Schedule Openings

The NPS at Mt. Rainier NP has released the initial schedule for openings for facilities, campgrounds and roads, as well as additional news on road closures and other possible delays see their press release (PDF). Note this is the initial schedule and as always, subject to change with the spring weather, as we've all known over the years.

The other news is that snow activites are closed Sunday April 5th. This is to ensure the snowmelt and people don't damage areas underneath the snow. As such they write:

PROJECTED OPENING DATES FOR PARK ROADS, CAMPGROUNDS, AND OTHER FACILITIES FOR 2009 ARE LISTED BELOW:

APRIL
State Route 410/Cayuse Pass April 24 (tentative)
State Route 123 @ park boundary April 24 (tentative)

MAY
Henry M. Jackson Memorial Visitor Center (7 days/week) May 4
Paradise Inn May 15
White River Road to Campground parking lot May 20
State Route 410/Chinook Pass May 22
Cougar Rock Campground & Picnic Area (noon) May 22
Wilderness Information Center – Longmire May 22
Ohanapecosh Campground (noon) May 22
Paradise Valley Road May 22
Ohanapecosh Visitor Center May 23

JUNE
Paradise Picnic Area June 19
White River Campground (noon) June 26
Sunrise Road June 26

JULY
Mowich Lake Road July 3
Sunrise Lodge July 3
Sunrise Visitor Center July 3

The June-July schedule follows the normal dates for these areas and may change if the snow melts sooner or last longer than normal. We had a surge of snowfall which increased the snowpack significantly, but everything changes once the area gets into snowmelt in late April and especially May. A warm spring could bring the openings earlier as well as the opposite.

The NPS will keep us posted, as I will here.

Photo public domain by the NPS, the general store at Longmire, April 2, 2009