What you need to know before you head out to a N.H. state park

By OLIVIA BURDETTE

Monitor staff

Published: 07-01-2020 4:21 PM

If you’re looking to plan a beach day at one of New Hampshire’s state parks, you might want to book your reservations now.

The first opening to get in at Wallis Sands State Park in Rye isn’t until Tuesday, July 28 and there’s only a handful of parking spots left, according to a COVID-induced online reservation system, where visitors pay to reserve a parking spot in advance at one of the reduced-capacity destinations.

Closer to the holiday, parking at the state park at Hampton Beach is booked for the Fourth of July, but close to 100 spots are still open on Sunday and more are available throughout the month.

If you are comfortable with a less beachy feel, Odiorne Point State Park has more than 100 spots open Saturday and Sunday when the weather is supposed to warm and sunny.

Inland, the parks are less crowded and sometimes reservations are needed but not always, which can lead to confusion and frustration when visitors get turned away.

To help clear things up, Brent Wucher, public information officer for the New Hampshire Department of Parks and Recreation, answered some frequent queries about how to visit parks this summer.

The most popular state parks are now welcoming visitors who make reservations in advance, which cost as much as the usual entry fee for visiting parks, plus a one-dollar processing charge. Making a reservation means your spot in the parking lot is secure for the entire day, and it can be canceled anytime before 9 a.m. the day of the reservation for a refund.

“You know your parking spot is going to be there if you visit the park; it’s guaranteed,” Wucher said.

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When making reservations, visitors are asked to enter their vehicle’s license plate information for parking purposes, but the price depends on the number of people in that vehicle, with the exception of Wallis Sands beach, where the price is set per vehicle.

Reservations, including the $1 service fee are required even for season-pass holders and seniors – who can visit most parks for free – to ensure that parking spots are available. Some of those top supporters will be let in even if they show up without a reservation near the end of the day because the parks “want to take care of” those special visitors, but in general, making a reservation is the best way to guarantee a spot at the park you want to visit.

“We don’t want people to have to drive an hour and then find out the park is at capacity,” Wucher said. “Peace of mind” is what you’re purchasing with an advanced day-use reservation, he said.

One special case is Flume Gorge, which is one of the state’s most popular parks. Wucher said that visitors can reserve a two-hour time slot to visit the park in order to keep the number of hikers at the right levels for social distancing. The narrow trails at the gorge are being enforced as one-way foot traffic for the same reason.

“Like everything with COVID, you have to plan ahead,” Wucher said.

Additionally, be prepared with a Plan B by looking at the interactive parks map, which can help visitors find an easy second option if the first doesn’t work out.

If you are planning to go on a summer camping trip this year, Wucher said that it is important to make reservations as soon as possible, since many campgrounds have already taken reservations made last fall and sites will be limited as July and August progress.

Bear Brook State Park, one of the largest in New Hampshire, has several parking lots for its several uses: horseback riding, hiking, camping and water activities. According to Wucher, visitors can now make separate reservations for the hiking trails and for the beach area.

“We want to make sure we’re taking care of all of our audience,” he said.

Wucher said he anticipates that the advanced day-use pass system will continue through the rest of the summer, but capacity levels for some parks may go higher as the months progress if visitors continue to be responsible. The parks are operating with extremely limited staff – Hampton Beach usually hires 38 staffers for the summer but now is working with nine – so they rely on visitors to carry out their garbage and maintain social distancing measures.

So far, they are doing well, Wucher said.

“People are coming to campgrounds, they’re using the curbside pickup at the campground stores, they’re wearing masks whenever they go in the bathrooms, so we’re really happy about that because that has enabled us to open up more,” he said.

As the Fourth of July approaches and the parks season reaches its busiest times, Wucher said that the department is trying to be as proactive as possible by hiring new employees and stocking up on personal protective equipment and signage.

For more information and answers to FAQs, Wucher pointed visitors to the park's  website, and emphasized his  most important advice for parks visitors: “Plan ahead!”

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