Adventure Pass Fee

My attention was drawn to the Adventure Pass program recently while driving past a local gas station and witnessing an assemblage of people protesting the sale of Adventure Passes at that location.

I got to thinking that maybe I did not fully understand the intent of the program so I did some research and have concluded the following:

It is not true that the Adventure Pass is required for forest aficionados to hike, swim, camp, hang glide, ride a horse, hug a tree, meditate, express yourself or do whatever one does in the forest.

The Adventure Pass is required for those who prefer to drive a motorized vehicle to the point where they need to park and walk.

The pass is for the privilege of parking, plain and simple. The pass is not double taxation, a communist plot or a conspiracy to keep good ole Americans from enjoying their God-given rights. It is a parking fee. If you don’t park, you don’t pay a fee. Now it seems that those protesters at the gas station were apparently not fully aware of the intent or the legal requirements of the Adventure Pass issue.

If they were, they would not have been presenting misleading, nonfactual information.

I would like to see the anti-pass folks start applying their excess energy to helping clean some trails and campsites and possibly starting an anti-graffiti campaign for all those forest users who pack in spray paint for a day hike.

The next time you pay to park at a concert, a county fair, a parking garage or metered space, draw the logical conclusion that sometimes it costs money to park a motor vehicle for the sake of your convenience. Deal with it.

ALLEN ROBERT CARROZZA

Ojai