider grabbing some Park Junkie gear for yourself & don't forget your public-land-loving friends, family and associates: park-junkie.myspreadshop.com/
Thanks for the support, but most importantly, don't forget to support the future generations of our people, who will inherit our great lands. Let's make sure that these lands belong to them, and not a major corporate interest.

Пікірлер: 100

@Mangelaman Жыл бұрын

Theodore Rosevelt would be so proud of you! Can't wait to see the big stuff you have coming

@Taskerofpuppets Жыл бұрын

Thank you Todd. I live 2.5 hours from this mammoth beauty. Going up next weekend. Cheers

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Sounds great Tasker! Enjoy!

@thehighlanders607 Жыл бұрын

"Nothing dollarable is safe", John Muir

@steffenrosmus9177 Жыл бұрын

An wise man way ahead of his time he was

@thehighlanders607 Жыл бұрын

@@steffenrosmus9177 His vision for the parks was certainly ahead of his time.

@timwolfers7880 Жыл бұрын

I don't know what the answer is, but being in a National Park that is grossly over crowded is not an enjoyable experience. My last visit to Rocky Mt. NP was like downtown at rush hour. A long line of cars going 12 mph, with all the parking areas full with cars waiting to get a spot. Similar conditions in Glacier, THIRTY YEARS AGO. It's definitely not an easy fix in the peak summer months. Yellowstone is one of the few parks that can easily absorb the masses at peak times.

@harlandeke Жыл бұрын

How about we just let people go when they can, not when the government and Booz Allen say they can...I straight up hate you people

@ebenezerwheezer2957 Жыл бұрын

I totally agree with you Tim. So far I don't think anybody has offered up any other viable solution. The crowds are terrible, the parking is impossible. I see a lot of people complaining about crowds and timed entry, but no one is offering any better solutions. Take care and travel on. DocW

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Alternating license plate entry systems. Worked magically in Yellowstone last summer as the park slowly reopened the southern section after the floods. No multibillion dollar corporate spy agency overlord needed. Just a license plate... Which we all have. Thanks for voicing your concerns.

@dawnsteisslinger353 Жыл бұрын

@@theparkjunkie Was my thought about Glacier as well for the plates of Yellowstone during the flood. Don’t see why it can’t be done in the other parks as well.

@kathyhepler382 Жыл бұрын

Todd. Thanks for the Info!!!!

@CooksterzLittlefield Жыл бұрын

Lets let too many people in, then charge extra... make them stand in lines and sell them plastic things!! There just has to be a better way. Many thanks for your passion and information on the park. Look fwd to the new adventures! ⛺🥾

@coastskyadventures2752 Жыл бұрын

I just read about the time entry. Oh boy. A virtual meeting is going to mean nothing to them. They are going to do whatever they want. Just like recording in the park.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

That's why we take action! Thanks for taking part in the resistance.

@jamescox7603 4 ай бұрын

Hey man! We met you this morning in Ft. Davis! James and Jordan. Hope to see you again sometime!

@theparkjunkie 4 ай бұрын

Nice boys! Back home today! Cheers

@snickerspayne4929 Жыл бұрын

Thank you thank you Todd!

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Thanks Snickers

@jjensen554 Жыл бұрын

I live here and this is the first I've heard of it. Drat. So used to going up there anytime I want to! I will chime in. Thanks

@BearPlane747 Жыл бұрын

What a f&/*%ing bummer man! I live in north idaho so im not too far away from Mount Rainier, so my family would make a couple spontaneous trips up there a summer (used to do the same with glacier), after this year with the new vehicle system, that's not going to happen anymore... First it was glacier (and many others too) now mount rainier, i fear Yellowetone is next, that would be terrible, absolutely terrible.... I will try to attend the meeting tommorow, i doubt our voices will be heard, but we atleast have to try, and if what we're doing now doesnt work, there may be protests someday.... We have to keep the land designed for the enjoyment of the people, for the enjoyment of the people... Gone are the days of seeing a nice weekend on the weather forecast, then having a spontaneous trip to your local national park.... Words can not describe my hatred for this new system...

