Dear Friend of the National Parks,

Please enjoy this latest update on work NPCA's Northwest Office is doing on national park protection. And thank you for helping to make it happen!

Protect Park Glaciers With Your Vote
Our national park glaciers and snowfields are melting at an alarming rate. Taking action to reduce climate change can help save those in Mount Rainier, North Cascades and Olympic National Park. In 2021, Washington state approved the Climate Commitment Act to reduce heat-causing carbon pollution from industrial sources. Now, it's all being challenged on the November ballot. We encourage all Washington state voters to vote “NO” on I-2117 to keep us on track toward a sustainable climate. Reducing pollution not only makes the air healthier to breathe but also clears up the views at our national parks. To find out more, please join NPCA and partners on Monday, October 28 at 7 p.m. at the downtown Seattle Patagonia store.

Tribute to the Late, Great Dan Evans
Whether you remember him as an Eagle Scout, U.S. Navy sailor, civil engineer, State Representative, Governor or U.S. Senator from the great state of Washington, Dan Evans's legacy looms large for our national parks and public lands in the Pacific Northwest. NPCA was saddened to learn of Governor Dan Evans's passing on September 20 at the age of 98.

Countless stories sprung up like wildflowers from his well-lived life. He championed the creation of the North Cascades National Park, Alpine Lakes Wilderness, and the scenic corridor at the Columbia River Gorge. He founded great organizations like the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Coalition. And we ought not forget that he authored and helped pass the Washington Park Wilderness Act of 1988, which protected 1.5 million acres of wildlands in Olympic, Mount Rainier and North Cascades National Parks.

In his later years, he did not stop his advocacy. Most recently, Evans supported our North Cascades Grizzly restoration campaign, writing a letter to Secretary David Bernhardt. Whether climbing mountains or protecting them for future generations, Evans had a great vision that will be sorely missed and fondly remembered.

Welcoming Grizzlies Back to the North Cascades
The recent decision to restore grizzly bears in the North Cascades has touched off a flurry of activity within the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service who hope to move bears as soon as Summer 2025. Agencies and partners are working to make sure proper signage is in place, conducting community outreach, obtaining radio collars, and positioning staff to help prevent, reduce and address any human-bear conflict.

Federal agencies have been giving presentations in communities around the North Cascades Ecosystem (NCE) to ensure that local residents understand the process and have the information and tools they need to manage bears. However, with plans to only introduce a few bears each year for three to seven years into the most remote areas, it is unlikely that people will encounter grizzlies for some time, and likely only in the backcountry.

Despite very low numbers of bears in the immediate future, nonprofit groups are doing their part to help communicate about ways to secure garbage and other attractants that can bring bears into more developed areas (which can lead to the removal of any bears that become habituated to humans). Since the North Cascades population would be “experimental” under management rules, bears could be relocated before problems occur if they wander off federal lands and into more populated areas near the park.

Crowds Ease, Visits to Mount Rainier may be Smoother
This past summer, reservations to visit Mount Rainier were required to help spread out the crowds throughout the day. So far, it seems to have worked within the park. Our site visits and park data indicate that parking was easier, trails were less congested, and traffic lines to get into the park lessened as a result. But more needs to be done outside the park to inform arriving visitors and provide areas for those waiting to enter. NPCA helped get information about the reservation system out across the state to guide visitors through navigating the process for the first time. We ran ads, connected with community organizations, met with local businesses, and are collecting ideas to “Know Before You Go” to make the system work better for everyone. Next summer could see the same reservation system, and we hope consideration will be given to more information outside the park gates and potentially a future shuttle system for crowded times.

Gathering Park Advocates in Seattle
On June 11, around 60 NPCA supporters and partners gathered at Dockside at Duke's for an evening of discussion featuring NPCA's work in Alaska and the latest efforts to restore salmon across the Olympic Peninsula. We were honored to be joined by Former U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe Wildlife Biologist Kim Sager-Fradkin, and Olympic National Park Fisheries Biologist Pat Crain.

The evening was a testament to everyone's shared commitment to continued river restoration across the Olympic Peninsula and in elevating the importance of national park challenges that our neighbors in Alaska are facing. It was a joy to connect with so many supporters and park advocates. We look forward to more opportunities to gather and rally around critical park issues that need our support.

Protecting Oregon's Painted Hills
NPCA is working with local ranchers, the community of Mitchell, Senator Merkley and other high desert advocates to consider protections for lands surrounding the Painted Hills, a unit of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. In addition to a rich fossil record from multiple eons, the canyons and hills of the area are the watershed for salmon and steelhead of the John Day River region as well as upland habitat for sage grouse. The Painted Hills are one of Oregon's best known and most frequently visited scenic wonders. Mitchell is already a gateway community to this spectacular region.

Travel with NPCA
Have you been wanting to visit a national park? Check out NPCA's travel program for details on our trip to Olympic National Park.

Thank you for being a park advocate and supporter of NPCA.

Sincerely,

Rob Smith
Northwest Regional Director