I have been “Voluntold” :) I am booking the BWCAW trips for our Scout Troop this year. This is my first BWCA trip as a Scouter.

I have a private account for Recreation.org from booking previous BWCA trips.

Questions:
1. Is there any advantage to booking as a charity?
2. If so, can I just use my personal account and then enter the charity number (not sure of the term) or do I need to make an account just for the troop?
3. Our plan is to have two groups enter on the same day but at different locations (previous trips I am told the troop always did same entry just delayed one group but eventually the second group would catch the first—which is a violation of the BWCAW rules so I am changing it!) Can I book two permits as a charity for the same day or do I need another Parent to book the second permit?

Thanks for any other insight!

T

Give the USFS a call, they are usually quite helpful - contact info

Edit: below is from the usfs website specifically about BWCA permits...

A non-profit organization (NPO) may reserve a maximum of three permits per season under the organization's name, allowing any member of the organization to become the Group Leader at the time of permit pickup. A NPO using this option must be prepared to show evidence of legal non-profit status when picking up the permit.

If a non-profit requires more than three (3) reservations per season, any additional reservations (beyond the maximum of three) must be made in the Group Leader’s name and not the name of the organization. To ensure everyone has the opportunity to make a reservation, when a visitor makes more than three (3) reservations per season under the organization's name, all but three (3) permits will automatically be cancelled by the Forest Service. Cancelled permits will be returned to the inventory and notification prior to cancellation will not be provided.

thanks that is helpful.

Does anyone know if I use my own account or do I need to make one for our non profit?

T

timatkn: "Does anyone know if I use my own account or do I need to make one for our non profit? "

Realize you need the ability to prove your non-profit status. Your Troop is an extension of your chartered organization which is the body that needs to be non-profit. Get a copy of your organization's tax exempt status letter. If you are chartered by a for-profit entity, such as a local business, you may be able to qualify as non-profit if your local BSA Council agrees to allow you to use their status. If you broach the subject with BSA, be prepared (pun not really intended) to have them advocate for you to use Northern Tier instead of going in on your own.

As to whether you should have a separate account or use your private account, I would create a separate account to reduce the chance for confusion on the government's part.

Thanks, yes I have the tax exempt letter and our number associated with it.

I’ll see if I can create another account.

Northern Tier sounds great…it’s just we all live in MN and can supply our own gear between the troop and all of the adults…feels,like renting a baseball glove for a $100/weekend when you already own one. A scout is thrifty!

T

I always used my own account to book trips for my school; it never seemed to be a problem.

This what I found out.

I did not create a new account as the email would have been the same as my personal account and figured that would create issues.

As egknuti stated I just used my personal account and clicked on the non profit box, entered our troop number. Doing this you can book up to 3 permits per year and figure out who the leader will be when you pick up the permit.

We may need to show our tax exempt paperwork so will need to make copies for each group.

We’ll see how it works. I booked 2 trips on the same day. One group starting at Snowbank the other at Lake one, then exiting opposite so we can work out vehicle transfers. So far it looks like both permits in my name took but I’ll see in a few days if going get’s kicked.

Thanks for all the replies!

T

timatkn: "
We’ll see how it works. I booked 2 trips on the same day. One group starting at Snowbank the other at Lake one, then exiting opposite so we can work out vehicle transfers. So far it looks like both permits in my name took but I’ll see in a few days if going get’s kicked.

T"

A couple of years ago, USFS announced they would begin automatically canceling permits when the permit applicant had overlapping permits. I got a stern warning letter in the mail to that effect with a grace period to sort things out. Last year I accidentally made overlapping reservations and the website refused to allow me to finish the reservation process for the second permit until I revised the dates so that there wasn't any overlap.

If both of your permits were processed online then I think you're in the clear. Hopefully that turns out to be true, and good luck.

Kendis: "

timatkn: "
We’ll see how it works. I booked 2 trips on the same day. One group starting at Snowbank the other at Lake one, then exiting opposite so we can work out vehicle transfers. So far it looks like both permits in my name took but I’ll see in a few days if going get’s kicked.


T"

A couple of years ago, USFS announced they would begin automatically canceling permits when the permit applicant had overlapping permits. I got a stern warning letter in the mail to that effect with a grace period to sort things out. Last year I accidentally made overlapping reservations and the website refused to allow me to finish the reservation process for the second permit until I revised the dates so that there wasn't any overlap.


If both of your permits were processed online then I think you're in the clear. Hopefully that turns out to be true, and good luck."

Yes, this was my concern. I believe the only advantage of booking a permit as a non profit is you can do multiple permits in the same time period and assign group leaders later. I am still nervous one permit will get kicked and as both are in my name I obviously can't be on both trips simultaneously, but allegedly by filling in the non profit/tax exempt part your group leader is the non profit Org--then you show your paperwork when you get the permit and one of the adults will be assigned as the leader. I could of assigned back up leaders but when dealing with a volunteer organization...people often say they are going and then back out later.

I'll keep everyone posted as it develops in case others are in a similar situation.

T