Yellowstone backcountry permits available online in 2022

Beginning spring 2022, visitors will be able to make advance online reservations for backcountry permits at Recreation.gov.

The new system is a direct response to public requests for an online backcountry permit reservation system and prompted a collaborative effort between the National Park Service (NPS) and Recreation.gov. Moving to an online system allows backcountry users to check availability in real time and receive instant confirmation when reserving a trip.

The ability to make advance reservations will enable visitors to plan their trips ahead of time and provide assurance they will have a permit for their chosen itinerary upon arrival. It will enrich the visitor experience by eliminating uncertainty and frustration and improve safety.

The three options for obtaining a backcountry permit include:

* Early Access Lottery. The Early Access Lottery application period will go live on Recreation.gov March 1, 2022, and will end March 20, 2022. This lottery is based on a fair and randomized process to provide an equal opportunity for each applicant to be selected. If selected, successful lottery applicants will be assigned a date and time to book their proposed reservation online during the Early Access Period from April 1 through April 24. Participants are limited to a single reservation during the Early Access Period but may create additional reservations beginning April 26.

* General Permits. On April 26, remaining permits for open campsites will be available on Recreation.gov.

* Walk-up Permits. These permits will be available on a first-come, first-served basis up to 48 hours in advance. Walk-up Permits cannot be reserved online in advance or through the Recreation.gov Call Center.

Early Access Lottery and General Permits will account for approximately 75% of permits issued for the season. The remaining permits will be available as Walk-up Permits.

Backcountry permit fees 

Backcountry permit fees will increase beginning March 1, 2022. This will be the first increase since fees were implemented in 2015.

* There will be a $10 application fee for the Early Access Lottery. This fee is charged for all applications to the lottery regardless of success. Successful applicants will pay a $5 per-person, per-night permit fee.

* For General Permits and Walk-up Permits, the cost will be $5 per person, per night plus a $10 reservation fee.

* The Yellowstone Annual Backcountry Pass will be available through Recreation.gov for $50. The pass exempts the individual pass holder from the $5 per-person, per-night permit fee.

Yellowstone offers more than 1,000 miles of trails and 293 designated backcountry campsites. Permits are required for all overnight stays in the backcountry. Learn more about backpacking in the park, including trip planning resources such as maps and campsite locations, at camp in the backcountry.



Jeff
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Rangers respond to injured skier in Grand Teton National Park on Saturday

Teton Interagency Dispatch Center received a call at approximately 11:45 a.m. on Saturday, January 22, about an injured skier involved in an avalanche in the Sliver Couloir on Nez Perce in Grand Teton National Park. Park rangers and Teton County Search and Rescue jointly responded.

Two skiers were ascending the Sliver Couloir on Saturday when a snowboarder above them triggered a small avalanche. The slide caused one of the skiers to be washed down the couloir. During the fall the skier sustained an ankle injury.

Teton Interagency Dispatch Center received the call about the injured skier via inReach and follow-up reports via cell phones from people who skied to areas with coverage. The Teton County Search and Rescue helicopter with park rangers onboard responded to the injured skier, who had been able to self-rescue by scooting to a landing zone in Shadow Peak Cirque. Rangers were able to load the patient into the helicopter and then fly him to a landing zone at Windy Point Turnout along the Teton Park Road. A friend of the injured skier picked him up at the landing zone.

This incident serves as a good reminder of how quickly a small avalanche can become hazardous in steep terrain. This was an unfortunate event that could have had a worse outcome. It is important to be aware of other backcountry users in the area and to consider their presence in your decision making to maximize safety for everyone.

Those venturing into the mountains should use careful snowpack assessment and good terrain choices. Before heading into the backcountry, always check Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center for current conditions at jhavalanche.org.



Jeff
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USFS Announces New 10 Year Strategy to Confront the Wildfire Crisis

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Forest Service Chief Randy Moore will today launch a comprehensive response to the nation’s growing wildfire crisis – “Confronting the Wildfire Crisis: A Strategy for Protecting Communities and Improving Resilience in America’s Forests.” The strategy outlines the need to significantly increase fuels and forest health treatments to address the escalating crisis of wildfire danger that threatens millions of acres and numerous communities across the United States.

