NW Forest Pass Ticket

[Chriznitch]

I'm confused:

-I own a golden eagle pass

-it warps every time I put it on my dash (when I remember)

-I got a ticket at hood in march for not having a "snow park pass", plead "nolo contesto"

-right now I work for the USFS (all the money's in fire!)

[marylou]

volunteer for your pass

[AlpineK]

I've never gotten more than a $5 ticket which I ignored.

 

Fuck the pass.

[usteidl]

"One thing to note, if you park before the "entering a fee use area" sign, you don't need the pass. Usually it means you'll walk an extra 1/4 mile, ain't no big thing."

 

This used to work. Not any more. Example: Denny Creek exit on I-90. There used to be a "NW forest pass required" only at the (Pratt Lake) trailhead. Then they posted a "Entering Fee Area" sign 1/4 mile from the trail head. Fair enought, I can walk 0.3 miles. Recently, however, they put up a sign right by the freeway exit: "Trail park pass required beond this point". It seems now you need a trail pass if you park anywhere on the road between Pratt Lake trailhead and Denny Creek trailhead, which are at least 2 miles apart.

(Though I recently parked more than 1/4 mile from the trailhead like I had in the past and didn't get a ticket. Just lucky?)

Is this legal? Can the USFS just declare several miles of road as "fee area", even if you park more than 1/4 mile from any trailhead or other recreational site?

Other example of expanded fee areas: The "entering fee area" sign at the Snow lake trailhead was moved a few hundred meters down the road, away from the trailhead.

And isn't the entire Mountain Loop Highay a fee area?

 

Does anyone have a website address where I can find the full text of the fee demo law (rider)? Please let me know!

 

Uli

[willstrickland]

Does anyone have a website address where I can find the full text of the fee demo law (rider)? Please let me know

Uli

 

http://www.wildwilderness.org/docs/omnibus.htm

[rbw1966]

I used the "religious experience" card whilst parked at Teanaway--no ticket. I've also parked there two other times with nothing on my dash or mirror at all and no ticket.

 

The enforcement seems extremely arbitrary.

[Spliffy]

I use a "Parking Pass" that I got from the Red Lion Bellevue Inn when I was down there a couple summers ago for a seminar. The dates faded off, so it's pretty much good forever.

[gapertimmy]

Golden Eagle permits would be highly easy to counterfeit. Anyone with a scanner and a printer could manufacturer one of these. They have no unique barcode or seial number at all. A freaking joke if you ask me, folks find ways to rip of ski resorts left and right for access, i'm surprised enterprising backcountry users haven't started making fake passes yet.

 

I've done the park outside the sign trick as well, this works fine, but couldn't a tool still ticket you and claim you were parked at the TH? Its interesting to see the ammount of damage done to foiliage right by those signs too. Way to protect the resource FS assclownz

[Dru]

Do you think they would take one of these?

 

[ken4ord]

So what is the story with geting rid of the whole fee demo thing? There was talk of doing away with it. Does anyone know where that stands?

[ken4ord]

volunteer for your pass

 

Two day of trail work for an annual pass that cost $25 (or whatever I've never bought one). Yeah that sounds worth it.

[chucK]

The reason you might want to do this, is that you know that your "fee" is going directly and completely to trail maintenance.

 

You have not contributed to trail-park enforcement signs or vehicles. You have not helped purchase military hardware, or funded deforestation.

[ketch]

Chuck is right, the best way to control you contribution is to control it. You can also work for a state park pass. 20 hours gets you a local pass for a year, 40 hours gets you a state wide pass for a year. I work for mine so that I can direct what and where My "money" is spent.

 

P.S. I agree that the time doesn't coincide with the funds. One of the rangers told me that the program didn't exist to pay people for working but to get some work done. I told him that I wasn't paying for someone else to "work".

Edited August 24, 2004 by ketch

[marylou]

The "giving something back" aspect of doing volunteer work is not half bad either.

[sobo]

The "giving something back" aspect of doing volunteer work is not half bad either.

 

True dat. Makes you feel good for giving something that others would have to pay for somewhere else. And did you know that being a member of Mountain Rescue gets you into the volcano parks free? Join up and try it, and offer your skillz to folks in need at the same time.

