In his column, Paul Reynolds suggested that because of the many rules in Yellowstone due to grizzly bears, we shouldn’t have a new national park in Maine (Sept. 27).

In addition to the logic problem, the facts about his trip to Yellowstone were a bit loose. The “half-hour bear warning video” is only 18 minutes and the 24-hour period for obtaining a backcountry permit is 48 hours.

His biggest complaint is that the ranger wasn’t at the ranger station when he went to get his permit. If he had gone to any of the nine stations that are staffed all day instead of one of two that the park literature warns are sometimes closed, he could have gotten his permit. Or, had he used the nearby phone booth to call the backcountry office, rather than wait three hours, they would have gotten him his permit.

Mr. Reynolds didn’t mention that his “designated backcountry tent site” has world famous salmon fishing and is the most sought after backcountry site in Yellowstone. Also, there is no charge for backcountry camping in Yellowstone except that some sites can be reserved in advance for a $20 fee.

Mr. Reynolds must have enjoyed the park since he went two summers in a row. The great fishing was probably one reason. Maine used to have world class salmon fishing. With a national park to protect part of the Maine woods, maybe we can have world-class fishing again.

Ken Spalding, Wayne

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