Mountain Family:
Alpi Marittime

It's good to have family. Recently, North Cascades National Park formed a relationship with a sister park in Italy: Parco delle Alpi Marritime, established in 1995. Located on the French-Italian border, Alpi Marittime looks a lot like the North Cascades at first glance. Its mountains are steep and close to the sea, and glaciation formed many of their striking features. Ibex, chamois and mouflon, types of wild goats and sheep, graze on steep valley walls in a striking resemblance to the North Cascades mountain goat, and as at North Cascades, marmots chirp at visitors from the hillsides. The resemblance doesn't end there. Like the North Cascades, Alpi Marittime has both towns and hydroelectric projects within the park, posing unique management issues.

Photos courtesy Alpi Marittime

Alpi Marittime has a very different history from the North Cascades. Both began as reserves, but while North Cascades National Park was carved out of National Forests, Alpi Marittime was formed from land that served as a hunting reserve for the Savoia family in the mid 19th century. In Alpi Marittime, the visitor can view something not found in the North Cascades: royal hunting lodges and chalets.

Both parks face similar issues. In Alpi Marittime, ibex and golden eagle populations are threatened, and programs are underway to help their recovery. The effects of global climate change are seen in disappearing glaciers. Prehistoric sites and historical buildings need to be researched and preserved. And, a balance must be found to meet the needs of residents and visitors while protecting the park's natural resources.

During the summer of 2004, the superintendent of Alpi Marittime visited the North Cascades National Park Service Complex, and the two parks have been in contact since. These sister parks can learn from each other's experience and gain a broader understanding of parks, people and the world.

To explore more of Alpi Marittime, visit: http://http://www.parks.it/parco.alpi.marittime/Eindex.html.

Research North Cascades

Research in the Park

The North Cascades has a local relief of over 8,000 feet, more than 700 glaciers, two major watersheds, old growth forests, and pristine alpine meadows. Over 1,500 vascular plants and 300 vertebrate species have been identified in the area. It has a history of use by indigenous peoples and a complex geologic story involving sedimentary, metamorphic and volcanic processes. The great jumble of peaks that is the North Cascades provides a formable challenge to any desiring to explore their interior. As a result, a large portion remained roadless and wilderness. With such a varied and relatively protected landscape, there is an abundance of study and research opportunities.

The Park Service, Forest Service, private organizations and universities perform research in the North Cascades. The projects and goals are extremely varied.

A major program in the National Park is the Natural Resource Challenge and its Inventory and Monitoring Program. This ambitious program seeks to acquire information about the species and distribution of vertebrates (such as mammals, birds, amphibians, fishes and reptiles) and plants, air and water quality data, as well as geology and soil information. This data can be used to generate maps, plan future monitoring and restoration work and better manage and preserve the park.

The Forest Service is also conducting varied research projects. Researchers are studying the effects of climate change on various forest types, the dynamics of fire in forests. They are also working on surveying mountain goat populations and monitoring stream health.

University researchers are studying many aspects of the North Cascades. Park staff and teams from several Universities have been monitoring the glaciers. Not only are they studying the retreat of many of the glaciers, but also the invertebrates that live in them. People from Western Washington University are studying the effects of recreational use on alpine sites such as Trapper Lake and the history of regional volcanism at Hannegan Caldera.

This is just a sampling of the people involved and the science that occurs year-round in the park. Together, we are filling in the pieces of the puzzle that is the North Cascades, but there is still much work to be done.

For more information, check out the National Park publication: Natural Notes, or visit: http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/ & http://www.nps.gov/nwresearch/.