Lovers Leap: FS Campground Update 2020

The campground at Lovers Leap now has a camp host (super nice couple) and some of the prices and rules have changed.  Per my conversation with the camp host some of these rules are still unclear.  However, I want to share what "concrete" information I have.  It was nice to see very clean bathrooms stocked with toilet paper throughout the whole weekend and other amenities.

The price increase is only to soften the blow for when they raise the parking fee to 10.00 and overnight camping to 25.00. 

I’d be happier if they just bulldozed the place back to a dirt lot and kept their hands out of my pockets. 

Salamanizer Ski wrote: The price increase is only to soften the blow for when they raise the parking fee to 10.00 and overnight camping to 25.00. 

I’d be happier if they just bulldozed the place back to a dirt lot and kept their hands out of my pockets. 

And that is why they used a Sharpie!

Same prices as last year.   No more car camping in parking lot (darn!).  Just hoping they don't go to a reservation system and keep it first come, first serve.  If they have a sharpie, that's good, I can use it to freshen up my rope's middle mark.

Salamanizer Ski wrote: The price increase is only to soften the blow for when they raise the parking fee to 10.00 and overnight camping to 25.00.

I’d be happier if they just bulldozed the place back to a dirt lot and kept their hands out of my pockets.

You were close... $28 per night. And your interagency pass is not valid for parking. 

https://westernslopenofee.org/fee-watch/fee-wars/usfs-concessionaire-issues/

Checks out. California has become pay to play.

The next step is to make you purchase an annual pass to even climb there. They’re already doing that down south. A wilderness access pass or something along those lines. The camping and parking fees will continue to increase every couple years. Theyll also severely limit the roadside parking and ticket anyone outside their designated parking areas. They’ll charge for that too I’m sure. 

Brandon R wrote:

You were close... $28 per night. And your interagency pass is not valid for parking. 

Are you sure about this?  I looked at the parking sign recently trying to figure out if the America the Beautiful Senior Pass was valid for parking, and it looks to me as if interagency passes (even if not Senior) are valid.  I'm not sure about this, and wonder if anyone knows for sure.

Ric Otte wrote:

Are you sure about this?  I looked at the parking sign recently trying to figure out if the America the Beautiful Senior Pass was valid for parking, and it looks to me as if interagency passes (even if not Senior) are valid.  I'm not sure about this, and wonder if anyone knows for sure.

As for camping, it looks to me as if the America the Beautiful Senior Pass gets half off (again, please correct me if I'm wrong):

Under the black tape in your first photo is the statement allowing the $80 interagency annual pass (I looked). But yes, I do believe a "Senior" or "Access" pass does work... for now. Concessionaires have previously tried to invalidate them (see the link I posted above). The regular $80 "America the Beautiful" pass does not work for anything under Royal Elks' management, despite FLREA mandating that it should. https://federal-lands-recreation-enhancement-act-hub-usfs.hub.arcgis.com/pages/vendor-locations 

Ric Otte wrote:

Are you sure about this?  I looked at the parking sign recently trying to figure out if the America the Beautiful Senior Pass was valid for parking, and it looks to me as if interagency passes (even if not Senior) are valid.  I'm not sure about this, and wonder if anyone knows for sure.

Interesting. That's a change (a positive change for once) from a year or two ago. Then there was signage specifying that the interagency pass was not accepted for parking. 

I wonder what led to this change.

JCM wrote:

Interesting. That's a change (a positive change for once) from a year or two ago. Then there was signage specifying that the interagency pass was not accepted for parking. 

I wonder what led to this change.

It didn't change. They taped over the line that says the interagency annual pass (the regular $80 pass) is accepted, and there was an extra, laminated sign last weekend stating it was not honored. Only the "senior" and "access" (disability) versions of the interagency passes are accepted currently, and I'd bet they're going to try to axe those again too. 

Does anyone know how approximately much the concessionaires pay to lease these areas?

Gumby King wrote:

Does anyone know how approximately much the concessionaires pay to lease these areas?

I asked exactly that 2 years ago when I emailed the Eldorado NF (I was also reporting the campground host from that year for impersonating a law enforcement officer, and trying to close parts of the CG early). They declined to comment. That's part of the problem with this private concessionaire model... no transparency, no accountability. 

Brandon R wrote:

It didn't change. They taped over the line that says the interagency annual pass (the regular $80 pass) is accepted, and there was an extra, laminated sign last weekend stating it was not honored. 

Yeah that's how it was last year.

Outside of any fee drama.. the camp host, Seth, is a great dude.

Has repeatedly gone out of his way to find me and give me a couple bucks back if i didn’t have the correct change for the fee, and is always good for a chat. Say what’s up if you see him!

Hi all

Steve from CRAGS - your local climbing organization (LCO) and from Lover's Leap Guides here. 

Regular interagency passes have not been valid since Royal Elk took over the concession, however for a few years this was not enforced. The other annual passes are still valid. The fees are increasing year over year in almost all areas and the concession model is becoming more widespread. 

An annual Royal Elk parking pass can be purchased: https://royalelkparkmanagement.com/season-pass

We have worked regularly with EldoNF to open, reopen and keep open the campground during 'normal' season use and in the past several years have successfully been able to get them to open up earlier, stay open later and reopen even when Royal Elk chooses to leave early. 

Though we do not have a 'close' relationship with Royal Elk we have formed good relations with our campground hosts year over year, and though in some cases the hosts have interpreted their duties unusually (my apologies for that and we have provided similar feedback to the above) we do in fact have an excellent relationship with our current host who worked with us in many ways over the last couple of years. Our current host is accommodating and respectful of the history that climbers have with this area. I hope that we can maintain good relations with both the campground host and EldoNF as we continue to work on ongoing access, trail and other stewardship concerns. 

I do encourage you to send feedback to CRAGS at info AT norcalcrags DOT org if you like and I will make sure we respond as soon as possible. Please stay tuned as we announce upcoming trail days for the summer season at the Leap and other areas (we have recently had days at Vacaville/Nut Tree, Rocklin/Deer Creek Park and have upcoming work at Auburn SRA and in the Highway 50 corridor). 

Let me know if there are any questions, thanks. 

livinontheledge wrote:

Regular interagency passes have not been valid since Royal Elk took over the concession, however for a few years this was not enforced. The other annual passes are still valid. The fees are increasing year over year in almost all areas and the concession model is becoming more widespread. 

An annual Royal Elk parking pass can be purchased: https://royalelkparkmanagement.com/season-pass

We have worked regularly with EldoNF to open, reopen and keep open the campground during 'normal' season use and in the past several years have successfully been able to get them to open up earlier, stay open later and reopen even when Royal Elk chooses to leave early. 

I have to say, Royal Elks creating their own pass system, when the interagency passes were created in the first place to simplify and streamline access to the whole national public lands system, only adds insult to injury IMO. And they even offer 2 different passes, one for each forest, and they don't even work for places within the respective forest that aren't managed by Royal Elks! Each one costing more than an annual interagency pass. Unbelievable! 

Fees increasing year after year is BECAUSE the concession model is becoming more widespread. 

Fees bad