In our last column about “stay-cations,” we discussed the wonderful, money-saving Empire Passport, which provides vehicle access to 200 state-operated parks, recreation areas, boat launch sites, arboretums and park preserves, as well as 55 forest preserve sites operated by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

This $65 annual pass is valid from now through March 31 of next year.

This travel tip comes with a big caution today as we look toward the upcoming Fourth of July holiday.

New York State Park Police are initiating a “Safe Speeds — Safe Parks” campaign to encourage motorists to obey the lower speed limits in most state parks. The speed limits are designed to insure that motor vehicles share the road safely with bicyclists, pedestrians and other park users. No racing through the parks this summer, or you’ll be helping to fund our state’s cash crisis with a fine.

“State Park Police will be out in force during both daylight and night-time hours to make sure that drivers and passengers take DWI, speed and seat belt laws seriously,” warned State Park Police Chief Richard O’Donnell.

O’Donnell noted that these police officers have also joined state and local law enforcement agencies and highway safety groups in supporting the “Buckle Up New York” seat belt enforcement campaign. Police officers will be ticketing unbelted vehicle occupants around the clock — night and day.

Just how much will it cost you if you get caught?

Put it this way, repentant violators, who were mostly caught speeding and not stopping at red lights, collectively shelled out thousands of dollars at town courts to make financial amends for their traffic transgressions.

These drivers attended a local Driver Improvement Program to reduce the points on their licenses. And they were the lucky ones, who won’t have to pay higher car insurance rates because of their carelessness. Not to mention the costs for car repairs, medical bills and lawsuits.

The big way to save money this summer?

Drive safely. When you fail to “click it,” according to the recent signs on the Thruway heralding hundreds of tickets, you might have to pay a $100 fine out of your family’s vacation budget.

Who has to be secured under New York’s safety belt law?

All front-seat occupants and all kids under 16 anywhere in the vehicle. A child under 4 and/or up to 40 pounds must be in a “specially designed seat” anywhere in the vehicle. A boy or girl under 4, but more than 40 pounds, must be restrained in an “appropriate child restraint system” anywhere in the vehicle. A youngster age 4 or older, but under age 7, also must be restrained in this “appropriate child restraint system” anywhere in your car.

Worried about rising gas prices?

Here is another reason not to speed. James Boyle, of Kenmore, who taught the above-described Erie Community College Driver Improvement Program class, points out that you’ll be wasting fuel, money—and maybe lives—if you think speeding will save time.

Research shows that speeding at 65 mph for 10 miles in a 55-mph zone will save you all of two minutes. And that’s based on constant driving. Chances are, at speeds greater than 55 mph, you’ll be slowing down and speeding up to dodge traffic, which wastes even more gas.

And so, even when you’re having fun on vacation, as Carol Ash, state parks commissioner, reminds us, don’t forget “to heed the speed limits in parks.”

Thanks to the many readers of The Buffalo News who phoned or wrote in the response to our recent “nose-to-tail dining” column. Remember our Native American predecessors felt that, if you didn’t make use of all you took from the land, you dishonored that spirit which gave its life for you.

From Jane Bartell:

“I enjoyed your article in The News. I grew up in the 1950s and well-remember all the canning. As my mother grew up on a farm, and my father was a poor immigrant, we ate almost anything, and everything. We spent summer and fall ‘putting-up’ and freezing. We also made very good use of the pressure cooker which I still use. I use it for canning, and a smaller one for a fast-dinner meal. They are much ‘safer’ than the one I used in the ’50s.

“I wonder if this might be a good time to ‘visit’ the pressure cooker. They come in many sizes for the small family and the large. They’re easy to use, and will make even the toughest cut of meat very tender. They’re also wonderful for the hunter, as I’ve cooked a venison shoulder in the pressure cooker with the tender meat falling off the bone. They’ll process fruits and vegetables, and bake a cake! And this is all done very fast.”

And some food-for-thought from Tobi Horwitz, who asks:

“What’s the cost — if you’re someone who charges food at the supermarket — in finance fees and for storage tubs, etc. for all the bargains piling up in the cupboard or freezer?

“I really like the ‘idea’ of nose-to- tail cooking. That’s what our great-grandparents had to do to survive. A few things that might give you ‘meat’ for your next article: any of us who threw away a whole load of frozen food during the last major power failure will tell you we lost many hundreds of dollars in that one fiasco alone. What’s the real cost of running a freezer for saving all of those leftover bones for stock?”

Yes, this News writer admits, faced with the dilemma of defrosted food in the aftermath of our October Storm, I found myself serving many trays of fancy hors d’oeuvres to all the emergency workers, who did appreciate an outdoor feast.