Overall revenue for the state parks department is down 50 percent, a drop that Supt. Steve Wright attributes to low sales of beach passes, due to soggy weather and below-average temperatures. But he says that reservations at campgrounds are up, thanks to a new online system.

The Providence Journal / Bob Thayer

JOHNSTON — Steve Wright has nothing but praises for Rhode Island’s picturesque state beaches, its manicured parks and serene campgrounds and nature trails.

As the superintendent of state parks, Wright is brimming with facts and figures about all 27 sites, but one figure has recently caught his eye — low sales of beach passes at the state’s seven saltwater beaches that charge a fee.

After the first four weeks of the summer season (not counting this past weekend), overall revenue for the state parks department is down 50 percent. Wright squarely attributes the drop to low sales of beach passes.

Among the three sources of revenue, including campground reservations and day-use at the state parks, season beach pass sales make up 56 percent of the roughly $4 million the department takes in.

An average season, from May 15 through Labor Day, usually nets sales of 16,000 to 18,000 passes, for both residents and non-residents. But a soggy spring and cooler-than-usual temperatures have made for dismal sales, Wright says.

Timing is another factor.

“It’s a slow start for the beaches. Usually around the third Saturday in June, when the high schools let out, we should pick up,” Wright said. “I track the weather. Last year on June 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 we had a heat wave. It was unusually hot to have that 97, 98-degree weather. If you take the mini-heat wave into account, that really escalated our revenue and attendance. This year we actually have the reverse. The numbers for 2008 are somewhat skewed.”

Wright said the beach trip, so far, has been recession proof.

“When the gas prices last summer were high, $3 and $4 dollars a gallon, we did well. We believe people stayed closer to home,” Wright said. “I really think it is weather related. I venture to say if the weather gets better… those season pass sales will rebound. The better value is in the season pass.”

It’s not all bad news.

Rentals of sports fields, picnic tables or shelter structures, overnight parking and golfing at state parks represent about 8 percent of the business, and are about normal for this time of year. Campground reservations are up.

Campground rentals make up 36 percent of the business. The spike in reservations, up nearly 40 percent over same period last year is due to a new online reservation system, Wright said. Launched in 2007, the system, operated by Reservation America, based in New York, allows campers to secure a spot within one of the state’s five campgrounds: Fisherman Memorial State Park, Narragansett; Charlestown Breachway; East Beach; Burlingame Campground in Charlestown and George Washington in Glocester.

“It’s been extremely successful. It provides an opportunity for people to plan ahead. This is the first summer that we can see a clear difference in reservations,” Wright said. “What we are finding … nightly reservations are up 22 percent. People are staying longer.”

Wright says it’s hard to gauge if attendance is really down, again because the weather has been inconsistent and summer’s peak hasn’t hit. For an average season, Rhode Island state parks and beaches draw some 6.5 million visitors. He said the Fourth of July weekend will tell the real story.

lsparks@projo.com