Can you bring cannabis into a national park? Federal law, park by park

It bans possession and delivery outright. Under 36 CFR 2.35(b), possessing a controlled substance in a park area is prohibited unless it was obtained directly, or by a valid prescription or order, from a practitioner acting in the course of professional practice or otherwise allowed by federal or state law. That last phrase can read like a state-law opening, but the Park Service does not treat it as one: Gateway's compendium quotes the paragraph in full and then says marijuana stays prohibited despite New York's and New Jersey's laws, because the agency follows DEA rules.

Breaking a park rule is a federal offense. 36 CFR 1.3 points to 18 U.S.C. 1865, which sets up to six months in prison, a fine, or both. An offense with a six-month maximum is a Class B misdemeanor (18 U.S.C. 3559), and the fine for an individual can reach $5,000 (18 U.S.C. 3571). Simple possession is also a crime under 21 U.S.C. 844, anywhere in the country: up to a year in prison and a minimum $1,000 fine for a first offense, with longer terms and higher minimum fines after prior drug convictions.

Being high in a park can be a violation on its own. Section 2.35(c) prohibits being in a park area under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance to a degree that may endanger yourself or another person, or damage property or park resources. Each superintendent can add closures and conditions under 36 CFR 1.5 and must compile them in writing, updated every year (36 CFR 1.7). Those compilations are the compendiums quoted in the park sections below.

Not for adult-use cannabis. The rule effective 28 Apr 2026 (Federal Register 2026-08176) moved two narrow groups to Schedule III: drug products containing marijuana that the FDA has approved, and marijuana subject to a state license to manufacture, distribute or dispense it for medical purposes. The rule states that any other form of marijuana remains a Schedule I controlled substance. A purchase from an adult-use dispensary in any of the 17 adult-use states this guide covers is therefore still Schedule I when you carry it into a park.

A medical card is no safe pass either. Schedule III drugs are still controlled substances under 36 CFR 2.35, which allows one only if it was obtained directly, or by a valid prescription or order, from a practitioner. The April rule lets DEA-registered dispensaries rely on state medical certifications, but no Park Service page we read says whether that meets the park rule, and none makes an exception for a medical card. The Statue of Liberty's prohibited-items page, last updated 6 Aug 2025 and so before the rule, says marijuana is prohibited from entering the park even though some states let medical patients possess it. Crater Lake's laws page, updated 28 Dec 2025, also before the rule, says its marijuana ban applies even to medical use with a valid state medical marijuana card.

The broader change has not been made. A DEA hearing on moving all marijuana to Schedule III (Federal Register 2026-08177) ran from 29 Jun to 15 Jul 2026. On 29 Sep 2026 the presiding administrative law judge stayed the case while deciding a motion to add a September 2026 GAO report to the record. A Federal Register search of DEA documents on 16 Oct 2026 found no final rule rescheduling marijuana.

No. California's Department of Cannabis Control says that because cannabis is still illegal under federal law, you cannot use or possess it on federal lands like national parks. Yosemite's compendium, approved on 27 May 2026, and Joshua Tree's, on a page updated 5 Oct 2026, never mention marijuana; they do not need to, because 36 CFR 2.35 already bans it. Both add general smoking limits: Yosemite bans smoking within 25 feet of buildings and while moving on trails, and Joshua Tree bans it in every park facility.

Golden Gate National Recreation Area enforces one compendium, the edition of 30 Dec 2025, across the recreation area, Alcatraz Island, Fort Point and Muir Woods National Monument. It has no cannabis clause, so the federal ban applies on its own. It closes Muir Woods to smoking except in designated parking areas, and to all smoking during extreme fire danger. The U.S. Park Police's San Francisco Field Office, based in the Presidio, polices the Presidio and the recreation area, including Ocean Beach, Crissy Field, Muir Woods and the Marin Headlands.