 

Haven't paid since I've joined up. Flash my card at the park entrance, waved on in. Flash my card at climber registration, waved on by. How cool is that? It does require you (on occasion) to haul your ass out of bed/leave the party/change plans to go find someone, though. But it works for me. YMMV.

[mr.radon]

Ignored the tickets I've gotten. Haven't thrown me in jail YET...

I would pay if they made it easier to do so. A drop box, a parking ticket pay machine anything to make it easy. I have no clue where a single USFS office is.

From now on I'll just stick on with magnets my old CT plates from 16 years ago and cover up the VIN number.

Think they ticket out of state'ers as much as people from in state????

[ken4ord]

Ignored the tickets I've gotten. Haven't thrown me in jail YET...

I would pay if they made it easier to do so. A drop box, a parking ticket pay machine anything to make it easy. I have no clue where a single USFS office is.

From now on I'll just stick on with magnets my old CT plates from 16 years ago and cover up the VIN number.

Think they ticket out of state'ers as much as people from in state????

 

 

Yeah I think they ticket out of staters just as much. I still have Maine plates on (Ima slacker) and I have gotten a couple tickets.

[mtn_mouse]

Life if tough, but it's tougher when you're stupid!!!!!!

[Spliffy]

GET ONE OF THESE!!!

 

Or make your own. I made on the other day. It's a combo NW Trail Park Pass/Golden Eagle Pass written on the back of a hotel garage pass and it conviently hangs from my rearview mirror. Total cost=$0

[cascadecowboy]

Hi campers,

 

I got a $50 ticket in the Columbia Gorge about 2 months ago. Here's what happened:

- Got ticket.

- Mailed ticket to somewhere in FL, stating I was not guilty and wanted a court date.

- About 1 1/2 months later, got intimidating looking letter from US federal court, saying I has one more chance to pay, and still had the option of a court date. It also said, "If you plan to plead Not Guilty, please call this number (in Portland).

- I call the number. Spoke with a very nice woman. She asks me if I actually have a Pass, and just neglected to display it. I say yes. She says, "Oh, no prob, just fax a copy of the pass to her office and they will dismiss the charges and I will not have to appear in court."

 

I suggest anyone who gets a NW Forest pass parking violation try this. (Where you decide to obtain a copy of an valid pass I will leave to your fertile imagination . . .)

[graupel]

Someone should do the public a service and scan one and post it to the internet. Then you can download and print your "photocopy" if the need should arise.

[rbw1966]

Thats a fantastic idea!

[klotzy]

Another thing a friend of mine did is send in the ticket with a letter stating that I was using the Wilderness as a spritual retreat. According to him the Federal Government can not require a parking pass (or perhaps it can't give a ticket?) if you are using the wilderness for spiritual enlightenment. It is supposed to have something to do with the original designation of "wilderness". I don't want to cause anyone problems but he has done that on a few tickets that we have received and no further action has been taken.

[klotzy]

After posting the above I called my friend and got some more info. It has to do with the First Amendement and you using the Wilderness for something other than Recreation. The fee program is set up under the premise that recreational use encures costs that are collected and paid for with the pass. By stating that you are not on the land for recreation you do not have to pay the fee. You are allowed to do this non-recreational (including worship) activity for as long as you like and are allowed to bring equipment including food, tent, sleeping bag,etc to make you more comfortable and can use any mode of transportation (ie climbing) you choose to get through the mountains. Anyway here is a link if you want to check it out www.freeourforests.org/COE.html

 

Though I do agree with the post above that talks about earning my pass. When I do use a pass I always volunteer for it. Unfortunately that also perpetuates the bullshit

[nonanon]

Three more bad ideas:

Copy an old citation and pre-emptively ticket yourself.

or...

On returning to the TH and finding yourself busted, trade tickets with another victim and claim that Larry the tool ticketed the wrong car. "Wtf, larry, that's not my license?"

or...

Pinch another victim's ticket right when you pull in. Put it on your windsheild and you don't get cited 'cause you've already been. The other guy gets to say, "Ticket? What ticket?", in all truth.