Paul:
The Visitor Center is open so that people can use the bathroom, read the signs, look at the displays, and get information, sometimes critical information, from the rangers. The people visiting the forest haven’t all been doing this for decades like you and Steve and me.
Online reservations are critical for quota trailheads. As I’ve posted many times before, it’s really stupid to pack your gear, maybe take a day off from work, drive several hundred miles, and then stand in line for a permit that may not be available.
If you want a non-quota permit, you can book one online, and they are always available, with no uncertainty. If you insist on calling the numbers that you know they don’t answer, rather than sending an email to verify your permit, you will continue to be frustrated. Sending the email has always worked for me, and I always have my permit in my possession when I leave the house. I don’t need to be at a USFS office at a particular time, and I don’t have to worry about traffic, an accident, construction, or a flakey partner causing me to miss my permit.
I don’t know when, if ever, they will resume issuing permits in person. I certainly don’t object if they choose to do so. But I will always choose online if I can. It’s just more efficient for me and for the USFS.