Point Reyes National Seashore, whose compendium was last updated 18 Nov 2025, is the same story: no cannabis clause, federal rule in force. It closes the lighthouse area, public buildings and the space within 25 feet of their entrances to smoking, bans smoking while traveling on trails, and lets the superintendent ban trail smoking during very high or extreme fire danger. If you shop in San Francisco or Santa Rosa before a day on the coast, leave the purchase where you are staying.

No, and Gateway National Recreation Area puts it in writing. Its compendium, on a page updated 5 Oct 2026, says that despite legalization in New York and New Jersey, the use of controlled substances is prohibited in all of Gateway's park locations, because Park Service rules follow DEA rules and DEA prohibits marijuana. Gateway covers the Sandy Hook Unit in New Jersey and the Jamaica Bay and Staten Island units in New York City. Its rules also bar smoking on Gateway's beaches, among them Sandy Hook, Great Kills, Riis Park and Fort Tilden, and the park will not issue permits for marijuana use at events or First Amendment activities.

The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island add a checkpoint. Everyone boarding a ferry to either island goes through airport-style screening at the departure point in New York or New Jersey, there are no lockers at the screening sites, and illegal items are seized. The monument's prohibited-items list calls marijuana a Schedule I controlled substance that is prohibited from entering the park. The U.S. Park Police's New York Field Office handles law enforcement at the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island and in Gateway's Jamaica Bay and Staten Island units.

Fire Island National Seashore posts a direct notice. New York's law has no bearing on federal law, it says, and possessing or using any amount of marijuana is prohibited in the seashore and its facilities, concessions and campgrounds, with a fine of up to $5,000 for an individual, up to six months in prison, or both. New York's Office of Cannabis Management agrees that you cannot consume cannabis on federal land, including national parks and national forests, and New Jersey's regulator lists preventing marijuana possession or use on federal property among federal enforcement priorities.

All four are National Park System units, so 36 CFR 2.35 bans possession in each, and both states' regulators agree. Nevada's Cannabis Compliance Board says cannabis is still illegal on federal land, including national parks and military bases. Lake Mead National Recreation Area, which takes in Lake Mead and Lake Mohave and reaches into Arizona, points visitors to the federal regulations and its compendium. The compendium does not mention marijuana; it closes public buildings, concessions, campground restrooms and amphitheaters to smoking and vaping, with a 25-foot buffer.

Great Basin National Park has no cannabis clause either. Its compendium bans smoking in all caves and within 25 feet of a cave or public building entrance, in cabins and ruins, on the Mountain View Nature Trail and Island Forest Loop, and in areas the park designates during high fire danger. The park's laws page says Nevada law may apply where no federal law exists and gives traffic as the example. Possession is not one of those gaps, because a federal rule covers it.

Colorado's state cannabis site says you cannot use cannabis on federal land, including national parks and national forests, and that this includes ski slopes. Mesa Verde National Park has posted since 27 Jan 2014 that Colorado's law has no bearing on federal law and that possessing or using any amount of marijuana is prohibited in the park and its facilities, concessions and campgrounds, punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 for an individual, up to six months in prison, or both. Rocky Mountain National Park's compendium, approved 8 Jun 2026, has no cannabis clause, so the federal ban stands alone.

No. Grand Canyon's compendium, dated 16 Jun 2026, does not mention marijuana, so 36 CFR 2.35 governs on its own. The compendium bans smoking within 100 feet of the Bright Angel, Havasupai Gardens and Cottonwood campgrounds and within 25 feet of ranger stations. Arizona's adult-use law says possessing 1 ounce or less, with no more than 5 g as concentrate, is lawful for adults 21 and older and not an offense under the laws of the state or any locality (A.R.S. 36-2852). As Mesa Verde puts it for Colorado, state law has no bearing on federal law, and federal law governs inside the park.

