Summer travel season begins this weekend

Winston-Salem - If there were a starting gun to kick off summer, it would be fired sometime today.

Memorial Day weekend kicks off the season for picnicking, grilling and soaking up the sun.

All of which a person can do, for free, in many of North Carolina’s 36 state parks.

That’s good news for people who are cash-strapped.

“Goodness knows, people need some low-cost recreation,“ said Charlie Peek, the public information officer for the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation.

Like most state agencies, the parks department has had to tighten its budget. There will be fewer seasonal employees at the parks this summer, Peek said, but park visitors should notice few changes in their park experiences.

“Basically, you might notice grass not mowed as often, the trash cans not emptied as often or a longer line at the concession stands, but we’re determined to keep everything operating,“ Peek said.

Although there are no statistics to back up the claim, park officials have anecdotal evidence that more people visit parks during lean economic periods.

“More people take those long weekends rather than vacation to Florida. Rangers and superintendents are pretty well convinced that’s what happens. Parks offer practically free recreation on weekends. There’s no entrance fee and you can find something to do to fill up a beautiful Saturday or Sunday and all it costs you are gasoline or money for a picnic lunch,“ Peek said. “You’ve got to believe that is attractive to people right now.“

The thousands of people expected to head to a state park this weekend are just a fraction of the 754,000 North Carolinians that AAA Carolinas expects to hit the road.

Dave Parsons, the president and CEO of AAA Carolinas, said that the desire to take a trip on the first holiday of the summer is overriding concern for the economy and the recent increase in gas prices. The price per gallon of regular unleaded gas has risen 25 cents in North Carolina since Easter.

The average price for a gallon of gas, however, is still roughly $1.50 cheaper than it was last year at this time.

The current average price in the state is $2.27. Winston-Salem has the least expensive gas in the state, with an average cost of $2.24.

To make travel easier to state parks and other places, the N.C. Department of Transportation will suspend road construction over the holiday weekend.

Most construction projects along N.C. and U.S. routes will be suspended from 4 p.m. today to 9 a.m. Tuesday. The DOT suggests people call 511 for real-time travel information.

Lisa O’Donnell writes for the Winston-Salem Journal.