Get Involved! Public Input Requested On Long-Range Day Use Visitor Access Strategy In Rocky Mountain National Park

Heavy visitation on June 7, 2020, in the Bear Lake Corridor. Photo by Dave Rusk

RMNP Press Release, May 6, 2021

Rocky Mountain National Park staff are seeking the public’s engagement and input on the park’s long-range Day Use Visitor Access Strategy. “We are eager to continue engaging with our stakeholders and connect with park visitors from near and far, to help identify shared values, clarify key issues, and begin to develop potential management strategies to help the park prepare for our long-term day use strategy” said Park Superintendent, Darla Sidles. “We hope to hear from current park visitors as well as those who have told us they no longer visit Rocky Mountain National Park because of crowding and congestion.” Public comments are invited for sixty days beginning May 21 through July 19, 2021.   
 
Rocky Mountain National Park has experienced a 44 percent increase in visitation since 2012. Rapid growth in day use visitation and changing use patterns in the park have degraded natural and cultural resources, diminished quality of the visitor experience, increased visitor and staff safety concerns, and created a heavy strain on the park’s facilities and ability to perform daily operations. The purpose of the Rocky Mountain National Park Day Use Visitor Access Strategy is to provide visitor access in a way that enhances the protection of the fundamental resources and values for which the park was created. The goal of the process is to identify strategies that will help protect park resources, offer varied opportunities for high quality visitor experiences, enhance visitor and staff safety, and coincide with the park's operational capacity. 

Visitors line up to catch the RMNP shuttle on June 7, 2020 in the Glacier Creek Basin. Photo by Dave Rusk.

The park is hosting two virtual public meetings regarding this strategy on Thursday, May 20, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and on Tuesday May 25, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. The content is the same for both meetings, so participants only need to attend one. The intent of the webinars is to provide opportunities for the public to learn more about the purpose of the project, key issues, desired conditions for day use visitor access, potential management strategies, ask questions of NPS staff and get information on how to provide formal written comments through the Planning, Environment and Public Comment (PEPC) website. Each webinar will begin with a presentation, followed by a question and answer session.  
 
To participate in the virtual meetings, please register at one of the following links. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. It is recommended to join the webinar via computer to have full use of the webinar tools that GoToWebinar provides.  

Public Webinar #1, Thursday, May 20, 2021   6:00 PM  
  
Registration URL  https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3810578962321936142  
  
Public Webinar #2, Tuesday, May 25, 2021   2:00 PM  
  
Registration URL https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2324908955266371342  
 
Unable to attend a virtual meeting? A recording of both meetings will be posted on the park planning link below. The park will provide live captioning of the meetings. Park staff encourage public participation throughout the planning process. There will be additional opportunities to comment formally on the project during the future NEPA process. Public comments for this stage are invited for sixty days beginning May 21 through July 19, 2021.  Comments can be submitted online beginning May 21, by visiting https://parkplanning.nps.gov/ROMO_Duvas 
click on ‘Open for Comment’ on the left side of page to submit a comment. 
 
Comments may also be sent to the following mailing address: 
 
Superintendent 
Rocky Mountain National Park 
1000 US Highway 36 
Estes Park, CO 80517 
 
Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment – including your personal identifying information – may be made publicly available at any time. Although you can ask in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee we will be able to do so.  
 
If you have questions about the project or would like more information about Rocky Mountain National Park, please visit www.nps.gov/romo or call the park’s Information Office at (970) 586-1206.