SC Opens Boat Ramps to Frustration Over Parking

Governor McMaster may have issued an executive order for South Carolina to open boat ramps and landings, but park rangers are enforcing the closure of nearby parking lots making it impossible for some boating enthusiasts to take advantage of the lifting of restrictions. The order authorizes the “reopen, in whole or in part, any such public boat ramp or boat landing, to include any adjacent or associated public parking lots.”

Based on the order, the state can still refuse access if they deem an associated parking lot closure was needed to preserve public health. The order reads:

I hereby authorize the managing or operating authority of any public boat ramp or boat landing to close, in whole or in part, or otherwise restrict public access to any such public boat ramp or boat landing, to include any adjacent or associated public parking lots or facilities, if it is determined that such action is necessary to preserve or protect public health.

Read the executive order in its entirety here.

In a video posted on Facebook, a park ranger guarding the parking lot stated that the governor did not allow them to open the secondary lot. Another ranger referred to as Mr. Evans can be heard stating that the closure of the secondary parking lot was due to traffic, not public health concerns.

Locals state that the lot in question is normally not for boat parking, but for camping and hiking
so the real question is why the governor didn’t open the state for camping and hiking—keeping
in place the social distancing rules as with everything else.

A request to the governor’s office for comment was not returned by press time.

Watch this video to witness a boater being refused access to a secondary parking lot when the main lot was filled to capacity.

What do you think? Should Governor McMaster open all parking lots to access not only boat
ramps, but campgrounds and hiking trails?