King: Be careful at Sunrise

The majestic Sunrise location on Mount Rainier will be open to visitors by July 1 at the latest, but a park official said Friday people need to be prepared.

In other words, wear snowshoes instead of tennis shoes.

“I heard we are going to bring snowshoes over from Paradise,” said Randy King, deputy superintendent of Mount Rainier National Park. “People need to be prepared for winter conditions. They need to understand the risks. We want everyone to have a good, safe visit.”

King said there still is a lot of snow up there, adding the paved road is the highest in the state.

“It is one of the snowiest places in the world,” he said.

King said while it is green and lush at lower elevations there are no wildflowers to be seen at Sunrise.

He added he doesn’t know how many services will be available by July 1. He said there probably will be no drinking water, portable toilets will be used, and there might not be food service, although the gift shop should be open.

King said the park felt the pressure all week from local businesses and lawmakers who didn’t want to wait until a July 8 opening because then the three-day Fourth of July weekend would be a wash for them.

“The pressure was a factor. The people made it very clear what their expectations are,” he said.

But he added that the park also puts pressure on itself.

“Our workforce is very public-service oriented,” he said. “We put pressure on ourselves every year. But as managers we don’t ask employees to do what isn’t safe. For their own safety we don’t want to put them under the gun.

“It’s not as simple as opening a roadway.”

King said park officials want to provide some essential services because they don’t want to put people in potentially unsafe or unsanitary conditions. He said park staff met Friday and decided to provide access and work hard to provide as many other
services as possible. However, the revamped Visitors Center with its new
exhibits won’t open until July 14, he said.

Park staff has been clearing roads on the mountain since mid-March, but there was more than 10 feet of snow this year. The area is off the electrical grid so getting power is challenging. It’s also likely water lines are frozen or broken. Paradise also is behind schedule as the picnic area there won’t be open until after July 4th, he said.

King said picking dates of when different areas will open is a challenge every year, even with employees working overtime and seven days a week.

“We’re on mountain time,” he said, adding “and we don’t have a lot of spare staff.”