Indiana Dunes National Park is across the state line, in Porter, Indiana. Its laws page points visitors to Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations and to its compendium, which has no cannabis clause. Carrying cannabis there from Illinois means crossing a state line as well as entering federal land. Illinois's Cannabis Regulation Oversight Office says cannabis is not permitted on federal property, including federal parks and buildings, and warns that giving cannabis to someone leaving the state may put that person in breach of federal and other states' laws.

Illinois's larger limits stop at the same boundary. Since 12 Jun 2026, Public Act 104-463 has let visitors possess 30 g of flower, 5 g of concentrate and 500 mg of THC, and residents twice those amounts, but these are state limits. The same federal rule applies at Pullman National Historical Park, the Park Service site in Chicago.

No. Michigan's adult-use law lets anyone 21 or older carry up to 2.5 ounces, no more than 15 g of it as concentrate (MCL 333.27955), but it protects only against state penalties. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Isle Royale National Park and River Raisin National Battlefield Park in Monroe are Park Service units, where adult-use cannabis is still Schedule I and simple possession is a federal crime (21 U.S.C. 844). Isle Royale's laws page, updated 17 Mar 2026, says it directly: marijuana may be legal in many states, but it stays illegal on federal land, the park included.

The two lakeshores post no cannabis notice of their own, so federal law governs without a local rule. Sleeping Bear Dunes' laws page, last updated 7 May 2024, covers drones and firearms and links to 36 CFR, with nothing on marijuana. Pictured Rocks' compendium, on a page updated 8 Jul 2026, lists only alcohol closures under 36 CFR 2.35. It bars smoking in Park Service buildings open to the public and within 25 feet of public buildings, pavilions and restrooms.

Ohio follows the same pattern. State law lets adults possess up to 2.5 ounces of plant material and 15 g of extract (R.C. 3796.221(B)). Cuyahoga Valley National Park, between Cleveland and Akron, and Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial on South Bass Island in Lake Erie are federal ground all the same. Cuyahoga Valley's laws page, updated 4 Feb 2026, says its rangers enforce 36 CFR and Title 21 of the U.S. Code, home of the federal possession law. Its compendium, approved 7 Apr 2026, has no cannabis clause.

Perry's Victory's compendium, approved 17 Jul 2026, bans smoking and electronic cigarettes in all government buildings and facilities and has no cannabis clause either. The memorial's 352-foot column stands about 5 miles from the Canadian border. Off the memorial grounds, Ohio allows smoking or vaping cannabis only on private residential or farm property, which rules out South Bass Island State Park (R.C. 3796.06(C)(2)). Canada's border agency says taking cannabis across the border is illegal in either direction, which matters for anyone boating on Lake Erie.

No. Massachusetts lets adults 21 and older carry up to 2 ounces (M.G.L. c. 94G, s. 7(a), as rewritten by St. 2026, c. 65), and its Cannabis Control Commission says you cannot use cannabis in any form on federal land. Cape Cod National Seashore's compendium, on a page updated 9 Jun 2026, has no cannabis clause, so federal law applies on its own: adult-use cannabis is Schedule I, and possessing it is a crime (21 U.S.C. 844). The compendium bans smoking and electronic nicotine devices on protected swimming beaches while lifeguards are on duty. The Seashore's six fee beaches run from Coast Guard and Nauset Light in Eastham to Race Point and Herring Cove in Provincetown.

Boston's park sites mix federal, state and city ground. Boston Harbor Islands is run in partnership by the Park Service, the Commonwealth and the City of Boston, and its 1996 law leaves the state's civil and criminal jurisdiction in place, so Massachusetts rules apply on the islands alongside federal ones. Boston National Historical Park, whose Freedom Trail covers 2.5 miles of downtown and Charlestown, and Minute Man National Historical Park are Park Service units too. Park Service regulations generally do not apply on land inside a park that the federal government does not own or administer (36 CFR 1.2). On the trail's city sidewalks, the state ban on public use applies, with a civil fine of up to $100 (M.G.L. c. 94G, s. 13(c)). Federal possession law applies on the sidewalks and the federal sites alike (21 U.S.C. 844).

