Forest proposes fees for day sites and trails

According to a Black Hills National Forest (BHNF) news release from early August BHNF is proposing new and increased fees that affect sites around the Black Hills. If approved, the fees would go into effect in 2025.

Forest recreation program manager Bradley Block said this is the first round of fees that will be introduced.

“Sometime mid-September there will be another news release about a fee increase for basically the day-use sites, picnic areas  and campground locations. These proposals  will only be for off-season use,” Block said. 

Block calls it an extensive list of areas that will see fee increases, and some areas will see fees for the first time.

The fees would be used to update the area with new picnic tables and amenities, such as updated fee tubes and bulletin boards. The additional money would also be used to hire an outside company to clean restrooms and pump toilets. The money would not go to trail maintenance, although it could be used to hire more seasonal workers, some of whom may do that type of work.

The money will be used across the forest and while fees are proposed, for example, at the Wrinkled Rock Climbing area, that money might not be used specifically there. 

“Those fees don’t just stay at those particular sites,” Block said, but rather, go into a pool of money to be used for different projects.

Chailenn Horton, recreation manager for the Hell Canyon Ranger District added, “These fees actually go straight back to the forest. So we can use these fees to update anything. If something is proposed  and something is needed and wanted there the money where that comes from would be this pot of money. So it actually stays in the forest.”

Horton said the day-use sites require maintenance like pumping toilets and patrolling areas.

“The sites that don’t have a fee, we’re proposing that, so  we have the ability to collect fees from all recreation groups,  so it can  go back to the forest for multiple projects,” she said.

“Over 80 percent of the fees we generate on the forest stay here on the forest,” Block said.

This is per federal legislation. In 2004 the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (REA), authorized the secretaries of Interior and Agriculture to establish, modify, change, collect and retain recreation fees at federal recreation lands and waters as provided for in the Act. 

Neither Block nor Horton knew how many forests have fees or passes for entry and could only refer to the Pacific Northwest that has a pass for conglomerated forests in the area.

There are currently no entrance or day-use fees collected at the Big Horn National Forest in Wyoming. There is an annual pass in place at the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and Thunder Basin National Grassland, also in Wyoming.

Block said the fee proposals are internal, coming locally from BHNF employees. 

“This is the process,” said Horton. “We first talk internally and then we put it out so that we invite everyone in so that we can talk about it.” 

Block says BHNF employees did not consult with user groups before proposing these fees. 

The proposed fees include a year-round $5 day use fee at the Wrinkled Rock Climbing Area and the Jenny Gulch Picnic Site, both of which are currently free to enter and use.

The proposed fees also include  a $10/day fee per  off-highway vehicle (OHV) to use the Black Hills motorized  trails. Currently there are no day-use fees imposed.

The weekly fee would increase from $20 per vehicle to $30, and a season fee would double from $25 to $50.

There are also proposed fees at the Meeker and Summit Ridge cabins.

Block said day use OHV drivers would now need to go to a local vendor location or district ranger station to obtain a physical sticker that would then have to be placed on a vehicle. He said violating the fees may result in a warning ticket that could then become a federal citation if proof of paying the fee wasn’t provided. 

“That’s why compliance is important,” Block said. 

Horton said some BHNF personnel can write tickets on site.

Day-use sites would have a fee tube or an iron ranger in place for users to pay fees.

The current iron rangers are antiquated and only certain forest employees are able to retrieve funds from these systems. A newer system would provide for locked boxes allowing any forest employee to sweep the fee stations.

Block said the forest is also looking at an annual pass for the forest. The press release says that “interagency  passes” will be accepted, but Block says that the National Park System America the Beautiful  pass  will only be used in lieu of day-use fees if the BHNF concessionaire chooses to accept them during the season, which they currently don’t.

“Forest Recreation Management (FRM), our concessionaire, which basically operates developed recreation sites from roughly May 1 to mid-September, is not required to accept any of the America the Beautiful passes or any passes except  for  the Senior Pass or the Access Pass,” Block said. 

He said these concessionaires are for-profit and do things like mow and landscape areas. 

“Once we get into mid -September and FRM is no longer managing the  developed sites because they’re done for the season, then the Forest Service assumes the duty of all these day-use and picnic sites, and that’s where the  pass you put on your dashboard or the pass you put on your rearview mirror, or those America the Beautiful passes would start working at entrance fee sites,” Block said.

Block said the forest would like to create a “specific  forest pass, like an annual pass,” that could be used at any forest site. 

By law currently, though, a concessionaire would not be required to honor that pass.

“We’d like to think that they would, but they don’t have to,” Block says.

The FRM permit expires on Dec. 31, 2025, and BHNF is working on a concessionaire  prospectus. 

“In the prospectus the BHNF would like to highly or strongly encourage that the new concessionaire honor the forest pass,” Block says. 

Block says BHNF has not looked into how much the pass would cost. It would only get you into the BHNF since most other forests do not charge a fee or have a pass of this nature.

“It’s only for Forest Service sites,” Block said.

Block and Horton say their teams are looking at the forest pass because they feel it’s the best option. The pass would be designed to be a full year from the date of purchase.

Block said specific feedback from the public on the proposed fees is important.  People can comment on both the fees and passes.

“During this comment period is when your voice is heard. If you want to connect with us about concerns, now is the time to reach out. We want feedback. The whole point of doing this is we want to know what’s best for the public. We’re serving the public,” Horton said.

Block said nothing is definitive in terms of the  proposed fees or passes.

Comments can be made in a multitude of ways. Comments by mail can be addressed to Bradley Block – Recreation Program Manager, 1019 N 5th Street, Custer, SD 57730. Emailed comments can be made to bradley.block@usda.gov. Comments can also be made online at arcg.is/qyij80.

Verbal comments  can be made in person at the Black Hills National Forest to Block during normal business hours (Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.) or by calling 605-673-9200.

The comment period closes Nov. 29.

You can learn more about the proposed fees at fs.usda.gov/detailfull/blackhills/recreation/?cid=fseprd1198079.