July 23, 2011

beauty is not for sale


click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney

There was not another soul around for miles, so my loud scream of anger and disgust at the State of California Park System probably went unheard at 5:55AM Thursday morning out at China Camp Village. A new parking-fee sign has been posted.



click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney

Oh yeah, plans for shutting down China Camp State Park and 68 other California State Parks is still in the works -- but until then I think it is sort of a cheap-shot to charge visitors $5 to park in the dirt spaces along the county road, just as they now do if they park inside China Camp Village gates.



click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney

This is the list of closures, scheduled for September:

Anderson Marsh SHP
Annadel SP
Antelope Valley Indian Museum
Austin Creek SRA
Bale Grist Mill SHP
Benbow Lake SRA
Benicia Capitol SHP
Benicia SRA
Bidwell Mansion SHP
Bothe-Napa Valley SP
Brannan Island SRA
California Mining & Mineral Museum
Candlestick Point SRA
Castle Crags SP
Castle Rock SP
China Camp SP
Colusa-Sacramento River SRA
Del Norte Coast Redwoods SP
Fort Humboldt SHP
Fort Tejon SHP
Garrapata SP
George J. Hatfield SRA
Governor's Mansion SHP
Gray Whale Cove SB
Greenwood SB
Grizzly Creek Redwoods SP
Hendy Woods SP
Henry W. Coe SP
Jack London SHP
Jug Handle SNR
Leland Stanford Mansion SHP
Limekiln SP
Los Encinos SHP
Malakoff Diggins SHP
Manchester SP
McConnell SRA
McGrath SB
Mono Lake Tufa SNR
Morro Strand SB
Moss Landing SB
Olompali SHP
Palomar Mountain SP
Petaluma Adobe SHP
Picacho SRA
Pio Pico SHP
Plumas-Eureka SP
Point Cabrillo Light Station
Portola Redwoods SP
Providence Mountains SRA
Railtown 1897 SHP
Russian Gulch SP
Saddleback Butte SP
Salton Sea SRA
Samuel P. Taylor SP
San Pasqual Battlefield SHP
Santa Cruz Mission SHP
Santa Susana Pass SHP
Shasta SHP
South Yuba River SP
Standish-Hickey SRA
Sugarloaf Ridge SP
Tomales Bay SP
Tule Elk SNR
Turlock Lake SRA
Twin Lakes SB
Weaverville Joss House SHP
Westport-Union Landing SB
William B. Ide Adobe SHP
Woodson Bridge SRA
Zmudowski SB

People didn't want to pay an extra $18 on their vehicle registration. This is the result.



CLICK for what I call my BIG site.

3 comments:

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

On my bike ride in Annadel last Tuesday I rode along the road towards the fee pipe and was surprised to see the gate shut. Then I recalled the gate to the parking area would now be closed on Tuesday thru Wednesday. There are numerous access points into the park via trails, but this the only parking area used mostly by the horse people and their trailers. A few hikers use it too. I thought "What are they achieving by shutting the gate 3 days a week?" Not a damn thing except the loss of the few $6 day use fees they would have earned from the horse riders and few hikers that use the W.P. Richardson trail. Instead the horse people now go to the Sonoma County Regional park horse lot to unload their beasts and the hikers and mountain bikers have as I said numerous free access points to come in at. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

photowannabe said...

I voted to pay the $18. An inexpensive way to save all these beautiful parks and historic sites. What's going to happen to our beautiful state? I shudder to think!

DeniseinVA said...

What a sad state of affairs.

 
under construction