Washington's mountain parks put the ban in writing. Mount Rainier National Park's laws page, updated 9 Oct 2026, says Washington's law has no bearing on federal law. Possessing or using any amount of marijuana, it says, is prohibited in the park, its facilities, concessions and campgrounds and in the national forest land around it. The page sets the penalty at a fine of up to $5,000 for an individual, up to six months in prison, or both, the same limits that apply to any park rule violation (36 CFR 1.3; 18 U.S.C. 1865, 3559 and 3571). North Cascades National Park Service Complex has posted the same notice since 21 May 2014 for the park and the Ross Lake and Lake Chelan national recreation areas. Washington's own limits, 1 ounce of flower and 7 g of concentrate among them (RCW 69.50.4013, 69.50.360), are state rules and change nothing inside those boundaries.

Olympic National Park has no marijuana notice. Its compendium, on a page updated 21 Jan 2026, lists only alcohol rules under 36 CFR 2.35. It bans smoking in concession public areas and lets the park stop outdoor smoking during a burn ban; possession is left to federal law (21 U.S.C. 844). The compendiums for Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, approved 3 Jun 2026, and San Juan Island National Historical Park are silent on marijuana as well. Lake Roosevelt closes public buildings, concession facilities, restrooms and amphitheaters to smoking, and San Juan Island bans smoking and vaping in or within 25 feet of park buildings and facilities.

No. Oregon lets adults 21 and older carry up to 2 ounces in public (ORS 475C.337), but Crater Lake National Park is under exclusive federal jurisdiction, and its laws page, updated 28 Dec 2025, says neither Oregon's adult-use law nor its earlier medical law has any bearing on federal law. Any possession or use of marijuana, in any amount, is banned throughout the park, including its facilities, concessions and campgrounds, and the page applies that ban even to a holder of a valid state medical marijuana card. It puts the penalty at up to six months in prison, a fine of up to $5,000 for an individual, or both (18 U.S.C. 3559 and 3571). Its compendium, approved 30 Dec 2025, bans smoking and e-cigarettes in park buildings other than Park Service residences, on the Cleetwood Cove Trail and at the Cleetwood and Wizard Island boat docks. Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, John Day Fossil Beds National Monument and Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve fall under the same federal rules (36 CFR 2.35; 21 U.S.C. 844).

Minnesota lets adults 21 and older carry up to 2 ounces of flower in public (Minn. Stat. 342.09, subd. 1), and its Office of Cannabis Management says possession and use stay illegal on land the federal government owns or manages outside Indian Country, national parks included. Voyageurs National Park posts no cannabis notice. Its compendium, on a page updated 8 Sep 2026, uses the 36 CFR 2.35 entry only to bar alcohol in visitor centers and in Park Service boats and vehicles, and it closes every park building, structure and facility to smoking. The federal ban therefore stands alone at Voyageurs, as it does on the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway and at Pipestone and Grand Portage National Monuments (21 U.S.C. 844). The Mississippi National River and Recreation Area in the Twin Cities is different: its compendium, on a page updated 1 Jun 2026, covers the river and about 65 acres of Park Service land, not the city, county, state or private land along the banks, where Minnesota law applies alongside federal possession law (21 U.S.C. 844).

Missouri's constitution lets adults 21 and older possess up to 3 ounces (Mo. Const. art. XIV, s. 2.10), a protection that stops at the boundary of Gateway Arch National Park in St. Louis. Everyone entering the Arch complex goes through security screening, and the park's compendium, approved 28 May 2026, says the Park Service does not store or safeguard prohibited items. The compendium has no cannabis clause, so 36 CFR 2.35 applies on its own. It bans smoking and e-cigarettes in government buildings and within 25 feet of any entrance or exit, and it bars open alcohol on the park's sidewalks and paved thoroughfares.