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

More will come... Too much money on the table. "Nothing dollarable is safe" John Muir

@queticomoe4495 Жыл бұрын

I'm okay with this and hope that with this intervention, that WE are stopped from loving this and other parks to death. I am very familiar with BWCAW, where permits (max of 9 visitors per permit) are limited per day/week. It helps the Wilderness not feel so crowded and we leave less trace when fewer visitors are able to enter. So I guess I respectfully disagree with your point of view.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

I travel to our parks continuously, and content that our parks are not being loved to death. Not at all. We are loving the parking lots to death, nothing more. Anyone who hikes a mile from the pavement will find all the solitude they could ever hope for, in any of our parks. I never complain about crowds, because I understand that as soon as I leave the parking lot, I won't see more than a handful of people. Thanks for your input.

@horsefancy Жыл бұрын

There is no answer. The places of incredible diversity were set apart For The People to see, to learn, to instill a sense of wonder that does not happen in the suburbs, or downtown apartment buildings, and cannot be appreciated fully on TV. They give some a life goal. Now, we are telling people they can't come. We want them to have more respect for 'our' property. The environmental impact is TOO great, so 'you' should not leave your apartment to come 'here'. "God's Country" belongs to the string pullers. Only the string pullers are allowed in. Everybody else? Keep that nose to the grindstone!!!

@ebenezerwheezer2957 Жыл бұрын

Nancy Ginn, Can you show where it was said they don't want you to come to the national? What is your solution to end the crowds at National Parks. At times it's like rush hour traffic and parking lots that are full. I don't like it any more than anybody else, but I can't offer any better solution to the overcrowding to the point of where it's like rush hour traffic and full park lots.

@horsefancy Жыл бұрын

A lottery for entrance IS telling people they can't come to the park.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Alternating license plate systems, no corporate gatekeeper needed. Enjoy your park on your specific day... If such system is needed at all.

@user-jg1rg9ke1e Жыл бұрын

Keep up the good fight!!!! Together can get these fees removed.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

One day... !!!

@MaryReed-iy7fq Ай бұрын

The over crowded park issue is a self solving problem. People will eventually avoid them and peak times.

@drone_boss Жыл бұрын

Ugh….. thanks bro! We just signed up for the meeting!

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Thanks! How'd the meeting go? I had a prior engagement.

@juanitabrown545 Жыл бұрын

Can't wait to see it 😮

@jeffgattis1925 Жыл бұрын

Todd, I'd be interested in if you've ever had conversations with current or former Rangers about these subjects. How do they feel about a private company making more money than the parks themselves. Seems they could charge a little more for entry and use the profits to hire more Rangers and improve facilities.

@BearPlane747 Жыл бұрын

Park rangers have no control over the situation, don't bother with them...

@RealEstateInsider247 Жыл бұрын

@@BearPlane747 Ordinary citizens don't have control either but they are being asked to participate. The rangers have first hand knowledge of the park and could participate in the meetings. Of course people should communicate with the rangers and build grass roots momentum any way they can.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Most rangers I deal with are not really in favor of such systems, but contend that something must be done. Firstly, the parks are operating with less staff than they had a decade ago. So that complicates the issue from a management standpoint. You are correct, they could easily swing from giving hundreds of millions to a multi billion dollar private government contractor, to simply hiring more staff for the parks. I cannot tell you how many times I have driven to the gates of Zion in mile long line of cars, only to find one booth open, with a ranger checking every ID to make sure it corresponds with the Parks Pass, and then running credit cards and answering questions. The entry system is being operated just as it was in the 1960s, and this is part of the reason we have such backups at park gates... it's almost like they want it that way. But as far as fixing the system, I go straight to Congress.... No other choice. The Park Service won't listen, just a massive bureaucracy these days. Thanks for your time.

