VALLEY FORGE, PA. Park attendance continues to fall

Attendance at national parks across the country was down last year.
VALLEY FORGE, Pa. (AP) -- Fewer and fewer people are choosing to spend the day where George Washington's troops spent the winter.
Attendance at Valley Forge National Historical Park was down almost 6 percent in 2002 compared with 2001, and the National Park Service projects that attendance will be down an additional 16.5 percent this year.
In 1997, 1.9 million people visited the park. In 2004, officials are projecting 834,000 visitors.
Valley Forge is not alone. On average, attendance at national parks across the country was down 2.1 percent in 2002.
Analysts blame bad weather, high gas prices and a general economic downturn for the decline.
Forest fires in the West didn't help either, as people witnessed the flames on television and decided they should stay home.
"People are being a heck of a lot more cautious," said Jim Spring, president of Leisure Trends Group, an industry analysis firm based in Boulder, Colo. "Since 9/11, people have been more interested in things like reunions with their families."
Terrorism fears have reduced the number of international travelers to U.S. parks, too, Spring said.
Most popular parks
The parks reporting the best attendance have been those close to major metropolitan areas and at historical sites, which tend to appeal to the baby boomer population, Spring said.
Butch Street, a Park Service analyst, attributed the Valley Forge visitor decline to traffic problems that have plagued the park over the last few years.
"People do avoid road construction because it's such a pain," he said.
There are bright signs for Valley Forge, though. Money is being raised for a $100 million National Center for the American Revolution, which would sit on 21 acres of parkland. The project is scheduled to be completed by July 2006.