Great Basin National Park has increased camping fees, and moving reservations to recreation.gov/NPS file
Higher camping fees are being charged at Great Basin National Park this year, and campground sites are moving to online reservations.
Recreation.gov, along with being the site to reserve campsites at the national park that hugs Nevada's border with Utah, also will be the place to obtain tickets for cave tours.
The higher fees, which took effect January 1, reflect completed required comparability studies and civic engagement for expanded amenity fee changes.
The new fees include:
- Lower Lehman Campground (per site, per night) $20
- Upper Lehman Campground (per site, per night) $20
- Wheeler Peak Campground $20
- Baker Creek Campground $20
- Grey Cliffs Campground $20
- Lehman Caves Grand Palace Tour, Adult, 90-minutes $15
- Lehman Caves Lodge Room Tour, Adult, 60-minutes $12
- Lehman Caves Grand Palace Tour, Youth (5-15) $8
- Lehman Caves Lodge Room Tour, Youth (5-15) $6
- RV Dump Station $10
The cave tour fee increases cover the cost associated with providing cave tours and reservable tour tickets on www.recreation.gov. Since 2015 Great Basin has been making improvements to park campgrounds; Baker Creek in 2015, Upper Lehman Creek in 2017, and Wheeler Peak in 2021. The improvements have brought in new picnic tables, restrooms, fire pits, grills and tent pads.
The park will also begin providing online reservations through www.recreation.gov for Lower and Upper Lehman Creek Campgrounds in 2021, continue with reservation in Grey Cliff and provide reservations for Wheeler Peak Campground once improvements are completed. The fees have increased to help cover the fee incurred for the reservation system and to maintain the improved campgrounds.
“We are committed to keeping the park affordable. Great Basin currently does not charge a park entrance fee. We also want to provide visitors with the best possible experience,” said Great Basin Superintendent James Woolsey. “The money from camping and cave tours fees goes back into providing visitors with high quality services at those sites.”
Cave tour fees are used to pay for approximately 60 percent of the staff hired to conduct tours, trail maintenance, and other visitor services. Campground fees are used for restroom supplies, staff to clean the restrooms, and maintain the park’s campground infrastructure.
Comments
The real issue is how much money booz makes.
The fees need to be capped and the 15 dollars charged shared with land management agencies. How much does booz make from this thing?
All I know is that I listen to the radio and hear Comcast advertise their Internet Essentials program. I've been to public libraries with free internet. I've been to poor neighborhoods where everyone still has a smart phone. And Recreation.gov contractor still runs a toll-free phone number with operators to take orders. I mean - maybe you think that there are people who don't have internet access, but in my world it's easy enough for people to get subsidized service. Some are even free, which I'm sure is part of some government initiative.
From Comcast:
https://www.internetessentials.com
From AT&T:
https://www.att.com/internet/access/
Verizon:
https://www.verizon.com/info/low-income-internet/
Cox:
https://www.cox.com/residential/internet/low-cost-internet-plans.html