SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers Sacramento District is set to begin charging a $5 day use fee for
park access beginning May 1 at Stanislaus River Parks near Oakdale.
The
“per vehicle” fee will cover all day use activities to include rafting,
kayaking, swimming, hiking, fishing and barbecuing.
A
total of seven fee machines will be positioned throughout the park. There will
be two at the Knights Ferry south lot and one in the north lot, two at the
McHenry Recreation Area, one in the rafter’s parking lot and one at the Orange
Blossom Recreation Area.
Vehicles
displaying the Corps park annual pass or an interagency America The Beautiful
pass are not required to pay the fee. Both annual passes are available for
purchase at park headquarters, located in the Knights Ferry Recreation
Area.
While
a vast majority of Corps parks have a day use fee, this is the first time Stanislaus
River Parks will implement the fee. However, park manager Tom Ehrke believes
it’s in the best interest of visitors to begin charging the fees to maintain an
appropriate level of service as visitation and operating costs continue to
climb.
“We
have to start charging this day use fee so we can keep up with the costs of
preserving our recreation areas,” Ehrke said. “Even with the newly established
fee, Stanislaus remains one of the most competitively priced parks in the area
to visit.”
The
fee machines will be installed March 16-17 but visitors will not be required to
pay until the program officially begins on May 1.
Camping
fees remain unchanged.
A full list of Stanislaus River Parks fees is available on the park website: http://www.spk.usace.army.mil/Locations/SacramentoDistrictParks/StanislausRiverParks.aspx
The Stanislaus River Parks are managed by the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers Sacramento District. The Corps is the nation’s largest
federal provider of outdoor recreation, hosting more than 370 million visitors
per year at 422 lakes and river parks.
Release no. 16-009