@rosm6621 Жыл бұрын

Weather in the PNW is never reliable. A reserved timed entry limits the guests flexibility for avoidance of those times when the the rain or fog limits the view of the mountain. Long distance travellers may find unavoidable delays along the way which can cause them to miss their arrival reservation. And elderly, or those with medical restrictions cannot always guarantee they are medically healthy enough on the day reserved, when having to do it ahead. I would prefer a first-come-first-served entrance policy, allowing visitors the freedom to choose any day they have free. I wouldn't mind witing in a line to enter as others leave. Just sad to see all the rules and restrictions slowly creeping into our national parks and BLM lands. Rules to control how visit, what we can visit, and now when. We used to be free to visit whenever we wanted. Whenever we had the time.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

So many reasons not to implement restrictions on the ability of hard working Americans to enter their public lands, which according to the Organic Act of 1872, were set aside for the Benefit and Enjoyment of the PEOPLE

@Mikefngarage Жыл бұрын

Love what your doing. cant wait to see the results of the new laws for filming. I think most of us are filming anyway....

@nancysmith-baker1813 Жыл бұрын

Thankyou for your information . So sad about the parks but at the same time there over run in places at times . And not managed well . So oh hum . I didnt know glaciers is like this . Thankyou for the info.

@dezyote Жыл бұрын

Must because there are too many people going to love the park .

@simonbattle0001 Жыл бұрын

Good to see you Park Junkie back at it. Can't wait to see the upcoming shows. I'll keep dropping the info where I can concerning the corporate takeover of the united States National Park system and the junk fees to. Be safe and see you when you got some in the can.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Cheers Simon

@ebenezerwheezer2957 Жыл бұрын

Hi Todd, You spoke about the alternating license plate system used in Yellowstone Park. How did Yellowstone handle personalized plates? Some of those plates don't end in a number.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Well if they end in a letter they get in on Mon Wed Fri & every other Sunday If they end in a number, they get in Tue Thur Sat & every other Sunday The same could be done with IDs or Park Passes, but only at park locations that actually warrant some form of restrictive entry. The largest problem with the current system is that it places a financial reward for restricting park locations and activities... this is bad.

@billjayne7474 Жыл бұрын

What committees in the House and Senate have oversight, Todd? Who are the chairmen and ranking minority members?

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Manchin & Barrasso House Natural Resources Committee. You can find your reps through the Democracy IO link in the description.

@yawndave Жыл бұрын

I have to wonder if we/you are reaching the people who really need to raise their voices on this issue. I'm not sure the younger, casual park visitors of today understand how these timed entry requirements are just the tip of the iceberg. In the circles I frequent, there isn't any sense of urgency, there's more of an "oh well, what can you do?" attitude. I'll continue to put my $.02 in and hope people start realizing what's in store if things go on this way. At any rate, have fun on your upcoming adventures...happy trails!

@yawndave Жыл бұрын

@@channelzero5997 I guess what I was getting at is the aspect of the reservation/fee system (to use another frozen water metaphor) snowballing to the point where we'd lose the ability to visit a NP site spontaneously. Having to to go online and find a date and time to visit a park weeks or months in advance is a major pain. Right now it's just a few parks that require timed entry reservations, but if what's past is prologue I can't help thinking more will follow. The parks are victims of their own success--everybody wants to go see Delicate Arch for themselves now and there's no easy answer to dealing with the resulting crowds. I wouldn't mind quite so much if the majority of the fees were going to the parks but that isn't the case.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Well said Yawn... this system may have originally been designed for good reasons, but has been corrupted and is now becoming an obvious cash-cow. It has been hijacked and is spreading faster than a wildfire across our public lands. Thanks for your input.

@northerngunner2756 Жыл бұрын

What to do. Ive gone to Mount Rainier and couldn’t get into the park because it was so busy. Sat in line over mile or more from the gate for 45 mins to only move a hundred feet before giving up and going somewhere else.

@MaryReed-iy7fq Ай бұрын

There is no justification for access restrictions on back country hiking and camping. Serious outdoors people are not overcrowding those trails.

@gaynel618 Жыл бұрын

Say it isn't so, Park Junkie. 😢 That's getting closer to my home area. One of my favorites, too. What's next, Yosemite? Or, did they already do it. Thanks for the link. I'll be on the meeting listening to their blah, blah, blah justifucation.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Yosemite had a timed entry system for the past two summers. Surprisingly, they removed it for 2023, in order to further study the effectiveness of the system. My bet is that it'll be back in Yosemite in 2024, so I'm cruising to both Yosemite and Rainier this summer.

