Say NO to Backcountry Fees in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

See Jim Casada's August Newsletter for details; [URL]http://www.jimcasadaoutdoors.com/NewsLetters/Aug11NewsSUPP.htm[/URL]

Link to petition, should you elect to support the "no fee" position. Thanks for reading. :)
[URL]http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/gsmnp_backcountry_fees/[/URL]

I don't get it...he says this in the first paragraph:

[i] I had a wonderful boyhood. Much of it was spent fishing and camping in the bosom of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, happy, carefree, and untroubled by much government intrusion of any kind. I purchased my annual fishing license, [b] obtained permits when I ventured into the backcountry for overnight stays[/b], occasionally showed the contents of my creel to a Park ranger, and enjoyed a blissful adolescence.[/i]

So what's the backcountry fee he's talking about saying no to? The one he's always paid before?

This is a common fee - I pay it all the time in LBL...it's a bargain for what you get in return and helps keep the park maintained...

[QUOTE=artcarney_agr;464020]I don't get it...he says this in the first paragraph:

[I]I had a wonderful boyhood. Much of it was spent fishing and camping in the bosom of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, happy, carefree, and untroubled by much government intrusion of any kind. I purchased my annual fishing license, [B]obtained permits when I ventured into the backcountry for overnight stays[/B], occasionally showed the contents of my creel to a Park ranger, and enjoyed a blissful adolescence.[/I]

So what's the backcountry fee he's talking about saying no to? The one he's always paid before?

This is a common fee - I pay it all the time in LBL...it's a bargain for what you get in return and helps keep the park maintained...[/QUOTE]

I think he is talking about the difference between a "permit" and a "fee".

That park is one of the few national parks that doesn't currently charge a fee for backcountry camping, although you must obtain a free permit in adavance. What Jim Casada doesn't mention is the reason for the proposal:

"Park officials say the proposal is a response to customer complaints. Under the current system, reservations are only required for the most popular sites and those with shelters. However, permits are required to camp on any of the backcountry campsites.
Reservations or permits can be obtained Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. by phone or in person at the Backcountry Information Office at the Sugarland Visitor Center. What’s the issue then? Nancy Gray, GSMNP spokesperson, told a reporter from Knoxville, Tennessee’s WBIR that the information office is only open, on average, three hours a day. So it’s difficult to catch the office when it’s open and, Gray said, that customers have complained that phones are constantly busy.
This staff shortage translates over to a lack of oversight in the actual backcountry. Without park rangers, campers arrive without permits. This leads to rule breaking, such as improper trash storage and dogs on the trails. It also means overcrowding of sites; combined with the trash storage issue, wildlife problems can develop, as well.
By establishing a nominal fee for camping, park officials say they would easily make enough money to better staff the park. This would improve monitoring of the backcountry and allow the park to address campers’ complaints. The proposal also includes a plan for online reservations. This allows everyone to easily make and print their reservation and frees up the volunteers at the Information Office to aide in visitors in trip planning."

[URL]http://www.camping-gear-outlet.com/blog/great-smoky-national-park-considering-charging-a-fee-for-backcounty-camping/[/URL]

There has been a lot of discussion about this on the Little River Outfitters forums and some good points made on both sides. I am kind of in the middle on this one.

If they could earmark the money strictly for hiring two backcountry rangers to patrol the sites, I would be all for it, but if the money is not used for this purpose than it is just another fee to use land that already belongs to us anyway.

There has never been a charge to camp in the backcountry at GSMNP but a free permit was required and reservations are required at some backcountry sites.

Also, there is no fee to enter the park like there is at some national parks. The park cannot charge an admission fee as there is a clause in the deeding that prohibits the fee.

My take.......and this is from a CRAZY right winger.......

I hate the **** fees for anything, but I pay, and will CONTINUE to pay 22.00 /night for camping permits in Quetico when I goto Canada. I could pay 16 a trip for a permit for the Boundary Waters ( United States ), but everyone and their brother goes there, and it is overrun by users and abusers.

I don't mind paying a little more for my piece of wilderness.

With regards to the wilderness back country permits in the smokey mountains....If the money can be earmarked strictly for providing services for back country use, then I'm all for it.....I doubt it can. Even if it cannot be earmarked, most of the parks are over used and under manned. Spending a little there, and collecting user fees is not a bad idea.

Later,

Geo