Inflation?

Greetings on this Merry Christmas Day!  Happy Holiday wishes to one and all.  May your stockings be filled with glorious gifts all year long.

We posting up here today to talk about one stocking that filled with a lump of coal--The Salt River Stocking.
The Salt River stretch from the Highway 60 bridge down to Roosevelt Lake is Arizona's premier whitewater run.  Since it flows early in the year, people come from all over America to enjoy its mystique and Sonora Desert charm.  Back in the Really Old Days there was no permit required except for a token payment to the White Mountain Apache Tribe.

My, my how things have changed.  Permits have been required ever since some dork blew up Quartzite Falls and prices have increased steadily over the years.  This year, the price of a Salt River permit went into the stratosphere.  It's now $125!!!!!  But wait, that's not all--there's another $10 fee to apply online.  The old form of a mailed application is no longer accepted.  Plus, you have to pay $20 for an inflated Indian permit, too, and that is PER PERSON.  All those going on the Wilderness trip are REQUIRED to spend $40 per person--that's a permit for two days. Here's how the cost for a 10 person trip would calculate: $135 for Forest Service Permit ($13.50 per person) and $40 for Apache permit for a total of $53.50 per person or $535 in permit fees for the trip!!!!!!  That's before the cost of the shuttle.  WOW!  That's simply amazing.

OK, here are the links:

Forest Service permit page
Online application page
Indian Permit Discussion Page
Indian Permit Cost Page

All we can say is--Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!  Cheers, jp