Park closures in California could hinder bicycle travel

When I reached the West Coast after bicycling across country in the 1980s, one of the coolest things I discovered was the fact that many parks had hike or bike camping.

The state parks where I stopped on the Pacific Coast Bicycle Trail, for instance, all had a reduced-rate area set aside for travelers on foot or bike.

As I rode up the coast, I remember several nights sitting around the fire ring sharing route news and swapping lies with fellow bike travelers.

Threatened

Now many of these parks are seriously threatened. In an attempt to balance its budget, California has plans to close 70 parks in the state by July; X's mark the parks on the above map.

The California Bicycle Coalition newsletter reports that 18 of the parks are on the Pacific Coast Bicycle Route, a route designated by the state in 1976 and a destination for cyclists from around the world.

Adventure Cycling Association provides detailed maps of the route from Canada to Mexico, as does as least one bike travel book, “Bicycle the Pacific Coast.”

Both these sources recommend that bike travelers use the bike-hike campgrounds in California's state parks for that leg of the trip.

Hike or bike

In all, 19 of the 58 state parks that offer hike or bike campsites are closing statewide.

In addition, five state parks that are destinations for mountain bikers — Annadel, Brannan Island, China Camp, Henry Coe and Sugarloaf — are all set to be closed down.

Where I am in Washington state, I can't speak much to California's budget problems and the best ways they can be solved. But it doesn't seem wise to me for California to close down destinations that bring tourism dollars into the state.

Action

According to the San Jose Mercury-News, closing the 70 of California's 278 state parks will save $22 million — just 2/10s of 1 percent of the state's $9.2 billion budget deficit.

Advocates for the state parks in California have formed Save Our State Parks. They're going to Sacramento on March 20 to make their case.

Meanwhile, a “Closing parks is bad for business” effort is underway to encourage small businesses and communities to fight the park closures.

Let's hope these efforts are enough to save the parks for bicyclists and others heading to explore the Golden State.