A quirky but charming tradition at Rocky Mountain National Park won’t happen this year due to the pandemic, following the decision by park officials to make wilderness camping reservations available online only.
That will happen starting on March 1.
For years, backcountry enthusiasts would to participate in a lottery for limited backpacking camping permits. They would make lists of desired dates — first choice, second choice and so on — put their names in a ranger’s hat and wait for an hour or more for the lottery draw to determine their place in line to make their reservations. Last year nearly 100 turned out, even though they could have accomplished the same thing sitting at home, refreshing their computers over and over in search of permits online.
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This year, a link for reservations will go live at 8 a.m. March 1. Last year there were 267 backcountry camping sites in 120 designated areas, but this year there won’t be as many because of areas affected by the East Troublesome and Cameron Peak fires.
“Park staff will continue to assess wilderness backcountry site availability this year due to fire impacts from 2020,” according to a park news release. “There will be less campsite availability this year in areas that were burned or sites that are accessed through burn areas.”
