As camping season comes this summer, the Black Hills National Forest (South Dakota) will start welcoming campers, along with the Forest Service preparing for another busy year.
People across the country visit the Black Hills to camp. However, gasoline prices continue to surge, and the number of cancellations along with it, according to a report.
Black Hills locals took the opportunity to fill up the open spots left by campers who canceled their reservations.
“For all the cancellations from people far away, the people here are deciding that they can’t go far away either, so they are making up the difference. I think we will have a more local business this year probably than the past because of the gas prices,” said Forest Recreation Management Operations Manager Ty Ann Gerbracht.
Most of those campgrounds open on Friday, which means training is well underway.
On Monday, seasonal gates will open to trails and wildlife areas closed off during winter. Additional campsites will open later this summer.
“When we’ve been able to keep campgrounds open in the past and deal with the backlog maintenance issues. Now, we are actually able to get some of that work done, and it’s going to cause some closures and some patience from the public to allow us to do that work to make our facilities better,” said Black Hills National Forest Public Affairs Officer Scott Jacobson.
The staff remains hopeful for another great summer despite new challenges coming forth this season. Some of the other difficulties the campgrounds face are the lack of staffing and weather issues, according to a report.
The Black Hills National Forest encourages campers to make their reservations as soon as possible since spots are filling up quickly.
This article originally appeared on Keloland.
It’s touching to see the community rally around the Black Hills National Forest campgrounds. Let’s appreciate the natural beauty and tranquility.