Ozark National Scenic Riverways, on the Current and Jacks Fork rivers, is silent on cannabis as well. Its compendium, on a page updated 16 Jun 2026, bans smoking in park buildings, vehicles and boats, within 25 feet of a building entrance and in the backcountry during posted fire bans, and it closes Alley Mill, Alley Store, Storys Creek School and park buildings to alcohol. Float trips and campgrounds inside the Riverways are on federal land, as are Harry S Truman National Historic Site and George Washington Carver National Monument, and a first simple possession offense there can bring up to a year in prison and a fine of at least $1,000 (21 U.S.C. 844).

No. New Mexico lets adults 21 and older carry 2 ounces of cannabis, 16 g of extract and 800 mg of edibles (NMSA 26-2C-25), but its national parks follow 36 CFR 2.35. Carlsbad Caverns National Park's 2026 compendium, approved 30 Jan 2026, has no cannabis clause. It closes government buildings, the Bat Flight Amphitheater seating and the Natural Entrance trail to smoking or vaping of any material, bans smoking within 25 feet of cave entrances and bans it inside every cave. The compendiums for White Sands National Park, approved 3 Dec 2025, and Bandelier National Monument, approved 21 Jan 2026, are silent on cannabis too, and Bandelier is always under Stage I fire restrictions, so smoking is not allowed on its trails or in its backcountry.

Federal law is enforced on the roads to some of these parks as well. Drivers coming to White Sands from Las Cruces on US-70 pass a Border Patrol station a mile before the visitor center, the Park Service's directions note, and while enforcing immigration law, Border Patrol agents may arrest for any federal offense committed in their presence when the person is likely to escape before a warrant can be obtained (8 U.S.C. 1357). Valles Caldera National Preserve, Chaco Culture National Historical Park and Petroglyph National Monument in Albuquerque are Park Service units as well, and possessing marijuana in any of them is a federal crime (21 U.S.C. 844).

Texas is a medical-only state, and visitors have no legal way to buy or carry marijuana there: only permanent Texas residents in the Compassionate Use Registry may buy low-THC cannabis (Occupations Code 169.003). Guadalupe Mountains National Park, in Texas, answers New Mexico's adult-use law directly on its laws page, last updated 14 Jun 2023. The page says that law does not change federal law, and that marijuana in any amount may not be possessed or used anywhere in the park, including its facilities and campgrounds, or on the national forest and Bureau of Land Management land around it. Violators face up to six months in prison, a fine of up to $5,000 for an individual, or both.

Big Bend National Park's compendium, approved 1 Jan 2026, has no cannabis clause, but it bans smoking on or off trails throughout the park except in paved parking areas and the sidewalks beside them, designated backcountry campsites without vegetation, front-country campgrounds and park roads. The park's border travel page says each north-south highway from the Big Bend area has a Border Patrol checkpoint staffed at all times, and every vehicle heading north is stopped for a visual inspection and brief questions. Padre Island National Seashore is an area of concurrent federal jurisdiction whose rangers enforce Texas statutes as well as the federal drug laws in Title 21, so Texas's possession law, under which 2 ounces or less is a Class B misdemeanor (Health and Safety Code 481.121), applies there alongside federal law. Its compendium adds that illegal drugs found in the park are illegal to possess and must be reported to a ranger as soon as possible.

Oklahoma is a medical-only state: stores may sell only to people licensed by the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, and a visitor's one option is a temporary 30-day license, open to patients holding a card that their own state's government issued (63 O.S. 420). No Park Service page this guide read says whether an Oklahoma license counts under 36 CFR 2.35. Chickasaw National Recreation Area's compendium, signed 8 Jan 2026, closes government buildings, facilities and vehicles to smoking, limits alcohol in government buildings and says nothing that would allow cannabis. Washita Battlefield National Historic Site falls under the same federal rules (36 CFR 2.35; 21 U.S.C. 844), while the Oklahoma City National Memorial is a Park Service affiliated area owned and run by its own foundation, so Oklahoma law applies there along with federal possession law (21 U.S.C. 844).

