Keep the Park shuttles

I read in your June 12 edition that the National Park Service was concerned about the Glacier National Park shuttle service because of its success in helping the public to be able to reach — and hike — Park trails. The concern is apparently that over the past few years more visitors have been able to use the Park’s trails than in the years past. Gadzooks.

As a regular visitor to Glacier National Park for the past 15 years (and the Great Smoky Mountains Park in my home state), I find this to be an increasing attitude of the National Park Service. The idea seems to be that we need to make the beauty of the park even more inaccessible to the public so that there will not be “overuse.”

Frankly, I have found Glacier’s shuttle service to be a welcome help in enjoying the trail system in ways that would otherwise be impossible to the regular visitor. That is a plus, not a minus, in my humble opinion, and I do not mind sharing the trails with others. If I want to be alone, I can climb a mountain.

In summary, I hope the National Park Service will take a long look at its policies that increasingly seem to discourage — rather than encourage — use of trails. I admire the NPS and the work its employees do, but this trend needs reconsideration and thought.

Gareth Aden

Nashville, Tenn