PORT ANGELES — Olympic National Park this summer has been balancing demands that come with the annual crush of visitors against the background of an active fire investigation into the cause of the May 7 fire that destroyed the Hurricane Ridge Day Lodge as well as preparations for a winter season that may or may not happen.
The cause of the fire remains unknown, the investigation is still ongoing and the status of winter access is still undecided, the park said in a press release issued July 28.
“Park staff are working very hard to increase access to Hurricane Ridge. We know this area is in high demand,” said Superintendent Sula Jacobs then. “We thank visitors and stakeholders for their support as we work through this difficult situation.”
Critical to expanding visitor capacity this summer and remaining open for the winter season is restoring the electrical, water and sewage systems destroyed in the fire. That work cannot begin until the entire fire investigation is over, park officials have said.
“They’ve finished one stage of the investigation, which was looking at the easier-to-access things in the site, like the outskirts of the burn area,” said Amos Almy, Olympic National Park public information officer, in an interview.
“But now they have to move on to the second level of the building, which is going to require some safety measures.”
This second phase of the investigation will require the removal of debris and shoring up some of the burned structure, as well as the closure of Hurricane Ridge to visitors from one to two days at a time while these activities take place. The park has not yet announced those dates.
The park would not provide the name of agency or organization that is conducting the fire investigation. In an email, Amos said, “The National Park Service has contracted with outside investigators who are working jointly on a cause and origin with investigators retained by the contractor and subcontractors and their insurance companies.”
Access to Hurricane Ridge this summer will continue to be limited by sanitation — specifically, the capacity of the 25 portable toilets Good Man Sanitation in Port Townsend is providing and servicing. Its contract began June 14 and runs until Oct. 13. The park declined to provide the amount of the contract.
The number of personal vehicles allowed to enter the park at Heart O’ the Hills each day is capped at 345 and unlikely to increase unless alternate or additional restroom facilities are made available.
The park usually reaches that limit by 11 a.m., when there can be 30 to 50 vehicles waiting in line that must be turned away, Almy said.
“The daily vehicle quota re-sets every midnight and then at 7 (a.m.), that’s when the entrance station starts counting vehicles,” he said.
“If you get in through the entrance station by 8:30, you probably won’t have to wait in line at all,” Almy said.
While the focus right now is on summer, businesses and skiers also are looking ahead at keeping Hurricane Ridge Road open this winter.
Winter access
“I think we all understand just how important winter access is to the Olympic Peninsula and our winter tourism economy, and access to Hurricane Ridge is paramount,” said Tommy Farris, the owner of Olympic Hiking Co., which has operated a shuttle to Hurricane Ridge for the past two years and organizes guided snowshoe tours.
“I would love to be able to start having a good game plan for winter. Out of respect for the park, I’m trying to give their team time just to digest what their plans are.”
Wendel Raymond, who leads the all-volunteer Hurricane Ridge Ski Patrol, said it is important to keep the lines of communication open between the park and those who want Hurricane Ridge available for winter access.
“I’ve had some conversations with the park and our next step as we see it is to have a more formal conversation with the other groups to brainstorm our expertise and resources and see how we can help,” Raymond said.
For Hurricane Ridge to remain open this winter, the park must continue providing sanitation in conditions far different from those in the summer. They must endure temperatures that average 29 degrees Fahrenheit in December, January and February and winds that can reach up to 100 mph. The park in July issued a Request for Quote (RFQ) for just this kind of toilet facility.
“There’s a lot of things that need to be accomplished before winter access can be established,” Almy said. “But if we get the ball rolling now on some of those things, like the RFQ, that just helps us out further down the line. We’re kind of ahead of the game.”
Regardless of Hurricane Ridge’s status this winter, the Hurricane Ridge Winter Sports Club will still hold its annual gear swap on Nov. 4 and the Hurricane Ridge Winter Sports Education Foundation will host its annual Winterfest fundraiser on Nov. 18.
The Hurricane Ridge Ski Patrol will not offer its outdoor emergency care certification course this fall. However, even those without certification can join a patrol as long as two of the three members of the patrol team do have certification. For more information, contact Raymond at wendel.raymond@gmail.com.
Danielle Lawrence with the Hurricane Ridge Winter Sports Club that runs the ski operations at Hurricane Ridge said the winter sports community has been mindful of the challenges the park is facing.
“What I’m hearing from talking to people is they understand that the park right now is under a lot of pressure just trying to get through the summer season and the sanitation situation,” Lawrence said.
“But the park does know that people are champing at the bit saying, ‘We wanna be up there, we wanna be up there.’”
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Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached at paula.hunt@soundpublishing.com.
