Swimmers wading in the ocean under the watchful eye of lifeguards wearing face masks. Empty stretches of sand where beach chairs and towels used to be. Stores on boardwalks shuttered, except for curbside pickup.
As summer draws nearer, visitors will soon be able to return to the state’s beaches — but the scene will look a lot different than what people are used to.
“Beaches will be for transitory use only: no sitting on the beach, you can walk on the beach, you can run on the beach, you can even swim,” New Hampshire State Parks Director Phil Bryce said. “You just can’t hang out on the beach.”
Visitors will be required to reserve beach and parking passes online in advance. At the state’s inland sites on lakes and rivers, widely spaced picnic tables will also be available for rent online.
Staff, who will all be required to wear personal protective equipment, will regularly disinfect public spaces, especially bathroom facilities.
Tourism and outdoor recreation are huge industries for the state’s economy.
A challenge for state staff will be toeing the line between needs for safety and the wish of the public to have access to state parks amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
New Hampshire State Parks officials say online reservations are key to controlling crowds and maintaining social distancing.
Starting this month, the Parks System began asking visitors in half a dozen already-open state parks, like Monadnock, Pawtuckaway, Bear Brook, Miller and Winslow, to make advance reservations before arriving at the park.
“That way, we can limit the number of passes granted,” Bryce said.
“We had extraordinary crowds a Monadnock. It was a zoo at the end of March,” he added. “We said, ‘We’ve got to do something here.’ ”
Just this past weekend, Bryce said Monadnock saw 533 visitors. More than 200 cars were turned away, Bryce said.
Officials see it as a system that can be used for the state’s beaches and all other venues when they are up and running.
Planning around beaches and campgrounds, ATV and OHRV trails and the Flume Gorge, attractions that would typically open in mid-May, has been a priority for the state parks department, Bryce said.
The state usually nets $2.6 million each during a season from Flume Gorge entry fees and Seacoast parking meters.
Campgrounds will be open in the coming weeks starting with RV sites and self-contained cabins and cottages only.
Auxiliary services like showers and laundry rooms will remain closed.
Stores will be curbside pickup only.
Throughout the summer, groups of campsites and cabins will open up for small groups on a rotating schedule.
Bathrooms will be converted to single-stall or family occupancy to limit the spread of germs. More portable toilets will also be installed.
The Flume Gorge and public bathrooms in the area is currently open for hiking except in the Gorge.
Bryce said staff is working on limiting personal contact with surfaces by purchasing lidless trash receptacles and limiting cash handling where possible.
Bryce said to discourage people from coming to state parks or beaches while sick, staff are developing a system for refunding advance purchases of tickets to parks.
“If people just say, ‘I’m not feeling well,’ or, ‘a member of my party isn’t feeling well, we signed up last week to go to Monadnock,’ we will say ‘Okay, that’s fine. We don’t want you at the park if you’re not feeling well.’ The same will be for the campsites.”
“The issue is, obviously if the weather goes bad, that can be abused,” Bryce added. “But again, this is very much a partnership with our visitors and we’re hoping that they’ll say, ‘Yep, it’s raining, but I’m not going to use that as an excuse to get my money back.’ ”
Officials are at the mercy of visitors to follow safety procedures.
“One of the biggest points is, ‘Please help us keep our state parks open,’ because people’s behavior is going to be really, really important to that,” Bryce said.
Playgrounds, which are difficult to disinfect, likely won’t be open anytime soon.
Neither will the Tram at Franconia Notch, public pavilions or event tents for weddings and park operated buses and shuttles.