Mount Rainier National Park National Park Service Mount Rainier National Park U.S. Department of the Interior The Tahoma News September 4 - December 31, 2012 Winter Road Closures Mountain Colors As autumn progresses toward winter and storms Mount Rainier is famous for its magnificent bring increasing amounts of snow to Mount Rainier, wildflower meadows in summer and abundant roads will close for winter. Look for most roads to snowfall in winter. Fall is another remarkable reopen in May or June. season on the mountain with crisp, clear days more Welcome... the norm than the exception in early to mid fall than • Stevens Canyon Road is closed to through in summer. Bears frequent the meadows to forage traffic due to road construction (see the article on huckleberries. A highlight of the season is the below). vibrant colors of fall foliage from the old growth • Sunrise Road closes at the junction with White forest up to the subalpine meadows at treeline. ...to fall at Mount River Campground Road every night beginning Rainier! As the all- in late September. It reopens each morning as too short summer Superintendent conditions permit. Overnight parking is not season comes to an Randy King allowed at Sunrise when the road is closed end at “The Mountain”, a wonderful nightly. The entire road will be closed for winter at the SR 410 junction on October 8, or earlier “... The reds of the dwarfed new season begins. The warm days with the first heavy snowfall. Huckleberry bushes and begin to get cooler, and daylight • Washington State Department of Transportation the Vine Maples equal in hours become shorter. It is a season is scheduled to close SR 410, Chinook Pass, brilliance and surpass of transition, and still, a wonderful and Cayuse Pass on November 13, and SR 123 in varieties of shades the time to visit and experience your on November 26. Call 1-800-695-ROAD for magenta, Indian Paintbrush; current status. Early snowfall could cause winter park. Fall’s colors replace summer’s the yellows of the Mountain flowers, and over 260 miles of trails road closures prior to scheduled dates. Ash leaves and the Black • Mowich Lake Road closes October 29, or with beckon you to get up close and Cottonwoods are rivals of the first snowfall. personal with Mount Rainier. • The road between Nisqually Entrance and the buttercups or the still- Longmire remains open throughout winter blooming Alpine Mimulus. except during extreme weather. In late September, I’ll be taking • The road between Longmire and Paradise “... countless shades of green a week off to hike the 93-mile closes nightly from October 29 through winter. ... help to accentuate the Wonderland Trail with friends. My It reopens the following morning or when snow flaming colors of mother wife, Sally, and I previously hiked removal activities allow. nature’s autumn dress.” sections of the trail with our young Poor visibility and reduced traction present driving – as written by Floyd Schmoe, sons over a three-year period. Those park naturalist, in a 1925 hazards during winter. Shady areas and bridge hikes are among our most cherished edition of the park’s Nature surfaces can be treacherously icy even when other Notes family memories. Mount Rainier is sections of roadway are not. While in the park, you like that…a place where beauty, are required to carry tire chains that fit your vehicle challenge, and the people we (including four wheel drive and all wheel drive vehicles). Make sure you can install them safely. Use share and experience it with, have caution and stay alert. been creating best memories for Viewing Fall Colors generations of visitors. • Look for changing vine maple at lower Travel Advisories: elevations throughout the park Please enjoy, share and protect your • Take the three-mile drive out Westside Road to park; be mindful of its hazards – Roadwork Ahead see fall colors. Hike from there to enjoy more fall foliage. for the Mountain can also be an Stevens Canyon Road • Hike Grove of the Patriarchs and Eastside Trail unforgiving place – and may your visit This fall, rehabilitation work continues on Stevens to see the colors reflected in the Ohanapecosh become part of a cherished, personal Canyon Road. Following Labor Day, the road will River. connection with Mount Rainier. be closed to all vehicles and bicycles from just east • Photograph the historic rustic buildings of the intersection with the Paradise Valley Road to accented by fall colors at Longmire. just west of the Box Canyon overlook, due to major • See the subalpine meadows cloaked in the Randy King, roadway stabilization work near Inspiration Point red and orange of changing huckleberry at Superintendent and Bench Lake curve. Paradise, Sunrise, and throughout the park’s backcountry. During the closure, visitors • Take a drive on the eastside roads (SR 123 and wishing to drive to the Paradise SR 410), famous for their fall colors. area must enter the park from the • Stop at viewpoints to see slopes and avalanche southwest via Nisqually Entrance tracks awash in the colors of fall. at the east end of SR 706. Box Canyon Inside The Tahoma News may only be accessed from the east via Stevens Canyon Entrance. Visitors traveling Climate Friendly Parks! Park Contact Information ...2 between the park’s west side (Longmire/Paradise/ SR 706) and the east side (Ohanapecosh/White Mount Rainier National Park is a climate friendly General Visitor Information ... 