BAYVIEW - Rejoice, all ye cramped hikers, tuckered out children and chronic sunset-watchers.

The Eagle boat launch at Farragut State Park has a bench once more.

After roughly 30 Bayview residents held a protest in May over the removal of the launch's lone bench, the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation asked Farragut State Park to install a replacement earlier this month.

"I was thrilled," said Sheryl Puckett, the Bayview resident behind the protest. "I was glad to see this come to an end."

The state park installed the new $500 bench at the shoreline spot three weeks ago, said Park Manager Randall Butt.

Three additional benches were also installed as part of an Eagle Scout project at the Willow Day Use Area, Butt said.

"It should provide people with a serene view of the lake without adding congestion to other areas," Butt said. "Those will be well used and enjoyed by the public."

The order to replace the launch bench came from above, Butt said - from Nancy Merrill, the state Parks and Recreation director.

Butt said he didn't know why the director insisted on the bench, but Puckett said Merrill had met with her privately. Puckett thought she made an impression.

"You have to make the supposition that she (Merrill) thought there was no reason not to have a bench down there," Puckett said.

Merrill could not be reached for comment on Thursday.

Farragut State Park had removed the original bench, which some like Puckett say is decades old, a year and a half ago.

Randall had earlier said it was removed out of worry that the bench encouraged crowding while boats were trying to launch.

His concerns have been appeased, however, by new safety regulations the park has put in place - for instance, a shorter time limit for boaters to tie up their vessels, which will ensure fewer boaters in the area at one time.

"We're evaluating other steps and seeing what other things we can do to improve Eagle boat launch," Butt said.

Puckett is relieved to park herself at the launch again after spending so many years taking in the scenery from the bench there.

But not everything's perfect, she admitted.

While the old bench was wide and metal, with a back, the replacement is narrow, wooden and backless.

"I really feel Randall should've consulted the community and asked us what kind of bench we wanted there," she said.

That's the new model being ordered throughout Farragut State Park, Butt said.

"It's a standard flat sitting bench," he said.

Puckett said she didn't want to sound ungrateful.

"You can sit on it," she said. "Yes, I'm happy."