No Park Service page this guide read says you can, and visitors cannot buy it in Florida in the first place. Florida is a medical-only state: buying requires an active card in the state's Medical Marijuana Use Registry, which is open to Florida residents and registered seasonal residents, and no other state's card counts (s. 381.986). Everglades National Park, Biscayne National Park, Dry Tortugas National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve and Canaveral National Seashore each point visitors to a superintendent's compendium, and none of the five compendiums this guide read on 19 Oct 2026 mentions cannabis, so 36 CFR 2.35 governs on its own.

Their smoking rules differ. Everglades' 2026 compendium bans smoking in public and administrative buildings, on all park nature trails and boardwalks and on the Shark Valley trams and tower, allows it near park buildings only in designated areas and puts e-cigarettes under the same limits. Dry Tortugas' 2026 compendium closes Fort Jefferson's interior, the wooden bridge over the moat, federal buildings and anywhere within 50 feet of the main dock, boats included, to smoking and electronic smoking devices. Canaveral bans smoking inside buildings and within 15 feet of their entrances, Big Cypress bans smoking and vaping inside government facilities and within 25 feet of a public building, and Biscayne's compendium, approved 17 Sep 2025, sets no smoking or alcohol rule of its own.

A Florida card is no clear shield. The 28 Apr 2026 rule put state-licensed medical marijuana in Schedule III, which is still a controlled substance, and no Park Service page this guide read says whether a treatment center purchase meets 36 CFR 2.35. Florida itself leaves use in any public place, other than low-THC cannabis that is not smoked, outside protected medical use (s. 381.986(1)(k)5.b). For anyone without a Florida card, cannabis in these parks is a Schedule I substance, and possessing it is a federal crime punishable on a first offense by up to a year in prison and a minimum $1,000 fine (21 U.S.C. 844).

No. Maryland lets adults 21 and older possess up to 1.5 ounces (Md. Code, Criminal Law 5-101), and the Maryland Cannabis Administration says possession remains unlawful on federal land, national parks and military bases included. Assateague Island National Seashore's compendium, approved 2 Mar 2026, uses its 36 CFR 2.35 entry only for alcohol, banning it in visitor centers, on nature trails and boardwalks and throughout the Virginia district, so the federal ban on cannabis stands alone. It also bans smoking and electronic nicotine devices on lifeguarded beaches and on all boardwalks and trails.

Maryland's other Park Service units follow the same rule. The C&O Canal National Historical Park, which runs through D.C., Maryland and West Virginia, bans open alcohol across the park except by permit under its 2026 compendium, approved 10 Sep 2026, and says nothing about cannabis, and the Appalachian Trail's compendium bans alcohol on all of the trail's park land in Maryland. Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Antietam National Battlefield, Monocacy National Battlefield, Catoctin Mountain Park and the Baltimore-Washington Parkway, a highway that is itself a Park Service unit, are federal ground too, where 36 CFR 2.35 and 21 U.S.C. 844 apply.

Pennsylvania is a medical-only state: buying and carrying cannabis is limited to state residents who hold a Department of Health patient or caregiver card (35 P.S. 10231.103, 10231.303), and no federal source this guide read says whether a registered patient's product fits the exception in 36 CFR 2.35. Independence National Historical Park's 2026 compendium, on a page updated 18 Jun 2026, requires screening for everyone entering the Liberty Bell Center and the northern half of Independence Square, Independence Hall included, and says the Park Service does not store prohibited items. It bans smoking and e-cigarettes inside park buildings and within 25 feet of their formal entrances and has no cannabis clause.

Gettysburg's compendium, updated 23 Jul 2026, covers Gettysburg National Military Park, Gettysburg National Cemetery and Eisenhower National Historic Site. It bans smoking in all park buildings and open alcohol everywhere except park residences, leased buildings and permitted events, and it is silent on cannabis too. Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area in the Poconos names controlled substances in its smoking rule: its June 2026 compendium bans smoking anywhere in the park, and the rule covers tobacco, electronic smoking devices, handheld vaporizers and anything covered by the Controlled Substances Act, medical use included.

