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Here is a our take on some of the topics we think will be the focus of conversations throughout the coming year:
PARK BUDGETS
From small-town parks to our iconic national parks, it’s fair to say all will be dealing with budget cuts this year. The impacts could range from the worst-case scenario of park closures to program cuts to maintenance reductions.
At Mount Rainier National Park, leadership is preparing to deal with a 3 percent cut this year. But they also had to interrupt their Christmas party to go over documents and talk with regional director about a potential government shutdown, said Superintendent Randy King.
“We’ve been told to expect a 3 percent cut. That has a tremendous impact. People say 3 percent isn’t that much. But the bulk of our money is in people. It will mean fewer people,” King said.
At State Parks and Recreation, the lagging sales of the new Discover Pass has management looking at turning 160 full-time jobs into far fewer seasonal jobs. The agency is forecasting the state will receive almost $24 million less than the $64 million the agency originally predicted for the first two years.
LA NINA
Skiers and snowboarders are excited about a second consecutive year of La Niña weather, but these cooler and wetter than normal winters and springs aren’t kind to all outdoor lovers.
La Nina played havoc on hikers in 2011 who wanted to hike some of the state’s most popular higher-elevation trails. Snow lingered four to six weeks longer than normal on many trails, keeping some parties from finishing popular summer hikes such as Mount Rainier’s Wonderland Trail well into August.
La Niña weather brings mixed emotions for anglers, too, said Mike Chamberlain of Ted’s Sports Center in Lynnwood.
“It’s good for fish and it won’t effect us streamwise,” Chamberlain said. “But it does cut into opportunities to fish the high lakes. And when it’s colder and wetter later into the year, there is a little more negativity (among anglers). It affects their attitudes about going out and doing things.”
But until then they can always drown their sorrows in knee-deep powder.
FUTURE PLANNING AT PARK
The major work to be done at Mount Rainier this year will take place behind the scenes. Park staffers are expected to seek bids for a 10-year contract to run the lodging, food and concession operations at the park. In addition, an environmental assessment for dealing with the human impact at Camp Muir is expected to be released, as well as an air tour management plan.
Mount Rainier Guest Services currently holds the contract, running operations such as Paradise Inn and National Park Inn, as well as various gift shops and dining facilities.
The major on-the-ground work will be on Stevens Canyon Road. It will again be closed after Labor Day to allow crews to do subsurface stabilization work on the west end and repair the tunnel walls at milepost 6.9 and 8.5. The road will be closed from just east of the Paradise Valley Road to the Box Canyon area.
STEVENS PASS BIKE PARK
Washington got a sneak peak at the new Stevens Pass mountain bike park in 2011 when the ski area opened 1 trails for four rainy days in October.
“We figured we might have 200-250 people the first day,” said Stevens Pass spokesman Chris Rudolph. “We got 450 the first day and 1,400 for the four days. Clearly, it’s something people are pretty excited about.”
In 2012, the project will be built out to four trails accessible to intermediate and advanced riders. The resort is also moving forward with plans for 22 trails.
“The future is bright,” Rudolph said.
Rudolph says the Northwest’s mountain biking community has been instrumental in raising money for the project.
“This never would have happened without the Drop in Alliance,” Rudolph said, referring to a 200-member Stevens Pass mountain bike club. Members paid $1,000 each to join.
Half of the trails will be built by hand and the other half will be built with excavators.
Rudolph anticipates the lift-served trails will be ready to ride in early July with expansion to four trails complete by the end of summer. Stevens Pass also hopes to host a downhill race in 2012.
HUNTING AND FISHING OPPORTUNITIES
For the typical fishermen and hunter, the basic question is “Will I be successful?” The answer means more than a salmon filet on the grill or a pot of elk stew.
There is an expectation that fishing in the Columbia River should be very good this year. Is that enough, however, to counter the lost license sales because there won’t be a pink salmon run in 2012? Anglers also are now paying more for licenses for the first time since 1997.
Among hunters, the question becomes is it worth the expense to head afield in hopes of bagging a deer or elk. Deer harvest totals from 2006-2010 have shown nearly a 12 percent decline statewide. Elk hunter success rates have been 9-11 percent over the same five-year period.
The ramifications are troubling. A decline in fishing and hunting licenses has a cascading effect, from the state Department of Fish and Wildlife to businesses that serve the needs of hunters and anglers. The sale of hunting and fishing licenses generates about $40 million a year. Expenditures by people fishing and hunting in Washington – buying bait, renting a boat, buying camouflage clothing, eating at a local diner while on a trip – top $1.2 billion a year.
OAR NORTHWEST PROJECTS
Four Northwest men plan to take on two challenging rowing expeditions in 2012. The men plan to circumnavigate Vancouver Island in April. The 600-mile row is a training trip for an even bigger expedition.
In December, the men will row from Africa to Venezuela.
The crew, OAR Northwest, consists of 2008 Olympic gold medal rower Adam Kreek, writer Jordan Hanssen, physical therapist Greg Spooner and Boeing flight test engineer Richard Turnbill.
Hanssen and Spooner, both University of Puget Sound graduates, were part of an expedition that earned a Guinness Book of World Records mention in 2006 by rowing from New York to England in 71 days.
While this transatlantic trip is much longer (almost 4,000 nautical miles), Hanssen says circumnavigating Vancouver Island might be a bigger challenge.
“We’ll have the weather and big swells of the Pacific,” he said. “On the east side we’ll have incredible tides that can overpower us. And boat traffic is different than the middle of the ocean. ... It will be a challenging row.”
Craig Hill: 253-597-8497
craig.hill@thenewstribune.com
Jeffrey P. Mayor: 253-597-8640
jeff.mayor@thenewstribune.com
blog.thenewstribune.com/adventure
