Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest shifting to mostly cashless payments

WENATCHEE — Deborah Kelly, public affairs specialist for the Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest, has announced that the Forest will be moving to primarily cashless fee collections at most recreation fee sites in time for Memorial Day Weekend.

The sites that use the new payment system will include all trailheads and day use sites that require a fee or pass, as well as nearly all first-come, first-served campgrounds, including those operated by concession stands or booths.

You can prepare in advance for this change by downloading the recreation.gov mobile app. Doing so beforehand ensures you have a signal before trying to download it in the middle of the woods. If you forget to download it in advance, you will need to find an area with WiFi or mobile connectivity to download the app and set up an account. Once you have done so, the scan-and-pay application will work in offline mode at recreation areas with no cellular or WiFi service.

As the summer continues, the cashless system will continue to be deployed across the National Forest to eventually include all first-come, first-served campgrounds, including concessionaire sites. You can check the payment status of the campground you wish to visit by going to the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) website’s campsite booking page.

By eliminating cash and check payment options, the USFS hopes to streamline the entire process, and thus free up staff for helping visitors and maintaining recreation sites. An automated system eliminates the need for check processing and cash deposits.

You can also still purchase and use (for all day use sites requiring a fee) the Northwest Forest Pass or America the Beautiful Interagency Pass at an office or in a store found on the agency’s website or simply purchase them online.

There are many developed campgrounds, cabins and lookouts operated by the agency staff or by concessionaires that are available for reservation prior to arrival in the Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest. These sites are booked in advance through the website and will not be affected in any way by the payment system transition.

Fees and passes for recreation sites are one of the largest sources of revenue for the maintenance and operation of them, and improve the experience of visitors to the National Forest.

Andrew Simpson: 509-433-7626 or andrew@ward.media