@gaynel618 Жыл бұрын

Last time I went to Yosemite I used YARTS bus from Mariposa, no reservation needed, easier than the traffic lineup. I spoke to visitors who were turned away because they didn't know about the reservation system. Some were on limited travel time and had to leave the area. This looks like they are making a move to go nationwide with this system.

@user-jg1rg9ke1e Жыл бұрын

My wife and I decided not to visit Glacier this year because of these damned fees.

@MaryReed-iy7fq Ай бұрын

For the super popular parks, issue US citizens a one time pass. After that, use the lotto system. No restrictions should ever apply to 90% of the parks for citizens.

@itakephotos1141 Жыл бұрын

Today is May 5th. How do I learn about these horrible decisions?

@RobertFairweatherMusic 11 ай бұрын

Kalkomey? Do you know anything about this...? Their slogan "We work with government agencies and organizations to develop courses, education materials, and applications that make outdoor recreation safe and easily accessible." WTF

@noreenn6976 Жыл бұрын

Just want to be sure I understand, it it paying a private company that is the issue or having to schedule a time to visit the park?

@ebenezerwheezer2957 Жыл бұрын

Good question.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Both, I see this system spreading like wildfire. I am in favor of spontaneity and the freedom to travel to our public lands without a bureaucratic nightmare... & yes, I also oppose a private, multibillion dollar corporate spy agency making hundreds of millions from the American public's desire to enter public land. Thanks for your question.

@mgman6000 Жыл бұрын

Will the senior pass still be accepted

@ebenezerwheezer2957 Жыл бұрын

Yes. But not whenever you want. Under timed entry you will have to make and pay for a reservation time for entry.

@steffenrosmus9177 Жыл бұрын

Well, if they do this there is only one thing we can do: Boycott the park, if they cannot generate revenue, they will be forced to hand it back to the NPS. The boycott will have influence on lodging, restaurants and rental car companies and will generate pressure from their side too.

@sammencia7945 Жыл бұрын

Not privatisation. They are concerned about over usage, all government expands to infinity before collapse, they want more money.

@noreenn6976 Жыл бұрын

I also worked in a NP and saw first hand how the numbers of people can have a negative impact on the park, what is the answer to reducing or spreading out the number of visitors in our NPs? Not be confrontational just want to know what the answer is to the crowds at the parks.

@harlandeke Жыл бұрын

Not destroying people's right to go when they can.

@ToasterBrain Жыл бұрын

Why is the answer to privatize? I don't see how that achieves anything other than some faceless company with shareholders interested in money slowly controlling public land. What do you think, they'll just be content with consistent profits or like every other company find ways to leech everything out of the people that they can?

@ebenezerwheezer2957 Жыл бұрын

Noreen N, I totally agree with you. The overcrowding at times is like driving in city traffic with no parking. I don't know that there's a solution that will make everybody happy. Take care and travel on. DocW

@noreenn6976 Жыл бұрын

@@ebenezerwheezer2957 agree, there probably isn't an answer that will make everyone happy.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

Alternating license plate entrance days, in parks that actually need a system, such as perhaps Arches on certain days and times. There are simply too many places adopting restrictive entrance systems that don't need them. Arizona - Grand Canyon - Toroweep Point for example. Middle of nowhere... but you'll now need a reservation. Nonsense. This is a pure money grab, plain and simple. It's corporate personhood, just like it is in every single aspect of American life... If we give these corporate barons an inch, they'll privatize the entire park entrance system within a generation. Thanks for your concerns.

@insanitycubed8832 Жыл бұрын

There should be some law against that. Paying to be in a place, a truly absurd concept

@ebenezerwheezer2957 Жыл бұрын

We don't need MORE LAWS. What would your solution be for the overcrowding at the parks?

