Rethinking camping

Thursday, September 20, 2007
MICHAEL MILSTEIN The Oregonian

GOVERNMENT CAMP -- The Mount Hood National Forest's White River Station campground offers a no-frills deal: 10 bucks gets you a picnic table made from a split log, a fire pit, a dusty patch to pitch a tent, a nearby outhouse and a mesmerizing view of the gurgling White River and forested slopes glowing in the sun.

But it's a deal that may not last.

The U.S. Forest Service is rethinking how many recreation facilities it can keep up as funding for campgrounds, picnic areas and trails dries up. As the Mount Hood forest considers its choices, smaller, less-used sites such as this one may get farmed out to concessionaires or volunteers -- or even closed.

At the other end of the scale, bigger and popular forest campgrounds such as those around Timothy Lake might see the addition of yurts, showers, RV hookups -- who knows, maybe even Wi-Fi someday -- to better compete with other attractions of a high-tech age.

That could change the nature of the traditionally bare-bones national forest campgrounds. Although some campers may prefer few frills, officials suspect primitive facilities may be less attractive to electronically connected teenagers and baby boomers who prefer the comfort of RVs.

"Maybe more people would come to our campgrounds if we provided electrical hookups," said Malcolm Hamilton, who manages recreation for the forest. "There's an ongoing debate, and we haven't resolved that debate, as to whether it's our role to provide that."

The Mount Hood forest ranks as one of the most heavily visited national forests in the nation, and it will likely see more use as the Northwest's population rises.

Lee Creager and his son Paul, both of Portland, the only ones camped at White River Station on a recent weekday, said the campground is one of their favorites, because it's out of the way.

"That's what's nice about coming over here," said Paul, in front of a 1982 Winnebago shaded by the pines. "You're not camped right on top of each other."

Other national forests completing similar recreation reviews are proposing to close and shorten the seasons of some sites, and raise fees at others.

The initiative drew national criticism when it started. Watchdog groups were suspicious the Forest Service was quietly shuttering sites that don't bring in enough money. Agency leaders responded in July by giving the process a less-intimidating name and committing to involve the public more closely in its choices.

But its general strategy remains the same: National forests rank recreation sites with a system that generally gives priority to the most popular campgrounds and other facilities that serve the most people at the least cost.

They also must look at how closely each site matches each forest's central recreation pursuits, or niche. The Mount Hood forest defined its niche vaguely, with the phrase, "A mountain of possibilities," but says it centers around easily accessible recreation for the largely urban population of Portland.

The idea is that forests should focus their limited money on the highest ranked sites. They'll look for other ways to run lower ranked sites that their money can't reach. Volunteers may maintain some, for instance, or private concessionaires could take some over.

If all else fails, officials might eliminate services such as trash pickup or close a site altogether.

Mount Hood officials have ranked all 170 developed recreation sites in the forest, but they refuse to reveal their results until sometime this fall. They said they will then hold public meetings to discuss their plans.

The goal is to better orient the sort of recreation facilities the forest offers with what the public wants, Hamilton said. Many campgrounds were built decades ago, when tent camping was popular, without sites large enough to accommodate today's large RVs.

Forest Service officials lack detailed statistics about how people use the forest and trends in that use. They know more than 4 million people visit Mount Hood each year, but fewer than 5 percent camp.

"Perhaps half of our visitors drive to Timberline Lodge, get out, look at the scenery, go inside and use the bathroom and leave," Hamilton said.

Visitors' demands change

Forest staff hear from many visitors that they would like utility hookups for RVs in campgrounds, and want more large, group camps that could handle family reunions and club get-togethers. Hookups might make campgrounds more attractive to aging baby boomers not as keen on pitching tents as they used to be, and teenagers, who may be more tuned in to electronics than the outdoors.

Such improvements would most likely be undertaken by private concessionaires who already run most of the forest's campgrounds, rather than the cash-strapped forest service.

Top recreational activities around Mount Hood over the next years include sightseeing, day hiking, wildlife watching and downhill skiing -- but not camping, Hamilton said.

So forest officials must scrutinize the money they spend on more remote campgrounds, especially those with low occupancy rates, he said.

"Every place is special to somebody -- we realize that," Hamilton said. "But there are a number that don't make sense to keep operating the way we've been doing it."

The Forest Service's approach has the uncomfortable ring of commercialization to some groups, who say the rustic nature of public lands is what makes them special. They say the underlying problem is reduced federal funding for recreation, even as Northwest national forests get more money to ramp up logging.

"It does not take much money to maintain a dispersed campsite with a little outhouse," said Alex Brown of Bark, a Mount Hood watchdog group. "So why get rid of it and replace it with a bigger one with hookups?"

The Creagers, who have camped all through the Mount Hood forest since Paul, now 48, was a toddler, usually now camp during the week to avoid crowds.

"This is really one of our favorite spots," said Lee, who knows the spot along the historic Barlow Road so well that he explained how logs in the White River have shifted since last year. "We look forward to it all year."

They have camped in concessionaire-operated campgrounds and don't see much difference, besides the higher price.

"If I could see a lot of improvements, I might feel differently," Lee said. "But I don't."

Michael Milstein: 503-294-7689; michaelmilstein@ news.oregonian.com For news of the environment, go to http://blog.oregonlive.com/pdxgreen