It's the peak of summer recreation season in Montana, and boat launches and campgrounds are filling up quickly.
With thousands of visitors using these facilities, knowing proper etiquette is essential to ensure everyone can enjoy these outdoor spaces.
Watch: Best practices for enjoying boat launches and campsites in Montana:
At popular river access points like the Madison River, boat ramps can become congested quickly.
These areas are designed specifically for launching and retrieving watercraft—not for picnicking or parking.
"This isn't the place to inflate your watercraft. Make sure you do that off to the side so that people can continue to use the boat ramp, and when you're parking, make sure that you're not parked and blocking the boat ramp because this is a critical spot that everyone needs to use," Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks spokesman Morgan Jacobsen said.
Jacobsen also addressed issues at campgrounds, particularly at fishing access sites where spots cannot be reserved in advance.
"When you do pay a fee for a campsite, you need to be occupying that site to be able to hold it for you and your group. So make sure that you, once you've paid for it, that you occupy the site and you use it, and that lets other people know that that site is taken," Jacobsen said.
The first-come, first-served policy means simply hanging a "reserved" sign doesn't secure a campsite — physical occupation is required.
Jacobsen emphasized the importance of leaving recreation areas in better condition than you found them.
"Just remember that how we use these sites leave an impact not only on the site itself but on the other users who come along, and if we want to continue to have these sites and keep them in good shape, it's really on all of us to do our part to make that happen," Jacobsen said.
While Montana offers unique outdoor recreation opportunities, these spaces must be shared responsibly to preserve them for everyone's enjoyment.
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