The Forest Service will work with other federal agencies, including the Department of the Interior, and with Tribes, states, local communities, private landowners, and other partners to focus fuels and forest health treatments more strategically and at the scale of the problem, based on the best available science.

The strategy highlights new research on what Forest Service scientists identified as high risk “firesheds” – large, forested landscapes with a high likelihood that an ignition could expose homes, communities, infrastructure and natural resources to wildfire. Firesheds, typically about 250,000 acres in size, are mapped to match the scale of community exposure to wildfire.

The Forest Service will use this risk-based information to engage with partners and create shared priorities for landscape scale work, to equitably and meaningfully change the trajectory of risk for people, communities and natural resources, including areas important for water, carbon and wildlife.

The groundwork in this new strategy will begin in areas identified as being at the highest risk, based on community exposure. Additional high risk areas for water and other values are being identified. Some of the highest risk areas based on community exposure include the Pacific Northwest, the Sierra Nevada Range in California, the front range in Colorado, and the Southwest.

The strategy calls for the Forest Service to treat up to an additional 20 million acres on national forests and grasslands and support treatment of up to an additional 30 million acres of other federal, state, Tribal, private and family lands. Fuels and forest health treatments, including the use of prescribed fire and thinning to reduce hazardous fuels, will be complemented by investments in fire-adapted communities and work to address post-fire risks, recovery and reforestation.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides nearly $3 billion to reduce hazardous fuels and restore America’s forests and grasslands, along with investments in fire-adapted communities and post fire reforestation. Funds will be used to begin implementing this critical work.

In 2020, 2017, and 2015, more than 10 million acres burned nationwide, an area more than six times the size of Delaware. In the past 20 years, many states have had record catastrophic wildfires, harming people, communities and natural resources and causing billions of dollars in damage. In 2020, Coloradans saw all three of their largest fires on record. The running 5-year average number of structures destroyed by wildfires each year rose from 2,873 in 2014 to 12,255 in 2020 – a fourfold increase in just six years.

The Forest Service remains committed to sustaining the health, diversity and productivity of all of America’s forests. Visit the Forest Service website to read the full strategy document.



Jeff
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Man sentenced to nine months in jail for assaulting law enforcement officers in Yellowstone National Park

United States Attorney Bob Murray announced on Wednesday that BENJAMIN J. BAGALA, age 27, of Santa Rosa, California pleaded guilty and was sentenced for three counts of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers or employees and one count of depredation against property of the United States. He appeared via Zoom before United States Magistrate Judge Mark L. Carman and was sentenced to nine months imprisonment, with credit served for four days and must surrender on or before March 4, 2022. He also received one year supervised release with special conditions that include a ban from Yellowstone National Park; he shall not use or possess alcohol, shall not enter into bars, pubs, lounges, etc., and will continue with alcohol treatment as approved by the probation officer. Bagala was ordered to pay $2,865.42 in restitution and $100 special assessment.

According to the evidence, on September 25, 2021, at the Lake Yellowstone Hotel in Yellowstone National Park, Bagala was drinking heavily and began harassing guests, running through the halls, breaking things and eventually approached a security guard with threatening behavior. A law enforcement officer was called to the scene where Bagala’s action continued to progress and escalated to an attack on the officer. This law enforcement officer had to deploy his taser to safely gain control. Bagala was extremely intoxicated and displayed injuries from earlier activities, so an ambulance was called. Two additional law enforcement officers arrived to transport Bagala to the Livingston Hospital in Montana. One of the officers rode in the back to restrain him during transport. Bagala broke out of his restraints and fought with the officer. The other officer, driving the ambulance, had to pull over and assist. During this time, both officers received injuries from Bagala’s actions.

Lake Yellowstone Hotel reported $2,865.42 in damages including broken plexiglass shields, broken plates, broken doors and frames, damaged light fixtures, and blood splatter throughout the halls and lobby.

This crime was investigated by the National Park Service and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie A. Hambrick.



Jeff
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Yellowstone National Park Turns 150 This Year

March 1, 2022, marks the 150th anniversary of the establishment of Yellowstone National Park. Signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant, America's first national park was set aside to preserve and protect the scenery, cultural heritage, wildlife, geologic and ecological systems and processes in their natural condition for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations.

