I went to a lecture today given by Mike Gauthier, head climbing ranger at Mt. Rainier National Park. He presented for over an hour regaring the flood damage from Nov. 2006. The estimates to repair the damage are in the $36M range right now and will probably go up from there. To put that number into perspective the entire maintenance budget for MRNP for last year was just under $2M. The park will open on May 1 but with limited services, parking, and camping/hiking. The climbing routes were the least affected although it may be difficult to get to some of the base camps due to trail damage.
As Mike put it, "It may be easier to summit the mountain this year than to hike the Wonderland Trail" due to extensive and broad ranging flood damage.
Anyone who wishes to donate time or money to the park restoration can contact the Park Service directly or the Washington National Park Fund.
Link to Mount Rainier Climbing
As Mike put it, "It may be easier to summit the mountain this year than to hike the Wonderland Trail" due to extensive and broad ranging flood damage.
Anyone who wishes to donate time or money to the park restoration can contact the Park Service directly or the Washington National Park Fund.
Link to Mount Rainier Climbing
No comments:
Post a Comment