Recreation.gov

Beware of the stupid  anti-bot captcha images.  I missed getting into Yosemite this year because of a picture of a bicycle. By the time I clicked thru it someone else already had my site. Tried  for anther, and another, and another. By then everything was gone for the entire 30 days except a few single nights.

The whole site has really gone down hill. Used to be an easy to navigate, check out sites & book but no more. I wonder if they are aware of peoples dislike of the site or just don't care as they are the only show in town for COE reservations.

Notice it's a dot gov site.  Run by the government.

Scariest words ever, "HI, we're with the government, and we're here to help you."

Remember when these Federal campgrounds were reserved on recreation.com, not recreation.gov???   It was a disaster and the .gov took it back over as I recall.   Is my recollection correct??

It is a quirky site.   It is a shame to me that the forest service, COE, NPS and other such agencies have been so chopped down budget wise in the last many years that maintenance, rangers and so on have become lower priorities.   Meanwhile, we have more users of these facilities than ever before.   

I suspect the reservation site may also fall into that category.   I have a lot of problems navigating the site and, yes, before they went "newer and better" it was much more user friendly.   I find that true on a lot of sites. 

More is often less.   

All good and true, but how do we get our message across that this new, improved site sucks? To whom do we complain to get things resolved?

All good and true, but how do we get our message across that this new, improved site sucks? To whom do we complain to get things resolved?

You have 1 House representative and 2 Senators.

Write them.

According to this thread, Rec.gov is one of the many things being "privatized" and is run not by the government.
https://www.nationalparkstraveler.org/2019/02/updated-got-those-recreationgov-blues

Good, keep the gov out of it.  As far as chopping down services, charge more for entry services etc. and keep the feds out of the budget as much as possible.

Joseph - you know the privatized don't HAVE to give the full discounts promised by the Senior pass and such? 

Cats, I know when Uncle Sam runs things it costs me in taxes no matter if I use the place or not and never ever efficiently

Here's a quote from the article I posted above:

"Is this the best way to run a reservation system for a sprawling system of some 100,000 campsites spread across the National Park System, U.S. Forest Service, and U.S. Bureau of Land Management. It's a timely question to ask, as last fall the reservation system was taken over by Booz Allen Hamilton, which Outside Magazine described as a "management consultant giant..." and which no doubt demonstrated its ability to handle the job when the contract came up. Under the terms of that ten-year contract, which kicked in October 1, Booz Allen Hamilton is being paid $182 million. "

That's your $182 million tax dollars still not at work...this in addition to the fees they collect which will no doubt go up with no oversight.. Wonder who they are connected to.

Luckily there are still great campground hosts and volunteers...don't give them a hard time or forget to thank them.
Dougn

OK, here is my latest experience.

 With the six month window I went this morning to make a reservation and discovered that the "peak season" (ie, the days they will accept reservations) has been shortened by over a month since the last time I looked a couple of weeks ago.   The site also shows the campground closing for first come, first serve almost a month earlier than the national forest website shows it.   I was able to book our favorite site for a few weeks earlier than we had intended.   That's great if you are retired and flexible, not so great if you have to plan your trips around established vacation days.   

So, be advised and check carefully............and frequently.   I suspect some algorithm determined a more limited usage in previous years and so CHOP CHOP.    I guess I am going to really have to rethink how we use our RV. 

Just wanted to pass along the experience and project a note of caution to my fellow PCers. 

Paul

Sometimes it is when the park services can get volunteers to man the fee booths and staff the campgrounds. If there is no volunteer staff they go to first come first served and people pay using envelopes at the iron ranger.

And speaking of Recreation.gov: We've been watching a certain site at Fort Pickens for the last couple of months. Monitoring it off and on and voilia! a cancellation for 4 days in May. Snagged it!
Now my question is: my geezer card is almost unreadable fromm over use I suppose. Can I get it renewed/replaced at the park when we check in?

Yes. We do it all the time here. If that park sells the passes, they should be able to exchange them. No cost since you'll be turning in your old pass.

FYI - if a pass is lost, you pay full fee to replace it (currently $80 for lifetime senior).