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$40 not that many years ago to $60 now for the boat and truck... $90 if this goes through. That's a pretty healthy jump.
$20 for a one day pass... That is getting to be pretty insane.
I like this but it should certainly go for both a vehicle and vessel.
Quote:Under this proposal, annual vehicle passes will change from a sticker system with calendar year validity to a card pass system with validity for 12 consecutive months from purchase. This change guarantees annual vehicle pass holders a full year of access, no matter when they purchase their passes.
[url "http://www.nps.gov/lake/parknews/proposed-fee-changes.htm"]http://www.nps.gov/lake/parknews/proposed-fee-changes.htm[/url]
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There is a place to comment on that website/link above. I sent a comment recommending that the "calendar year" pass should be for a vehicle or a vehicle + vessel. Something to that effect anyways.
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my reply : I am mildly opposed to any fee hikes . At a place where you have less and less places to launch your boat , and even get close to water you want to charge us more ? for what ? I have a truck and a boat and have been a Lake Mead pass holder for over 15 years as it stands now i get my lake mead park pass , vessel boat registration and pass , ais stamp , and fishing license all in one shot. If you are going to have rate hikes please consider rate breaks for someone like me that is giving to Lake Mead National park year after year . i want more access to the lake , i want new and lower elevated parking areas from those you have at places like 33hole , id like to see you start paving govt wash or 8 mile , i would just like to see something positive coming from my money and not just more areas you cone-off not allowing access to. thank you !
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Im already dialed in for all my req's for 2015 . If it passes when would it take effect ?
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Anyone else have experiences on the Overton gate winter hours? I was told it wasn't usually manned on weekdays. It was closed on Jan. 22 when I passed through. That's a big chunk of change for a visit. I plan on buying a golden eagle pass sometime this year as Powell is jacking up their rates too. Judging by how congress is working I also think a shutdown is not out of the picture this year. My portaboat is ready for action if needed.
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With 2,000 recreation areas managed by five federal agencies they did not say money collect at Lake Mead stays at Mead.
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Their public feedback link isn't working, but I can't wait until it is......
I think it's BS that they are raising the fees, once again. It was something like $5/vehicle or boat when they started the fees 15 or so years ago, and now it's going to be $40 or $50/per?!
The real problem isn't that their fees are not high enough, it's that they don't enforce their fees. I wouldn't doubt if 50% of the people who visit the park don't pay, probably higher as those useless fee stations are hardly ever manned. I have never seen the Willow Beach, Cottonwood or Overton station manned and have probably passed though these places 50 times.
I have 2 vehicles and 2 boats (not rich, just love fishing) and pay $120/year now, and I can't believe they are going to make it more. I wished they would make both car and boat card-pass as the person would only have to pay for what they are bringing into the park. One issue I see with the car being card-pass and boat being 12-month sticker is that the fees are going to be "off". Haul a boat into the park in June and the year long card-pass will be good for a 12 months, but your $50 boat sticker is half burned up. Then when you go into the park January 15th the car card-pass will still be good, but you'll have to shell out another $50 for another boat sticker.
I do agree that there should be a Nevada resident discount, or at a bare minimum an early bird special. What ever happened to the early bird special?.... I bet they had all of their "good paying customer's" buying the early bird passes and then the dead beats not paying through out the year. So now they are going to have their good paying customers, paying for the dead beats. (Why does this scheme seem familiar...)
OK- Rant off... LOL
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That is totally bogus about the boat fees but I am sure it is so the rangers can sit at a ramp or marina and check every boat going by very quickly simply by color of sticker. If it was a card system they would have to stop each boat. I have seen the overton gate manned one time. For the price it cost to build what a waste. Fisherdan this should be your year to hit Powell. Gas is cheap and I don't think they man the gates there until April.
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I have to agree with the point of enforcement and manning of the toll booths. They sit empty the majority of the time. People are aware of that fact and it gets exploited.
The problem is that they would have to pay people to man the booths. By just raising the fees, they can increase revenue without increasing their costs.
I am definitely opposed to the rate hike and card pass.
I buy the passes every year but I wait until I have to. If they offered a discount for early purchase, I would be interested.
Thanks for posting the link, wolfs4ever.
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I never saw the toll booth manned all of 2014 fishing Mead (booth off Nellis/Lake Mead BLVD entrance). Never paid either. I had $60 bucks in my center console the entire year waiting to catch someone at the booth. This year I stopped on my way out the first few weeks of January and grabbed my 2015 stickers with that same $60 that had been in the truck for 13-14 months. Scared the crap out of the person in the booth since no one ever "walks" up. lol She was all OMG you never paid all of 2014, you could of gotten in trouble, etc. Not that I know of but whatever...
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South cove just past Meadview has signs stating it's a fee area but there is no booth to pay the fee.
Temple Bar has a fee station but never saw it opened since the build it.
