Hiker Headlines: Discover Pass cost increasing; Blewett Pass, Lena Lake and more fire closures; free day
The cost of an annual Discover Pass will increase from $30 to $45 on Oct. 1. Wildfires have closed Blewett Pass and some trails. This Saturday is National Public Lands Day, and parking fees will be waived on federal and state lands. And, thank you for speaking up for the Roadless Rule!
It’s Sept. 25. The cost of an annual Discover Pass will increase from $30 to $45 on Oct. 1. Wildfires have closed Blewett Pass and some trails. This Saturday is National Public Lands Day, and parking fees will be waived on federal and state lands. And, thank you for speaking up for the Roadless Rule! Here’s some news you may have missed while out on trail this week.
Smoke from the Labor Mountain Fire earlier this week. Photo by Rhabbie.
Discover Pass cost: The cost of a Discover Pass — the annual pass that allows for unlimited parking and entry on lands managed by Washington State Parks, the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) — will increase from $30 to $45 on Oct. 1. A Discover Pass can be shared between two vehicles and can be purchased online, over the phone, at the time of driver’s license renewal or at various licensed vendors, retail locations, Washington State Parks offices and state parks.
More fire closures: With recent growth of the Labor Mountain and Bear Gulch fires, new fire closures are in place:
- Blewett Pass/Highway 97 is closed between mileposts 149 and 178 (the junction with SR 970 and the junction with Ingalls Creek Road south of Highway 2/97 Don Senn Memorial Interchange) due to the Labor Mountain Fire.
- Some trails, like the Red Top Lookout trail, have been added to the Labor Mountain Fire closure notice.
- Some trails in Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest, like Lena Lake and Duckabush River trails, have been added to the Bear Gulch Fire closure notice.
Free day: This Saturday, Sept. 27, is National Public Lands Day, and parking fees will be waived on state lands (managed by Washington State Parks, DNR and WDFW) and federal lands (managed by the Forest Service, National Park Service and Bureau of Land Management.
Hikers spoke up! Over 3,900 hikers spoke up with WTA about saving the Roadless Rule and the 45 million acres of national forest and 25,000 miles of trail that it protects. Thank you! There will be more steps in the federal government's attempt to remove the Roadless Rule. We’ll keep you posted every step of the way. Join our Trail Action Network to stay in the know. Roadless areas provide irreplaceable benefits to all of us, including clean drinking water for communities across Washington and outstanding opportunities to get outside.
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