#spring opening

Snow? Bring it on! Mount Rainier is one of the snowiest places on earth, getting an average of 639 inches (53.2 feet/16.2 meters) of snow a year. Rotary snow blowers are just one of the tools the park uses to help clear roads of snow in addition to more traditional snow plows. The rotary blades help cut through deep snow without damaging the road’s surface.

sneak peek at texas design for the blogs spring plot opening.

During spring cacturnes/other grass types grow flowers and change colour in order to display their genes like a billboard.

texas is growing a stash-goatee combo for the next ark after his winter training.

the plot will be going up soon.

Dear Lacie Questions Answered

    As I do these blogs each month it shows me how time passes. It’s hard to believe we have hit November already.  This month’s questions are about closing up the cottage.

1)Which do you find harder, opening or closing?

They are both harder in some ways, but also different.

Spring brings excitement and the clean up of old Winter dust. The cottage has to be aired out. I have to stock up all the…

Mount Rainier National Park News Release

Release Date:  May 26, 2016

Contact:  Tracy Swartout, (360) 569-6502

Mount Rainier Superintendent Randy King advises that the park is making good progress on its annual spring opening process, and is pleased to announce many popular roads will open tomorrow, just in time for the Memorial Day weekend.

Roads and facility updates:

Work will continue in 2016 on a multi-year road and utility construction project between Longmire and Paradise. This project involves rehabilitation of the driving surface for improved visitor safety and driving experience. Visitors should expect delays of up to 30 minutes Mondays through Fridays from Longmire to Paradise. No planned road work will occur on holidays/weekends, but unexpected situations may arise. Ricksecker Point Loop will be open to public access through Memorial Day weekend, after which it will close for the season to provide for road construction materials staging.

The following areas and facilities will open for the season on Friday, May 27:

·         Stevens Canyon Road

·         Longmire Wilderness Information Center

·         White River Wilderness Information Center

·         Box Canyon Picnic Area & Restrooms

Trail updates:

Snow has begun melting out along lower elevation trails, but still covers trails at higher elevations. As a result of winter storms, crews are finding that an exceptional number of trail bridges and footlogs have been washed away. Additionally, storms have blown down a high number of trees over trails park-wide, with many root ends blocking entire trail widths. In some cases, the trail tread has been extensively damaged and safe passage is difficult or impossible. In addition, many foot logs have washed out making river crossings challenging or impossible. Conditions will improve as crews work to restore trails and bridges, but it will require considerable time due to the extent of winter’s damage. Visitors are cautioned to use good judgement in determining whether their planned route is safe under existing conditions. Rocks, dirt and debris may move as you work your way around them. Always be prepared to turn back. Of note: Due to winter damage the Grove of the Patriarchs Trail footbridge is unsafe for passage. Repairs will be completed in the next few weeks.

Fee updates:

The phased increase of entrance fees in 2015 and 2016 was approved during 2015 based on public input and general support for the increases. Beginning Friday May 27, the park’s single entrance fee will rise from $20 to $25. This fee provides entry for all occupants in a single vehicle for seven consecutive days. Other park fees are noted in the table below. Walk-up, and motorcycle entrance fees will not change from 2015. Camping fees also remain unchanged ($20/night for single sites, and $60/night for group sites). Recreation fee revenue is an important component of Mount Rainier National Park funding; entrance fees support over $3 million in projects each year that have a direct benefit to the visitor experience. Planned projects include rehabilitation of infrastructure such as restrooms, trails, campsites, and accessibility. 

FEE TYPEDescriptionFee, effective May 27, 2016Mount Rainier Single EntranceGrants unlimited entry for one non-commercial vehicle and all passengers for seven consecutive days.

$25

Mount Rainier Annual PassGrants unlimited entry for one year to pass owner and passengers in the same car.

$50

Walk-up/ bicycleGrants unlimited entry for seven consecutive days for a walk-up visitor or a single bicycle.

$10

Motorcycle feeGrants unlimited entry for seven consecutive days for one motorcycle and passenger.

$20

Park information, announcements, and the webcams are posted on nps.gov/mora.

·         Get additional information and updates by joining the Mount Rainier community on Facebook:facebook.com/MountRainierNPS

·         Find out breaking news and road status updates through Mount Rainier’s Twitter feed:twitter.com/MountRainierNPS

·         Explore the park and behind-the-scenes operations with our videos on YouTube: youtube.com/MountRainierNPS

·         Share your own photos of Mount Rainier with other visitors in the Mount Rainier Flickr group: flickr.com/groups/MountRainierNPS

From a press release issued from the Washington State Department of Transportation on Tuesday, April 26, 2016: UPDATE: The pass opened to traffic around 3:15pm Thursday, April 28.  Crews were able to complete roadway damage repairs early and the highway reopened ahead of the scheduled noon Friday opening. Despite roadway damage and debris, Washington State Department of Transportation crews have reopened State Route 123.  WSDOT and the National Park Service have been working to reopen the pass since the beginning of March.  Crews have cleared all of the snow off of State Route 410 between Crystal Mountain Boulevard and State Route 123 near Stevens Canyon Road.  However, roadway damage repairs are still needed this week prior to reopening, along with additional debris clearing work in the weeks ahead. The great spring weather made snow removal a quick process this year, but the havoc left behind from winter windstorms is making clearing a challenge.  More than 40 trees came down over the roadway.

WSDOT Photo

MRNPA hard at work at Narada Falls

At least four major volunteer projects have gone on in the park over the past several days, so I think we can safely say that the summer volunteer season has begun! On Saturday, the Mount Rainier National Park Associates were here working on the trail at Narada Falls. The weather was cool and cloudy, but that's perfect weather for the kind of hard work they do, and the trail looks fantastic. Mark your calendars now--the next MRNPA project will be June 13. The location is yet to be determined, but you can learn more and contact the group to sign on through their website, MRNPA.org. A few volunteers also showed up to help us with spring trail opening at Paradise. This is a critical job, as already there is bare ground melting out around the Jackson Visitor Center! Volunteers help mark trails and make them safe. We have two people on the calendar for next weekend already, with room for several more, so if you're interested in joining us, send a note to MORA_Meadow_Rovers (at) nps.gov. A group of about a dozen Boy Scouts from the Lakewood area joined us on Saturday and spent seven hours working with Trails Supervisor James Montgomery to rebuild foot bridge abutments on the Wonderland Trail near Cougar Rock. Troop leader Bret Buck reports that "the project was challenging physically and mentally for our young leaders... All in all it was an inspiring weekend!"

Cascade Designs in the Longmire Volunteer Campground