@insanitycubed8832 Жыл бұрын

@@ebenezerwheezer2957 It's a law to restrict the government, we do need government knocked down a few pegs. They act like they own the land and that ought be limited as much as is possible. Conserving is one thing, charging for entrance is another. Enforcing litter laws would probably cut the numbers down, and get some money in their pocket. Not necessarily good they have more money if they don't do good with it, but it would give gov't an incentive. I mean if that happens you know there's a bunch of pricks that would be like, no way I'm going there. Also is overcrowding a problem, is it hurting the land? If so I assume it's all the littering mainly

@jasondunlap4942 Жыл бұрын

😡😡😡

@ethcar Жыл бұрын

United corporate states of America.

@vickimeyers2672 Жыл бұрын

Very sad it's happening to Rainier!!!! Goes to show what happens with a woke governor.

@JimAllen-Persona Жыл бұрын

Woke? You’re more than likely to see that from a conservative (rich) governor.

@johnlangevin708 Жыл бұрын

Yeah, I'm sure it has nothing to do with overcrowding.

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

It's not really a right/left issue... It's a corporate takeover, and those players don't care who's woke... They own them all.

@user-jg1rg9ke1e Жыл бұрын

It's an American people getting fleeced issue.

@mgman6000 Жыл бұрын

What does the governor have to do with a national park ?

@calihiker7980 Жыл бұрын

You’re spinning this in a way that’s very click baity. The $2 to the private corporation has pretty much nothing to do with the timed entry other than that it exists. The private corporation isn’t going to do it for free, and for those who want the federal gov to run their own website, the price of those reservations would still more than likely increase. As for the actual timed reservations, the fact is the parks that have been implementing them are doing so seasonally when the traffic is a gridlock. So tell me, is it better to plan the trip and get the reservation, or to sit in traffic for hours and not be able to go in anyway? The parks are still open to the public, but the overcrowding isn’t just choking the parks, it’s pissing off visitors who then demand a solution from every low level NPS employee they see. Well, here’s your solution.

@BearPlane747 Жыл бұрын

No dude, they are making the parks less public, you can't just see a nice weekend on the weather forecast and decide to go to your local National Park anymore, now you have to plan 4 months ahead of time and you have no clue what you are going to get, traffic is because MORE PEOPLE are ENJOYING the land for the ENJOYMENT of the PEOPLE! Now you're trying to lock some of those people out? If there's less traffic now, that means they're making LESS PEOPLE be able to visit the land for the ENJOYEMENT of the PEOPLE! And how do we know this is where they draw the line?! What if they start adding more and more reservation based things? I mean it's already practically impossible to visit a national park for multiple days without planning many months ahead of time, now they might make it actually impossible. I'm okay with getting reservations sometimes, but for some things, it's just dumb to plan 5 months ahead of time and hope there's no stormy weather, or wildfires, etc. And I know there are a lot of people who really struggle with planning many months ahead of time, now can we just lock them out? F***k that...

@theparkjunkie Жыл бұрын

This is the privatization of the entrance process to our national parks and public lands, plain and simple. It's obvious to me as I spend most of my time wandering through these magnificent places and see many sites implementing Rec.gov systems that have NO NEED for such regulated entrance processes. It's a pure money grab, and that represents a private takeover of our public lands. I'll stand behind my words till the end. This is the privatization of the entrance to Mount Rainier, and if there is a private gatekeeper, then the land itself might as well be privatized. I too wait in line at the park gates, but I don't mind that at all, as I don't expect to have the place to myself (although I often do). However, I clearly understand that as soon as I find a parking space, throw on my pack and hit the trail, I won't see any crowds. None of these people who gripe about "crowds" ever hit the trail. It seems they simply gather in the parking lots and overlooks. Of course there will be crowds in such easy to access places.... it's a national park. Thanks for your input.

@dawnsteisslinger353 Жыл бұрын

@@theparkjunkie You are so right Todd. In SNP when I hike in the back country it’s just me. Every once in awhile maybe I see someone but it’s closer to parking lot. Or people are asking where does this trail go. I’ve tried to tell people recently you have no water or food you shouldn’t Do that trail. What do I know. 9 miles with no water doesn’t seem smart to me. But Skyline and parking lots are full and SNP has been packed for a few weeks recently. Still have gotten on trail and no issues.