Yellowstone serves as the core of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, one of the largest nearly intact natural ecosystems remaining on the planet. Yellowstone has the most active, diverse, and intact collections of combined geothermal features with over 10,000 hydrothermal sites and half the world's active geysers. The park is also rich in cultural and historical resources with 25 sites, landmarks and districts on the National Register of Historic Places.

Based on the park’s location at the convergence of the Great Plains, Great Basin, and Columbia Plateau, many Native American Tribes have traditional connections to the land and its resources. For over 10,000 years before Yellowstone became a national park, it was a place where Native Americans hunted, fished, gathered plants, quarried obsidian and used thermal waters for religious and medicinal purposes.

"Yellowstone's 150th anniversary is an important moment in time for the world," said Superintendent Cam Sholly. "It’s an opportunity for us to reflect on the lessons of the past while focusing our efforts to strengthen Yellowstone and our many partnerships for the future. I applaud and share the vision of Secretary Haaland and Director Sams on our responsibility to more fully engage with Tribal Nations to honor and learn from their ancestral and modern connections to Yellowstone.”

Beginning on March 1, the park will host and participate in a wide range of activities to commemorate the 150th. The park has conducted substantial outreach to Native American Tribes, inviting them to participate directly in this anniversary. Multiple Tribal Nations will be present throughout the summer at Old Faithful as part of the Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center project. Tribes are also coordinating with Yellowstone to install a large teepee village in the park near the Roosevelt Arch in August, where tribal members will interact directly with visitors about their cultures and heritage.

During this anniversary year, Yellowstone will open 40 new employee housing units throughout the park along with groundbreakings on projects totaling more than $125 million funded through the Great American Outdoors Act. These projects include two of the largest historic preservation projects in the country and a range of transportation projects that will address aging infrastructure. This year will also mark the reopening of Tower Fall to Chittenden Road (near Dunraven Pass), a $28 million road improvement project completed over the past two years.

The park will participate in the 15th Biennial Scientific Conference on the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem hosted by Montana State University, the Wyoming Governor's Hospitality and Tourism Conference, and the University of Wyoming's Yellowstone National Park 150 Anniversary Symposium. The park is also grateful to Wind River (Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho) and other Tribal Nations for planning a multi-tribal gathering on the Wind River Reservation later in the year.

Due to COVID-19, the park does not currently have large events planned; however, this may change as the year progresses. Visit go.nps.gov/Yellowstone150 and follow #Yellowstone150 frequently in 2022 to stay current on commemoration information.



Jeff
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Working Group asks skiers to avoid Teton Range Bighorn Sheep Winter Zones

The Teton Range Bighorn Sheep Working Group including Grand Teton National Park, Bridger-Teton National Forest, Caribou-Targhee National Forest, and Wyoming Game and Fish Department invite backcountry users to join in stewardship efforts to protect bighorn sheep. The Working Group released a map today of Teton Range Bighorn Sheep Winter Zones and is asking skiers to voluntarily avoid these sensitive bighorn sheep winter habitat areas during winter 2022. The georeferenced map is available for download at www.tetonsheep.org and can be displayed on smartphone mapping apps.

As recreationists and outdoor enthusiasts, we all play a critical role in protecting and conserving public lands and the wildlife that call these places home. Being a good steward means being aware of the environment and the health of the wildlife therein, making sure they are able to persist for generations to come.

Bighorn sheep have occupied the Teton Mountain Range for thousands of years, but today this native population is small, isolated from other nearby populations, and at risk of local extinction. Challenges for this native herd continue to increase and public land managers, as well as public land users, have a critical role to play in their future survival.

As one of the smallest and most isolated herds in Wyoming, the native Teton Range bighorn sheep herd is of high conservation value to the Jackson Hole community and millions of visitors from around the world who visit the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem each year.

The Teton Range is big enough for both exceptional skiing and iconic wildlife through responsible recreation and by planning ahead. Habitat loss and other problems facing bighorn sheep predate our current sport of backcountry skiing, but as backcountry skiing continues to grow in popularity, it’s more important than ever to make recreation decisions that will help protect the herd.

