 |
| daveynin on flickr.com |
Want to take your RV into one of the U.S. national
parks and overnight? Afraid you'll never find a spot? Unless you're planning on
visiting one of the country's more popular parks, you may find your fears
aren't warranted.
According to a story published by the Associated Press,
overnighting in national parks is actually on a decline. It seems that "gateway
communities," towns just outside the parks, are getting smart and fishing
for tourist dollars. Fewer and fewer people are staying in the parks; rather,
they're taking advantage of motel rooms with high-speed Internet and swimming
pools, only driving into the park by day to make a visit.
Here are some statistics to show the trend. Back in 1998,
national parks had more than nine million overnight camping stays. By 2003 that
number had dropped to a little more than 8.5 million. Last year, 7.91
million overnight visits were had. Mind you, the stats for overnighting include
all "inside the park stays," which include not only campgrounds suitable for
RVs, but also back country areas where you won't be taking "Winnie"
along.
Park rangers say there was a big inrush of overnighters back
in 2009 and 2010 – up to 8.5 million. The thought is that the poor
economy caused folks to turn to staying in the parks to save money. But with
the economy getting back up on its feet, staying outside park boundaries is "the thing."
For RVers, in practical terms, if you want to secure a spot
in one of the lesser-known parks, your chances of getting a spot are pretty
good – numbers of overnight guests are down almost a third. But those big name
parks? Well, expect you'll need to hit the reservation system. Don't be like
us: We just casually "dropped in" at Zion Grand Canyon 's
South Rim? There are plenty of great free places just outside the park on
nearby Forest Service lands.