Mt. Rainier: Prospects for Future Access

I read a book once....  I think it was titled, "A Year In Paradise".   So.... before the year around access,  they hired some folks to spend the winter sequestered at the lodge to maintain the place.  Shovel snow off the roof and away from windows, etc.  The book had that romantic cast to it... alone all winter with the critters and the whole lodge.  In the spring the road graders would plow through, ending such splendid experience.

So, perhaps someone decided it would be better to maintain winter access in order to maintain the lodge.  I wonder how they maintain Sunrise?

Also....   year around access supports the summit guide concessions.

Oh yea... here is the book.  This is a good read. You can read half of the book online:
books.google.com/books?id=0kilKnp_fNQC&p...=gbs_summary_r&cad=0

Perhaps this book would give you a good idea of what it would be like to go back to the good old days.   

Does anybody know what winter use at Paradise has been?  It would be nice to see use figures by season from something like 1995-2005; I know use by skiers was high in 2006-2007, but I think those were mostly park employees

MRNP's website shows ANNUAL visitation from 1967-2006: www.nps.gov/archive/mora/current/vstatistics.htm

The NPS has a 'Public Use Statistics Office':
www.nature.nps.gov/stats/viewReport.cfm

This computer caveman is too lazy, but there is an option to view in Excel, so it should be possible to crunch the numbers...

I read a book once....  I think it was titled, "A Year In Paradise".   

That's a great book! The author also had his very pregnant wife snowshoe from Longmire to Paradise in very deep snow to stay with him. He late became a distinguished professor at UW.

Another good book is Otto Lange's book; he + partners put the lift in at Paradise. He was an Austrian ski instructor from the Arlberg school. He trained the first American women downhill ski Olympic gold medal winner at Paradise. He later went on the put the 1st lift in at Mt. Hood, and, I think, Mt. Baker. Then he became a movie star (in ski movies), and director/producer or something.

Had a octogenerian dinner guest last night who used to ski at Paradise before the tow rope/lift. She had to make her own wooden skis. Some guy in her club taught people how to do it then he word form in the camber and uplifted tip. She said she thought they used to skin up from Longmire. Their skins were canvass sleeves that slipped over the tails of the skis and buckled around the boot! Hadn't heard that one before. She said they did that for quite a while until train service from Tacoma to Snoqualmie started and then they good go lift served; waxed their skis and everything she said.

I'm in favor of keeping Mt. Rainier's roads open, duh.
2 broader points regarding public access and maintenance to public lands:

We may not know the numbers, but it's safe to say that for every BC skier or climber up at Paradise, there are many more tourists/flatlanders using the road, facilities and lands, many of whom are total gumbies. That's great! If we want any decent chance at preserving wild lands and access to them, people who aren't hardcore muscle-sport types must be encouraged and enabled to get out there too. They pay taxes and have many times more votes to select politicians who will either support the environment AND access to it, or not. Whenever I spew to my friends and family about climbing or skiing I also tell them to get out and take a walk or see the sights. We should be telling all we know to get out and enjoy the US's incredible natural beauty and legacy of preserving it, and then they will support parks, conservation, wilderness, BC access, etc.

Fire back at this one all you want, but to me all of these recent access/budget/maintenance discussions lead to the same place: I hope everyone who reads on this website is registered to vote, and will support candidates who see government as serving the common good.
The USA has had far too many years of people who trash government as wasteful and serving narrow special interests, while cynically using it to make money for their cronies and contributors. I wonder which party and candidates are more likely to increase funding for public lands? :

What?? The Nisqually and White River entrances are both in serious jeopardy??

There's a ton of work planned or at least projected for the White along 410. The park and DOT have projects as well as one of the Greenwater communities.

Fire back at this one all you want, but to me all of these recent access/budget/maintenance discussions lead to the same place:  I hope everyone who reads on this website is registered to vote, and will support candidates who see government as serving the common good.

If I could vote, I'd vote for a candidate that makes high school teachers work all year so they don't keep phoning me up and telling me they are going to skiing/rock climbing when I can't. 

But good points Telemack!