Ten Yards for a Penny

Every year thousands of Californians and others trudge 11 miles up the Mt. Whitney Trail to the mountain’s 14,494-foot summit, the highest point in the 48 contiguous states. For some, the hike up Whitney is an annual ritual. The trail is wide and not dangerous, but it rises more than 6,000 feet and requires considerable effort and endurance. The reward includes a dramatic view of the High Sierra.

Those who are now planning their 1987 Mt. Whitney adventure have a bit of surprise in store for them. The U.S. Forest Service wilderness permit required to hike the trail no longer is issued without charge, but will cost $5 for each hiker.

The Forest Service says that its budget is unable to absorb the cost of the permitting process because of the popularity of the Whitney Trail, which begins at Whitney Portal west of Lone Pine in the Owens Valley. The task has been turned over to the nonprofit Eastern Sierra Interpretive Assn. in Lone Pine.

The charge has prompted some protest, such as that of Richard C. Kullberg of Woodland Hills, who wrote to President Reagan: “I and many other forest lovers had our beefs about the wilderness permit system as it was, but everyone cooperated for the preservation of these wilderness areas. But to pay a fee for the permits on top of all the taxes we pay is going too far, particularly when the Forest Service continues to subsidize the large lumber companies hundreds of millions of dollars a year by selling the trees at a loss.”

Permits have been required for some years as part of a quota system to limit the number of persons using the trail to protect the wilderness qualities of the Whitney area. This year the non-refundable fee is charged anyone hiking the Whitney Trail between May 22 and Sept. 30. Those entering the wilderness via other, less-traveled, trails also need permits, but there is no fee.

Kullberg and others have a point. Congress last year approved an increase in entrance fees to national parks, but the additional money will go into protecting park resources, not for administrative processing. Five dollars is not a large amount, given the other costs involved in making a Whitney trip. But it seems excessive for the Forest Service to charge $5 for each hiker when the same amount of paper work is involved whether the wilderness permit application is for a single hiker or a group of 10. The new fee could be a particular burden on groups such as Scout troops.

This may seem to be a trivial matter for a government with a $1-trillion budget, but it is of enough interest to enough people to warrant some public debate.