Recreational sites closed at national forests in California to slow coronavirus spread
The United States Forest Service has closed all its developed recreation sites throughout California to slow the spread of the new coronavirus.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Sacramento District also has closed all recreation facilities at its 10 parks and lakes, including campgrounds, visitor centers, boat launches and day-use areas to prevent the further spread of the respiratory disease COVID-19.
“All currently scheduled and future events planned at these facilities are postponed indefinitely,” according to a news release from the Sacramento District.
The district’s parks include New Hogan Lake, Mendocino Lake, Lake Sonoma, Englebright Lake and Stanislaus River Parks.
District officials said people with paid camping reservations will be contacted by email and full refunds will automatically be processed with no cancellation fees. People with reservations should not try to request a refund online, since that will lead to a cancellation fee being charged.
The order to close the recreation sites at all 18 national forests in California was issued Wednesday by Randy Moore, forester for the Pacific Southwest Region. He says warm spring weather and the proximity to large city populations like San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego has led to an increase of park visitors across the region, even though Gov. Gavin Newsom last week issued a statewide stay-at-home order.
“Despite the state order, droves of people have been gathering in national forests, both in groups larger than 10 and without adhering to the 6-feet social distancing requirement,” Moore wrote in his closure order.
He said a recreational site closure was needed to protect the health of the public and the employees.
The closure order includes campgrounds, day-use sites and picnic areas which attract large groups of people and require significant management and puts forest employees at risk of COVID-19 exposure. In some instances, employees have already run out of personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies to mitigate their potential exposure, according to Moore.
In his order, Moore mentioned the Stanislaus National Forest’s Pine Crest Lake area, which is typically a popular destination in the summer. But he said this “weekend the area was completely packed this weekend” with some visitors saying they had driven up to three hours from the Bay Area to get away from the city, which is not complying with the governor’s order. Neighboring Yosemite National Park has already been closed.
In the Angeles National Forest, there were long lines of parked vehicles along roads in the San Gabriel Canyon area. Moore said the area was described as a “zoo” with more visitors than it typically has on the Fourth of July, making social distancing impossible.
The developed recreation facilities will remain closed until at least April 30. The general forest area including the extensive trail system will remain open and available to the public “to the extent practicable,” according to a news release from the U.S. Forest Service.
“Hiking and walking outdoors are widely considered beneficial to maintaining one’s health,” Forest Service officials said in the news release.
Trailheads vary on development throughout the state; some are simply dirt pullouts along the road and others have paved parking, restrooms, running water systems and picnic benches. Moore said most trail users are in groups smaller than 10 people and can maintain safe social distancing from others while on their hike.
Forest Service officials asked those using the trails to keep health, safety and the environment in mind when visiting national forests. They also said that personal responsibility is critical to ensuring public safety and preventing further restrictions.
“We ask that you consider whether your personal participation in outdoor recreation at this time would pose an unnecessary risk to others as we all work together to flatten the curve and slow the spread of COVID-19,” the Forest Service officials said.
This story was originally published March 26, 2020 at 4:52 PM with the headline "Recreational sites closed at national forests in California to slow coronavirus spread."
