Hiker Headlines: Free Days, Outdoor Rec Funding, Road Openings, Methow Planning

It’s June 9. Enjoy a fee-free visit to the trailhead weekend. The Department of Agriculture unveiled $503 million of funding for outdoor recreation projects. Chinook Pass is set to reopen on June 10. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is hosting a public workshop to discuss development of the Methow Wildlife Area. And, Washington State Parks will be starting up their summer outdoor concert series. Here’s some news you may have missed while out on trail this week.

SR 410 Chinook Pass at Mount Rainier National Park opens tomorrow, June 10, at 8 a.m. Expect snow to linger on trails for a while longer, though. You won't see conditions like this until July or August. Photo by Svitlana Imnadze. 

Free days: Parking fees will be waived in many day-use areas this weekend. Saturday, June 11, is National Get Outdoors Day; fees will be waived on lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service. Sunday, June 12, is Free Fishing Weekend. On both days, fees will be waived on lands managed by Washington State Parks, the Washington Department of Natural Resources and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

New outdoor recreation funding: WTA’s Interim CEO, Jamie Loucky, joined Deputy Secretary of Agriculture, Jewel Bronaugh, at Franklin Falls where the Deputy Secretary unveiled $503 million in new funding for outdoor recreation infrastructure as part of the Great American Outdoors Act. WTA helped secure GAOA funding and are partnering with land managers to help put the money to work restoring trails in Washington.

Road openings and closures: SR 410 Chinook Pass near Mount Rainier National Park will reopen tomorrow, June 10, at 8 a.m. after Washington State Department of Transportation crews finished clearing the snow for the season. Additionally, due to flooding, Umatilla National Forest has closed Forest Service Road 4713 until further notice, and Panjab Trail and Tucannon River Canyon will be inaccessible.

Public workshop in the Methow: The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) invites the public to discuss the future of the Methow Wildlife Area. WDFW wants public input on a management plan to further develop the wildlife area. The workshop will take place in Winthrop on Tuesday, June 28, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.  

Outdoor music: Washington State Parks will begin their outdoor concert series this weekend as a part of their Folk and Traditional Arts Program. The concerts will be taking place at Deception Pass, Lake Wenatchee and Cape Disappointment state parks. All events in the series are free and open to the public. A Discover Pass is required to park. 

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