The future of our wildlife depends on everyone being good stewards of the Tetons.

The park and other agencies continue to rely on skiers for their help in reporting bighorn sheep sightings in the Tetons. Skiers are encouraged to call 307.739.3488 to report their sightings. Avoid disturbing wintering wildlife by following winter closures at go.nps.gov/tetonclosures.



Jeff
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Glacier National Park’s Comprehensive Telecommunications Plan Approved

The National Park Service (NPS) has approved Glacier National Park’s Comprehensive Telecommunications Plan. On December 13, 2021, the Regional Director for NPS Interior Regions 6, 7, and 8 signed a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for the environmental assessment (EA) prepared for the plan.

Actions under the plan will address deficiencies in NPS radio, phone, computer and data-based telecommunications systems that support park operations. The plan will allow a flexible response to changing communication needs and advances in technology, including upgrading to new technologies and/or removing unnecessary NPS telecommunications infrastructure if needed.

Improvements to NPS systems will include phone system upgrades, improved Internet speed and access, improved electronic file and information sharing, remote access to digital video security systems, more reliable reporting for utility alarms, improved radio communications in areas where radio coverage is insufficient, and backup radio communications. Project areas include existing NPS telecommunications sites and/or developed areas at Many Glacier, Two Medicine, East Glacier, St. Mary, the Polebridge, Walton, and Goat Haunt Ranger Stations, Chief Mountain Port of Entry, Logan Pass Visitor Center, the Loop on the Going-to-the-Sun Road (GTSR), and Apgar Mountain. The plan also includes possible radio repeater sites in the park’s recommended wilderness, including Elk Mountain and Looking Glass Hill.

Some of the changes to infrastructure and equipment as a result of NPS telecommunications improvements include:

* installing or replacing telecommunications infrastructure and equipment, such as radio antennas and microwave dishes;

* replacing three equipment poles (similar in size and appearance to a telephone pole) with 40-foot lattice frame towers and extending the height of one 40-foot tower to 80 feet (approximately 6 feet wide at the base);

* installing a radio repeater at the Loop on the GTSR, including an estimated 30-foot mast, antenna, and solar panels on the roof of the existing comfort station;

* installing temporary radio repeaters for use during short-term non-emergency projects or situations;

* possibly installing permanent radio repeaters (consisting of an approximately 5x4x5-foot equipment shelter, 20-foot mast, and solar panels) on Elk Mountain and other sites in recommended wilderness if NPS radio communications are not sufficiently improved by other actions. Other areas in recommended wilderness preliminarily identified for possible permanent repeaters include the Belly River, Nyack, or Two Medicine areas, or on Mt. Brown;

* upgrading an existing temporary repeater at Looking Glass Hill, also in recommended wilderness, until the repeater can be moved to a location outside the park. Recent developments indicate the Looking Glass Hill repeater may be moved outside the park without first requiring the upgrade.

Additionally, the plan enables a strategy for commercial cellular and/or Internet access for public and NPS use in certain developed areas. Applications for commercial telecommunications infrastructure and coverage will only be considered at the Many Glacier, Rising Sun, Two Medicine, and Lake McDonald Lodge developed areas. Coverage shall be restricted to these developed areas only. Commercial infrastructure and coverage will not be permitted until a site-specific review is complete and any application is approved in accordance with the NPS right-of-way permitting process.

The plan establishes conditions and parameters on the placement, size, amount, and type of commercial telecommunications infrastructure and equipment. Only commercial infrastructure with minimal visibility and impacts to park resources shall be permitted, such as micro cell sites or wireless access points. Highly visible infrastructure will not be permitted under the plan, including large-scale towers. The plan will not permit commercial telecommunications infrastructure in recommended wilderness or in the park’s Backcountry Zone as defined in Glacier’s 1999 General Management Plan. The plan requires that signal spillover outside approved areas be minimized as much as technologically feasible, including in recommended wilderness and along park roadways.


Jeff
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Wyoming State Parks to begin collecting sales and lodging taxes on overnight use in State Parks

Beginning on January 1, 2022, Wyoming State Parks, Historic Sites and Trails will begin collecting sales and lodging taxes to comply with Wyoming State Statutes 39-15-101 and 39-15-201.

