OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — The money has been raised, and now the planning begins to keep Hurricane Ridge Road open weeklong through the snowiest months of the year.
Olympic National Park Deputy Superintendent Todd Suess said park staff are beginning to sort out exactly how many new employees must be hired and how much more fuel and sand the snow removal teams will need.
Parks spokeswoman Barb Maynes said those details will be determined over the next two weeks.
“It’s a new program, and we want to make sure we do it right,” she said.
The park will keep the road open daily, except for avalanche control and weather closures, this November through March thanks to more than $75,000 in donations raised on the North Olympic Peninsula.
The National Park Service will throw in $250,000 to cover the rest of the anticipated cost.
Maynes said the park has estimated it will have to hire another four road maintenance employees and another three people for emergency response to keep the road open more often.
The 17-mile road from Port Angeles to Hurricane Ridge, one of the most popular attractions in the park, is open only from Friday through Sunday and on some holidays from November through March.
It is open daily through the summer.
Suess said the park intends to bring the same road crew back next winter, whether or not the new hires stay on for the other seasons.
He said the new employees could be shifted to other parks until the snow returns.
As of Monday, $76,670 had been collected or pledged to the Ridge Road effort.
Some checks had yet to be deposited, and updated figures weren’t available Thursday.
While there are always opportunities for snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and snowball fights at the top of the ridge during the winter, the rope tows and poma lift at Hurricane Ridge will remain closed except for weekends.
The Hurricane Ridge Winter Sports Club said it doesn’t have the money or volunteers to expand ski lift operations beyond their Saturday-through-Sunday schedule, plus holidays, during the ski season.
The U.S. Department of the Interior, which funds the park service, agreed earlier this year to help fund extended access to Hurricane Ridge as part of a two- or three-year trial period.
Another $75,000 will have to be raised in donations next year to continue the trial, and again in 2012 if it is extended by another year.
If Interior determines the increased access has attracted enough visitors to justify the costs, it will fully fund the operation.
________
Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