Connecticut is an adult-use state where adults 21 and older may carry 1.5 ounces (Conn. Gen. Stat. 21a-279a). Weir Farm National Historical Park in Ridgefield and Wilton allows smoking and electronic nicotine devices only in its visitor and employee parking lots under its 2026 compendium, which has no cannabis clause. Where the Appalachian Trail and the New England National Scenic Trail cross Connecticut's state parks and forests, Connecticut's own ban on cannabis use on state land applies too, and a violation can bring a fine of up to $250 (Conn. Gen. Stat. 23-4b).

No. Forest Service rules prohibit knowingly or intentionally possessing any controlled substance in violation of federal law on National Forest System lands (36 CFR 261.10(p)). The penalty is up to six months in prison, a fine under 18 U.S.C. 3571, or both (36 CFR 261.1b). New York's and Colorado's cannabis regulators both name national forests as federal land where you cannot use cannabis, and Colorado adds that this includes ski slopes.

Some forests add their own orders. Nevada's Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, which includes the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area, has had Order 04-17-05-10 in force since 29 Sep 2005. It prohibits possessing, storing or transporting cannabis plants or any substance made from them on all National Forest System lands in the forest, to protect public health and safety. Check the alerts page of the forest you plan to visit for orders of this kind.

Bureau of Land Management land follows the same pattern. BLM's public lands rule bans possessing a controlled substance unless it was obtained from a licensed practitioner, directly or by a valid prescription or order or as otherwise allowed by federal or state law (43 CFR 8365.1-4(b)(2)). Violations carry a fine of up to $1,000, up to 12 months in prison, or both (43 CFR 8360.0-7). Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, at 1000 Scenic Loop in Las Vegas, is BLM land.

Washington's park notices reach into the forests. Mount Rainier and North Cascades both say their marijuana ban covers the national forest land around them. Several Washington ski areas sit on national forest land: the Forest Service lists Crystal Mountain, Stevens Pass and Mt. Baker Ski Area as operating under permit on the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Any part of those resorts inside the national forest is federal land, where 36 CFR 261.10(p) and 21 U.S.C. 844 apply whatever Washington allows.

The forests and ski areas in the newer states follow the same rules. In Oregon, Timberline Lodge and Ski Area, Mt. Hood Skibowl and Mt. Hood Meadows appear among Mount Hood National Forest's recreation sites, and Mt. Bachelor appears among the Deschutes National Forest's. In New Mexico, the Forest Service permits Ski Santa Fe on Santa Fe National Forest land and Taos Ski Valley, Sipapu and Red River are on the Carson National Forest, while BLM manages the Rio Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks national monuments. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is part of Minnesota's Superior National Forest, and Missouri's Mark Twain National Forest is federal land as well. On all of them 36 CFR 261.10(p) or 43 CFR 8365.1-4 applies along with 21 U.S.C. 844, and Guadalupe Mountains National Park says its marijuana ban covers the national forest and BLM land around the park.

Tribal land runs on tribal law as well as federal law, and several tribes in these states ban cannabis outright. The Havasupai Tribe, whose reservation includes Supai Village and is reached from the Hualapai Hilltop trailhead, calls its reservation dry: possession, use, distribution, consumption or sale of any drugs or alcohol is strictly prohibited. Navajo Nation Parks and Recreation says consumption or possession of alcoholic beverages or illegal drugs is strictly prohibited on the Navajo Nation and that Navajo law will be strictly enforced.

In Colorado, the Southern Ute Indian Tribe's Criminal Code makes it unlawful to possess or consume marijuana so long as it remains illegal under federal law (Section 5-7-102). Where a tribe uses a Court of Indian Offenses, often called a CFR court, the federal Law and Order Code makes possessing a controlled substance listed in 21 CFR Part 1308 a misdemeanor unless the Controlled Substances Act or DEA rules authorize it (25 CFR 11.452). The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe's website lists a CFR court.