2 River/SR 123) must take a detour route outside the park with a goal of becoming carbon neutral by Hiking & Safety ... 2-3 park. The recommended route follows SR 7 and US 2016 - the centennial of the National Park Service. 12 via the towns of Elbe, Morton, and Packwood. Facilities ... 4 Box Canyon can be accessed from the east. You can participate in the Climate Friendly Parks effort! Calculate your carbon footprint, set your Campgrounds ... 4 The project is estimated for completion by October personal goals, and find other information at 2013. No road closures are anticipated during 2013. www.nps.gov/climatefriendlyparks. 1 Please deposit recyclable materials (aluminum cans, plastic bottles, glass) in the green recycling cans Mount Rainier: Enjoy Your Visit, National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior An Active Volcano Protect Your Park Active steam vents, periodic earth tremors, and Mount Rainier National Park was established in historic eruptions provide evidence that Mount 1899 to preserve the natural and cultural resources Mount Rainier National Park Rainier is sleeping, not dead. Seismic monitoring in this area and to provide for public benefit stations around the mountain should provide and enjoyment. Please enjoy the park safely and Superintendent days or weeks of advance warning of impending Randy King courteously, and help protect park resources by eruptions. Other geologic hazards, however, can following these rules: Mailing Address occur with little warning. These include debris • Pets must be on leashes no longer than six feet 55210 238th Avenue East flows and rockfalls. The more time you spend in an and are not allowed in buildings, on trails, off- Ashford, WA 98304 area with geologic hazards, the greater the chance trail, or on snow. that you could be involved in an emergency event. • Do not feed, approach, or disturb the wildlife. E-mail While most people consider the danger to be • Stay on designated trails. [email protected] relatively low, you must decide if you will assume • Make fires only in a fire grill. Collecting Park Headquarters the risk of visiting these potentially dangerous firewood is prohibited. (360) 569-2211 locations. • Bicycle only on roads, not on trails. (360) 569-2177 TDD • Camp in designated campsites only. Sleeping If you are near a in vehicles outside of campgrounds is not Lost and Found river and notice permitted. (360) 569-6608 a rapid rise in • The use of firearms is prohibited within water level, feel a Mount Rainier National Park. Also, federal Websites prolonged shaking law prohibits firearms in certain facilities in Mount Rainier National Park: www.nps.gov/mora of the ground, and/ North Coast and Cascades Science & Learning this park; those places are posted with signs Network: http://nwparkscience.org/ or hear a roaring at public entrances. People who can legally sound coming from possess firearms under federal, Washington Official Social Media Sites upvalley – often described as the sound made by a State, and local laws may possess them in the Facebook: www.facebook.com/MountRainierNPS fast–moving freight train – move quickly to higher park. Flickr: www.flickr.com/groups/MountRainierNPS ground! A location 200 feet or more above river Twitter: www.twitter.com/MountRainierNPS level should be safe. YouTube: www.youtube.com/MountRainierNPS Detailed information is available at park visitor centers or from scientists at the U.S.G.S. Cascades Winter Group Camping Volcano Observatory, 1300 SE Cardinal Court, Winter camping at Paradise is permitted when Building 10, Suite 100, Vancouver, WA 98661, there is sufficient snow (generally mid–December EXperIenCE YOUR AmerICA™ or visit the U.S.G.S. Cascade Volcanoes website: through April). Parties of 13 to 100 must camp vulcan.wr.usgs.gov. in one of the designated group camping areas at Paradise and must pre–register. Please call 360-569-6575 (Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.) Bicycling Opportunities at least 2 weeks in advance. Provide group name, leader name, party size, date requested, and a Bicycling on park highways has become increasingly Keep Wildlife Wild! call–back phone number. Your pre–registered popular. However, winding roads, blind curves, Feeding wildlife is a significant management issue at permit will be available for pickup at the Longmire heavy traffic, and very narrow road shoulders Mount Rainier National Park.