Tax rates vary by county and will be collected on fees for overnight camping, annual camping permits, reservations, and overnight rental facilities such as cabins, lodges, yurts and treehouses.

“Wyoming State Parks has worked closely with the Department of Revenue to determine where taxes need to be applied to our fees in order to comply with state law,” Deputy Director Nick Neylon said.

Sales and lodging taxes help fund state and county government operating budgets as well as tourism efforts statewide. Past projects that have been supported have included aquifer protection, road maintenance, county library expansions and support of local government.



Jeff
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Granite Park and Sperry Chalets publish rates and operating dates for 2022

The operators for Granite Park and Sperry Chalets recently posted this information on their website regarding rates and operating dates for 2022:

We have our new operating dates and fares for 2022 to share with you.

Granite Park Chalet:
Open June 28 through September 11 in 2022.
Fares starting at $124 for the first person in a room and $85 for each additional person in the same room.

Sperry Chalet:
Open July 9 through September 11 in 2022.
Fares starting at $226 for the first person in a room and $140 for each additional person in the same room.

Our 2022 workshop schedule is ready too. We have a new Science in the Wild workshop for you this year.

Reservations for 2022 will open on Monday, January 10 at 8:00 am Mountain Time Zone. The best, easiest, most successful way to request a reservation will be online through this website. The only thing we can do via phone or Email is key your information into this website on your behalf, which is less accurate and less timely than doing it yourself.

Happy Hiking

Kevin

For more information, please click here.


Jeff
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National Park Service announces entrance fee-free days for 2022

The National Park Service will have five entrance fee-free days in 2022. The free admission days are designed to encourage discovery and visitation of the country’s variety of national parks. With at least one in every state, national parks are accessible places to visit to refresh body, mind and spirit.

The free entrance dates for 2022 are:

* Monday, January 17 – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
* Saturday, April 16 – First Day of National Park Week
* Thursday, August 4 – Anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act
* Saturday, September 24 – National Public Lands Day
* Friday, November 11 – Veterans Day

National parks have something for everyone. Recreational experiences can range from a relaxing picnic to a thrilling white-water adventure and everything in between, including walking, camping, fishing, stargazing, swimming and paddling. Demonstrations and programs at cultural sites connect us with traditions from the past. Notable people and their contributions to society are remembered at historical sites. Chances to view wildlife in their natural habitats and see geological wonders provide lasting memories.

Visitors are encouraged to begin their trip to a national park with a stop at NPS.gov or the NPS app to help plan and prepare. Online you can find tips to help you Plan Like a Park Ranger and Recreate Responsibly. It is important to know before you go what is open and available, especially if you are interested in staying overnight. There are maps, updated conditions and suggested activities to help you decide where to go and what to do. Regardless of activity, visitors should follow Leave No Trace principles. National parks belong to all of us and everyone needs to do their part to help preserve and protect them now and into the future.

The entrance fee waiver for the fee-free days applies only to National Park Service entrance fees and does not cover amenity or user fees for activities such as camping, boat launches, transportation or special tours.

Most national parks do not have entrance fees at all. Out of more than 400 national parks, approximately 110 have admission fees that range from $5 to $35. All of the money provided by entrance fees remain in the National Park Service and 80-100% stays in the park where collected. The funds are used to directly support the visitor experience by providing programs and services, habitat restoration and building maintenance and repair. In 2020, $170 million was collected in entrance fees. Entrance fees, along with other funding sources such as the Great American Outdoors Act, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, Federal Transportation Program and Cyclic Maintenance program, are part of a concerted effort to address the extensive maintenance backlog in national parks.

Free annual passes to more than 2,000 federal recreation areas, including all national parks, are available for members of the U.S. Military and their dependents, U.S. Military veterans, Gold Star Families, fourth grade students, and eligible NPS volunteers. U.S. Citizens with a permanent disability can obtain a free lifetime pass. U.S. Citizens 62 years and older can purchase an $80 lifetime pass or a $20 annual pass. And the annual $80 America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass is a great option for those who visit multiple parks each year. Those traveling with passholders can usually also enter parks for free.

Other federal land management agencies offering their own fee-free days in 2022 are the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.



Jeff
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