Nevada works through compacts. The Governor may sign agreements with tribal governments to coordinate state and tribal cannabis law (NRS 223.250), and the Cannabis Compliance Board lists 13, among them the Las Vegas Paiute, the Moapa Band of Paiute Indians, the Ely Shoshone and the Pyramid Lake Paiute. A compact covers state and tribal law only, so it changes nothing inside Lake Mead, Great Basin or a national forest.

Michigan and Washington give tribes a place in the legal market. Michigan's adult-use law defines Indian lands and recognizes tribal marijuana businesses (MCL 333.27953). Treasury counted 8 licensed retail stores or microbusinesses on the Indian lands of 4 tribes as of 30 Sep 2025, among them the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians and the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. Washington's governor may sign cannabis agreements with federally recognized tribes (RCW 43.06.490), and the Liquor and Cannabis Board's 2025 annual report counted 23 completed so far. Like Nevada's compacts, these arrangements cover state and tribal law and change nothing inside Sleeping Bear Dunes, Mount Rainier or a national forest. In Massachusetts, neither the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe nor the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) posts a visitor cannabis rule that this guide found. For Ohio, this guide found no tribal government or Interior Department page on tribal land and makes no tribal statement there beyond federal law.

Several of the newer states coordinate with tribal governments, and none of those arrangements reaches federal parkland. Of the 11 Tribal Nations that share territory with Minnesota, nine had signed a compact or cooperative agreement with the state as of 23 Sep 2026, the first being White Earth Nation on 20 May 2025, and the state's Office of Cannabis Management says lawful possession on Tribally regulated land depends on each Tribe's own code. New Mexico's Cannabis Regulation Act allows state-tribal cannabis agreements (NMSA 26-2C-41), and in March 2022 the Governor's office said the state had reached such agreements with Picuris Pueblo and Pojoaque Pueblo. Connecticut law lets the Governor sign cannabis compacts with the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes (Conn. Gen. Stat. 21a-422j), though this guide found no signed compact, and Florida applies its civil and criminal laws on every reservation in the state (s. 285.16).

In Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta (2022), the Supreme Court noted that after McGirt v. Oklahoma (2020) the eastern part of the state, Tulsa included, is recognized as Indian country. There, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation's criminal code puts marijuana on its own Schedule I, although tribes, with exceptions, lack criminal jurisdiction over non-Indians. In Oregon, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs said their 2015 cannabis business vote did not legalize use or possession on the reservation. This guide read no tribal cannabis rule for Maryland, Missouri, Pennsylvania or Texas. Federal possession law applies on tribal land in every state this guide covers (21 U.S.C. 844).

They can cite you or arrest you. The Park Service says its law enforcement rangers are fully commissioned federal law enforcement officers who carry a gun, make arrests and conduct investigations. The U.S. Park Police, a unit of the Park Service with jurisdiction in all federal parks, has officers in the Washington, DC, New York City and San Francisco areas. At the Statue of Liberty checkpoint, illegal items are seized, and items you surrender voluntarily are not returned.

A federal ticket is a U.S. District Court Violation Notice, which the courts' Central Violations Bureau processes for offenses on federal property such as national parks. If Box A is checked, you must appear in court; if Box B is checked, you can pay the collateral shown or appear. The Eastern District of California's page for tickets written in Yosemite adds two points visitors often miss: paying the fine means your record shows a conviction, and the case is heard where the offense allegedly happened, not where you live.

Ignoring a ticket makes it worse. The same court says that if you fail to pay or appear, it will issue a warrant for your arrest and the fine will increase. It also notes that petty offenses carry up to six months in prison and misdemeanors up to a year. California's, New York's, Colorado's and Maryland's regulators also say cannabis may not leave the state, so leftovers from a park trip should stay in the state where they were bought.