Winter Visitors Urged to Carpool

Date: January 5, 2007
Contact: Barb Maynes, 360-565-3005

With already limited parking and recent news that the Snow Bus will not operate this winter, park staff is urging Hurricane Ridge snow-seekers to carpool and pay extra attention to making the best use of parking spaces.

“We’re asking our winter visitors to help conserve the limited parking spaces at Hurricane Ridge,” said Olympic National Park Superintendent Bill Laitner. “Ride-sharing and carpooling will help a great deal, and parking close together will save space for additional cars.”

“However, it’s important to realize that parking is limited, and despite our best efforts, the road will still need to close if and when the parking lot fills,” Laitner added.

The Hurricane Ridge Road closed to uphill traffic several times during the recent holiday week because the parking lot was completely full. When this occurs, vehicles are stopped at the Heart o’the Hills entrance station; once parking spaces become available, vehicles are once again permitted to travel to the Ridge.

All vehicles must park within the Hurricane Ridge parking lot; roadside parking is only permitted at the Sunrise Snowplay Area.

Weather permitting, the Hurricane Ridge Road is scheduled to be open 9 a.m. to dusk, Friday through Sunday, through April 1, 2007. The road is closed Monday through Thursday during the winter months. The road is also scheduled to be open on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (Monday, January 15) and Presidents Day (Monday, February 19).

Winter conditions such as storms, drifting snow, or avalanche danger may delay or prohibit the road from opening or may force an early closure.

Recorded information about Hurricane Ridge Road and weather conditions is available 24 hours a day at [phone] or 530 AM in Port Angeles.

Entrance fees are collected at the Heart o’the Hills entrance station whenever the road is open. Olympic’s seven-day entrance pass, which allows a private vehicle to enter any of the park’s roadways, costs $15. The Olympic National Park Annual Pass, good for one year after the purchase date, costs $30.