News Release

Olympic National Park Invites Public Input on Cape Alava and Sand Point Trail Rehabilitation

Date: March 25, 2022
Contact: Lee Taylor, 360-565-3002

Olympic National Park is seeking public input on the proposed rehabilitation of the Cape Alava and Sand Point trails located within the park’s Ozette area. The Cape Alava and Sand Point trails access each end of a 3-mile section of beach creating a 9-mile triangular wilderness hike, starting from the Lake Ozette Trailhead. Ozette is the busiest trailhead for overnight wilderness use in the park. Approximately 9,500 linear feet (70 percent) of the total 13,533 feet of boardwalk on the Cape Alava and Sand Point trails is in poor condition. These trails are in designated wilderness.

Interested members of the public are invited to comment on the preliminary alternative concepts. The initial concepts include a no action alternative to continue current management, replacing the boardwalk in-kind, or converting non-wetland sections of the boardwalk to turnpike (a series of ground-level wood boxes filled with gravel and soil).

More information about this project and the preliminary alternative concepts is available at the National Park Service’s Planning, Environment and Public Comment website at https://parkplanning.nps.gov/OzetteTrails. Comments may be submitted directly on this site by clicking on "Open for Comment" and following the links to review the document and submit a comment. Comments will be accepted starting Monday, March 28 through 11:59 p.m. MDT on Tuesday, April 26, 2022.

The information obtained during this civic engagement period will be used to identify and refine the elements and alternatives under consideration in an environmental assessment (EA). The EA is anticipated to be released for public review this summer.

Comments can also be mailed or hand-delivered to: Olympic National Park, Attn: Acting Superintendent Lee Taylor, Ozette Trails EA, 600 East Park Avenue, Port Angeles, Washington 98362.

Comments will not be accepted by phone or email. Please also note that your entire comment—including personal identifying information such as your address, phone number, and e-mail address—may be made publicly available at any time pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. Comments submitted by individuals or organizations on behalf of other individuals or organizations will not be accepted.

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