One of the best adventures I've had in the National Park System came when I joined a Wild Cave Tour at Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky. Covered head-to-toe in hard hat, overalls, knee guards, and heavy boots, our crew spent about five hours crawling, climbing, and occasionally walking upright in sections of the cave not on the normal tours, our way lit by the headlamps attached to our hard hats.
It was an incredible experience, one I hope to duplicate one of these days. If I do, it likely will be a bit more expensive, as park officials have proposed an increase in cave tour and camping fees. As proposed, cave tour prices would increase from $1-$2 over existing fees, although the Wild Cave Tour would go up $5, to $55.
'We would like to hear what our visitors and neighbors think about the proposal to increase the user fees in the park,' said Superintendent Sarah Craighead. 'Some of these have not changed in seven or more years, while the cost of doing business has gone up every year.'
You can find details on the proposal, and comment on it, at this website.
The authority to charge recreational fees at national parks stems from the 2004 Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act.
'We anticipate this increase in park fees will provide an additional $350,000 per year for use in projects that benefit our visitors,' added the superintendent in a release. 'We plan to use the new funds for renovations at the Mammoth Cave Hotel.'
Park staff are required to compare the cost of Mammoth Cave fees with the cost of comparable services in the local area: the proposed cave tour fees are 25-30 percent lower than comparable cave tours; the proposed campsite fees are 40 percent lower than comparable campsites; and proposed picnic shelter fees are 35 percent lower than comparable shelters.
At Mammoth Cave, 80 percent of the money collected is used in the park to provide facilities and services that have direct benefit to park visitors. The remaining 20 percent helps support projects in the 270 national park units that do not charge entrance fees, such as nearby Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park in Hodgenville, Ky.
'The recreation fee program is a great asset to Mammoth Cave,' said Superintendent Craighead. 'Part of the new visitor center was funded with fee dollars, but we have also used it to repair trails, roads and campsites, and cover the cost of summer tour guides and environmental education with local schools. Big Hollow Trail is a product of the fee program.'
In 2014, fees were increased for eight cave tours that use outlying cave entrances to cover an increase in bus transportation costs.
Proposed fee increases at Mammoth Cave National Park:
Visitor service (tour, campsite, shelter)
present fee ($)
proposed fee ($)
year of last increase
Mammoth Passage Tour (Adult)
5
7
2001
Mammoth Passage Tour (Youth 6-12)
3.5
5
2001
Frozen Niagara Tour (Adult)
12
13
2014
Gothic Avenue Tour (Adult)
11
12
2005
Gothic Avenue Tour (Youth 6-12)
8
9
2005
Domes and Dripstones (Adult)
14
15
2014
Domes and Dripstones (Youth 6-12)
9
10
2014
Great Onyx Tour (Adult)
17
18
2014
Great Onyx Tour (Youth 6-12)
12
13
2014
Historic Tour (Adult)
12
14
2007
Historic Tour (Youth 6-12)
8
9
2005
Cleaveland Avenue (accessible) (Adult)
0
20
N/A
Cleaveland Avenue (accessible) (Youth 6-12)
0
14
N/A
River Styx Tour (Adult)
13
15
2007
River Styx Tour (Youth 6-12)
9
11
2007
Star Chamber Tour (Adult)
12
14
2007
Star Chamber Tour (Youth 6-12)
8
10
2007
Focus on Frozen Niagara-Photo Tour (Adult)
10
13
2007
Focus on Frozen Niagara (Youth 6-12)
8
9
2007
Trog (Child 8-12)
14
16
2007
Introduction to Caving (Adult)
25
26
2014
Introduction to Caving (Youth 6-12)
19
20
2014
Violet City Lantern Tour (Adult)
17
18
2014
Violet City Lantern Tour (Youth 6-12)
12
13
2014
Wild Cave Tour (Adult)
50
55
2014
Discovery Tour (Adult)
4
5
2001
Discovery Tour (Youth 6-12)
2.5
3.5
2001
Mammoth Cave Campground
17
20
2005
Mammoth Cave Group Campground
20
25
2005
Mammoth Cave VIP Campground
40
50
2005
Maple Springs Group/Equestrian (water/electric)
30
35
2007
Maple Springs Group/Equestrian (primitive)
22
25
2007
Open Picnic Shelter
25
50
2007
Enclosed Picnic Shelter
50
75
2007
Comments
I'm so glad the NPS made that cave for us taxpayers to enjoy.