January 18, 2020 - WASHINGTON – To encourage visitation and appreciation for America’s public lands, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced that it will waive recreation-related visitor’s fees during five 2020 Fee-Free Days. On these five days, recreation-related fees for all visitors to agency-managed public lands across the nation will be waived.

(Left) Merced River in Mariposa County - Credit: Bob Wick, BLM

“One of the greatest assets we have in this country is our public lands,” says Deputy Director of Policy and Programs for the BLM, William Perry Pendley, exercising the authority of the BLM Director. “With our fee-free days, we hope that Americans will get outside to enjoy these national treasures – the 245 million acres of public lands across our nation, most of which are in the West and Alaska.”   

The Fee-Free Days for 2020 are: January 20 (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day), February 17 (President’s Day),   June 13 (National Get Outdoors Day), September 26 (National Public Lands Day), and November 11 (Veterans Day).

BLM-managed public lands offer a wide array of recreational opportunities, including hiking, hunting, fishing, camping, mountain biking, horseback riding, boating, whitewater rafting, off-highway vehicle driving, rock climbing, and more. Americans make approximately 67 million visits annually to BLM-managed lands, supporting approximately 48,000 jobs nationwide and contributing almost $7 billion to the U.S. economy.

On fee-free days, site-specific standard amenity and day-use fees at BLM recreation sites and areas will be waived for the specified dates. Other fees, such as overnight camping, cabin rentals, group day use, and use of special areas, will remain in effect.

For more information on recreation opportunities on BLM-managed public lands, visit https://www.blm.gov/programs/recreation or www.recreation.gov
Source: BLM