The National Park Service is Abandoning a North Cascades Jewel

Six decades ago, the Sierra Club seeded a successful campaign for a new national park in Washington by publishing a memorable, beautiful book entitled North Cascades: Forgotten Parkland. Our mountains made it onto Congress’ radar screen with creation of the North Cascades National Park complex. It comprises nearly 700,000 acres, a park, and two national recreation areas set aside for protection, reflection, and outdoor recreation.

Alas, that was then. The National Park Service is quietly abandoning — or at least looking away from — the North Cascades National Park. The park’s superintendent announced recently that there will be no staffing of rangers this summer at Stehekin, at the head of Lake Chelan, and that the Golden West Visitor Center will not open. The Park Service is pleading poverty and pulling out.

A proclamation by the city of Chelan, where folks board the Lady of the Lake tour boat bound for Stehekin, sums up what awaits them: “No rangers to greet visitors, give directions, point out trailheads, issue camping permits, explain the hazards of wilderness experience, direct visitors to bathrooms, or assist with emergencies.”

Forget about exhibits at the visitor center, curated by local artists. If you want to make a camping reservation, or learn about the park, you’ll have to go on line or find a talkative staff member at the North Cascades Lodge.

https://www.postalley.org/2024/03/21/the-national-park-service-is-abandoning-a-north-cascades-jewel/