Hiker Headlines: WTA is hiring, Hoh Rain Forest closure, Oregon state park fee increases

It’s Jan. 2. Happy New Year from all of us at WTA! We are currently hiring for a full-time professional crew coordinator. The Upper Hoh Road is temporarily closed due to imminent road failure. Olympic National Forest has announced some big forest health projects coming up. Some Oregon state park fees have increased for the 2025 season. And there’s snow hitting the mountains this weekend! Here’s some news you may have missed while out on trail this week.

Did you hit the trails this week to ring in the New Year? Tell us all about it in a trip report! Photo by trip reporter KC_6.

Happy New Year! If you went on a First Day Hike or spent the first day of the year doing something else fun on trail, we’d love to read about it in a trip report. And it’s still not too late to help us with our 2025 maintenance work, Hiking Guide, advocacy, gear library and trail championing with a donation. From all of us at WTA, we hope you had a great start to the year, and we wish you a joyous and adventure-filled 2025. 

Now hiring: WTA is currently hiring for a full-time professional crew coordinator. This position will be responsible for helping support the training, coordination and management of WTA’s Lost Trails Found professional trail crew program, with an emphasis on backcountry trail projects. The hybrid position will involve both remote and field work, and is based in WTA’s downtown Seattle office. The priority application deadline is Jan. 15. WTA is also currently hiring for multiple seasonal positions, including a volunteer vacation crew leader, a Mount Rainier National Park crew leader and Lost Trails Found crew members, all of which have priority application deadlines of Jan. 5. 

Recreation area closure: The Upper Hoh Road is temporarily closed due to the danger of imminent failure at milepost 9.7. The closure has rendered the Hoh Rain Forest area of Olympic National Park — which includes the visitor center, campground, picnic area and trailheads — inaccessible until the road safe for travel again. 

National Forest projects: Olympic National Forest has announced over $264,000 worth of forest improvement projects across the peninsula, which include invasive plant prevention and control, habitat enhancement, noxious weed control, road maintenance and other forest health projects. 

Oregon state park fees increased: Some fees at Oregon State Parks have increased for the 2025 season. The cost of annual parking permits — $30 for 1 year, $50 for 2 years — will remain the same, but fees have increased for day-use parking, some camping sites, and cabins and yurts. All changes can be found on the Oregon State Parks website. Note that a Northwest Forest Pass provides visitors access to all federal lands in Washington and Oregon, but visitors need different passes (Discover Pass for Washington, Oregon State Parks permit for Oregon) to visit state lands in either state.

Ice and snow: There’s snow in the mountain forecast this weekend, and the snow line is dropping below 4,000 feet, so pack your traction devices and poles if you’re heading into the high country! Expect some freezing snow and possible ice on the roads in Eastern Washington as well. 

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