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Dear Friend of the National Parks,
After 44 years, the last 12 with NPCA, I am retiring as a paid conservation and national park advocate this month.
As I step back to volunteer status, which is how I began this work, I know the national parks will be in good hands. We have a seasoned and dedicated Northwest team and an organization to amplify the work. There are community contacts in place and elected officials who know the importance of national park resources and experience. Our Northwest Council will continue to advance this work.
Grizzly bears are poised to return to the North Cascades, less Navy jet noise is heard over the Olympics, the waters carving the Oregon Caves are protected, and the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is still a landmark in downtown Seattle.
One of my earliest outdoor challenges came during high school doing a three-day hike along the wild Pacific coast of Olympic National Park. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to join Bob Ferguson, then Washington State’s attorney general, with family and friends repeating the same route. It had not changed over the intervening decades – it was still sweeps of beach with rolling surf, punctuated by cries of sea birds and distant barks of seals in a landscape in which one felt both small and at home.
That’s the “forever business” of the national parks that we need to keep working to protect.
Now it’s time for others to lead the way and for more allies to join this important work. I’ll be stepping back (but not quitting). I hope to see you on the trail, beach or viewpoint…
For the parks, Rob Smith
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Olympic Salmon at Risk after NPS Staff Cuts By Colin Deverell
Olympic National Park plays an important role in the recovery of Pacific Northwest salmon. With thousands of fish returning to park waters every year to spawn, National Park Service fisheries staff gauge recovery progress by monitoring how many salmon are in park rivers over time, managing important habitat restoration, and enforcing park fishing rules – until now.
Following the chaotic personnel directives from the Trump administration, Olympic no longer has any permanent staff to research, monitor and manage the park’s fisheries. While a handful of temporary people remain, the future for park fisheries remains uncertain. The Park Service remains under an agency-wide hiring freeze, preventing the park from bringing new staff on and halting habitat restoration projects. Essential research to guide protections for the park’s seven threatened aquatic species and support the ongoing recovery of the Elwha River has been disrupted.
We’re urging Congress to end the hiring freeze and restore staff capacity to protect Olympic as a salmon sanctuary. With more than 4,000 miles of rivers and streams, Olympic is home to all five Pacific salmon species. The park desperately needs its scientists and researchers to protect these icons of the northwest.
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Wide-ranging Staff Cuts Threaten Parks Across the Northwest By Graham Taylor
In addition to Olympic, parks in Washington and Oregon face deep staffing losses and NPCA has been sounding the alarm on the implications for our favorite places. In just months, parks have lost over 4,000 staff nationwide and the ongoing hiring freeze has left critical roles, like park superintendents, vacant. These decisions have strained our parks like never before. Remaining staff are required to prioritize front office work, so many visitors might not immediately notice the loss.
But we’re noticing and the consequences are piling up: North Cascades National Park lost their lead wildlife biologist and the hiring freeze is preventing the hiring of human-bear conflict specialists, responsible for responding to any conflicts with black bears in the park. Mount Rainier National Park was unable to fill their long-vacant wildlife position, despite selecting a candidate, and hiring for a vegetation ecologist position remains blocked. These specialists monitor, manage, protect and educate visitors about the meadows, marmots and more at Rainier. Oregon Caves National Monument & Preserve has been forced to reduce its cave tour availability due to a shortage of staff. The cave tours, once offered daily, are now limited to just a few days a week. Whitman Mission National Historic Site is down to one maintenance person covering three park sites more than 400 miles apart, split between Washington, Idaho and Montana parks. Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area lost their park guide, fired for being in his probationary period, just as the park received funding from a $4.6 million grant for parks to better tell America's stories. The guide would have led an in-depth study on the Fort Spokane Native American Boarding School, one of the only schools on park land that forced removal of Native children from their families. The findings would have helped improve educational materials to share more meaningful stories about the legacy and impact of the boarding school.
These cuts are just a few impacting parks in the Northwest. The National Park Service has lost 24% of its permanent staff since the beginning of this year. That sharp decline includes staff lost to pressured buyouts, early retirements, deferred resignations and hundreds of unfilled vacancies.
NPCA is urging Congress to oppose the administration's dire approach to our national park service employees. Parks are one of our best investments, generating revenue for rural communities, telling America's stories, and providing outstanding recreational and learning opportunities.
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Caves Chateau Makes Most Endangered List By Colin Deverell
The Chateau at the Oregon Caves National Monument is teetering on a precipice. This spring, the Oregon Caves Chateau was listed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as one of America’s “11 Most Endangered Places.” For the last 40 years, the list has elevated historic buildings, neighborhoods and landscapes across the country and brought visibility to these at-risk sites.
The Chateau has been closed since 2018, awaiting a long-overdue restoration project that stalled due to lack of funding. Without sustained federal investment, places like the Chateau risk being lost to time.
Now named as one of America’s most endangered historic places, this designation is a call to action. In partnership with the Friends of the Oregon Caves & Chateau, Restore Oregon and the National Trust, NPCA joined Oregon Governor Kotek in drawing attention to Oregon’s Chateau.
Tucked into the side of the Siskiyou Mountains, the Chateau has welcomed travelers from around the world as the gateway to the caves. Just like the historic lodges at Glacier, Yellowstone and Crater Lake, the Oregon Caves Chateau is a part of the national story of rustic travel experiences on the doorstep of America’s iconic natural wonders.
Now, local communities and advocates are stepping up to share the story of the Chateau and fight for its future. We’re working on securing the funding needed, through continued congressional support, to protect the legacy of this iconic Oregon landmark.
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Help Shape the Future of Ross Lake Visitation By Graham Taylor
The National Park Service is launching a public planning process to guide future visitor use at Ross Lake National Recreation Area and nearby areas along State Route 20. A public comment period runs through August 11, 2025. NPCA will actively participate to ensure equitable access and resource protection for this key site. You're invited to share your perspectives and help shape the future of this iconic part of the North Cascades.
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Sincerely,

Rob Smith Regional Director (Retired!)
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