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I get carded all the time at the Lake Mead Ave.entrance and the Lake Mead Blvd entrance. Maybe cause I am not entering as early as you Tom.
If fees are to be increased how about the dock lights get maintained? That small service would bring a  to my face.
Witnessed a major drunken clusterf**k at the Callville low water ramp Sunday evening about 5:30 PM. A working light on the dock might have helped.
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The Lake Mead south entrance , and entrance from Boulder City are the ONLY two stations that i have ever seen anyone at in at least 10 to 15 years of fishing Mead or Mohave. In that same span of 10 to 15 years from shore fishing , kayak fishing , boating , and camping . I have only seen a ranger 3 times , and i'm kinda of a fishnut guys i would guess i surpass 40 plus times a year i am somewhere out at Mead or Mojave in one capacity or another . The only type of focus and enforcement i notice out there is a focus on trying to write traffic tickets for speeders and the only enforcement is when Hemmingway gets backed up and busy i have seen the rangers checking vessels prior to launching . Most of the time i head out is very early in the morning in which you never see any station open or any ranger on the road .
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In this last year of fishing Mead, I have had my fishing license checked like 6 times while I was shore fishing. 5 times by ndow and once by a fed ranger. Haven't been checked at all this year.
As for the fee stations, I have noticed that they aren't manned until after 7am. But I still paid for my annual past at the beginning of the year.
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Here's a blast from the past, the year 2000.
[url "http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2000/aug/07/lake-mead-begins-charging-entrance-fees/"]http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2000/aug/07/lake-mead-begins-charging-entrance-fees/[/url]
Visitors to Lake Mead National Recreation Area will be charged fees at three of the park's entrance points beginning today. A fourth station at Katherine Landing near Bullhead City, Ariz., will open later this summer, according to National Park Service officials.
Five-day passes are available for $3 per person on motorcycles and bicycles or $5 per vehicle covering all passengers inside. A pass good until Dec. 31 is available for $10 per person or vehicle. Next year, annual passes will cost $20.
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Oh yes, and my comment (rant) that I submitted to the NPS.
National Park Service,
I oppose the proposed fee increases at Lake Mead National Recreation Area since this park does not have an insufficient fee problem, it has a fee enforcement problem. I enter LMNRA 20-30 times a year and rarely do I ever see the fee stations being manned, and I would venture to say that most people going through the unoccupied stations have not paid the park fee.
The fee stations that have been built are basically a waste of money since they are rarely occupied, this is the public's perception of those stations. I have never seen the Overton, Willow Beach, Cottonwood Cove or Temple Bar fee stations occupied, and about 70% of the time the Lake Mead Blvd and Boulder City fee stations are also closed. That's a lot of lost fees, driving straight through those unmanned fee stations.
The 12 month card pass system for vehicles seems fair, but having the boat as a yearly sticker is counter-intuitive. The only way to get full value of a yearly boat sticker would be to buy and start using it in January, and as a "customer" of the park, it makes absolutely no sense that the higher priced boat sticker wouldn't last just as long as the cheaper vehicle sticker. Not many boaters start their Lake Mead season in January, so most of them would be buying a devalued boat pass. Both car and boat should be on the same card pass for a full 12 months. Boats moored in the marinas would also need to have their yearly fee paid on their owner's vehicle card pass and I would suggest having a visible endorsement on the card pass so the boat fee can be easily verified by park personnel. This would eliminate all boats in the park needing stickers.
The entrance stations should be fully electronic with the gate opening when a person swipes their card pass, just like they have at McCarren Airport's parking garage exit. Drive up, swipe your card, then the gate opens. Each time the gate opens a camera needs to photograph the vehicle and boat trailer to verify that the proper fees have been paid on the card. Instead of having multiple people manning fee stations, or multiple fee stations remaining unmanned, this would only require 1 person at the main LMNRA headquarters to review each card pass swipe and verify the picture taken of the vehicle and boat(s).
Now that we have practically 100% of the park visitors paying their full share of their park fees, there is absolutely no reason to raise the park fees. I would also suggest that the January early-bird discount fees to be reintroduced, or offer discounts for NV and AZ residents.
Regards,
(fishrdan)
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How bout not charging at all until they clean up the south end of the lake! The place is a complete hole full of trash and absolutely disgusting!
There are only 3 ramps and if we lose another 10ft of water I'm not sure if they will even be usable! Charging people to go to government wash or any of the barley accessible areas to sit in trash dirty diapers and beer bottles is ridiculous!
Just my two cents and that's probly all its worth but its how I feel!
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I agree with you on the garbage, and it's my perception that it's the (how do I say this) "non-payers" that are trashing the place. I have seen the exact same thing at Willow Beach when I used to fish there often, bunch of pigs leaving their mess for others to clean up. The hotel out at Echo Bay is completely trashed too, windows broken out and AC units missing from rooms.
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