In honor of Veterans Day, Mount Rainier National Park will waive entrance fees for park visitors this Friday, November 11.
The National Park Service and United States Military have strong ties, dating back over a century. The U.S. Cavalry served as the first park rangers at many parks until the creation of the National Park Service in 1916. While troops were not assigned to protect Mount Rainier National Park in those early years, there has been a long-standing relationship with the military. During World War II, the famous 10th Mountain Division trained within the park and today, units from Joint Base Lewis-McChord support joint training exercises and assist with search and rescue operations.
Active duty military members and their dependents can receive a free military annual pass at the park entrance station. A free lifetime pass is also available to disabled veterans. These passes provide free entrance to more than 2,000 national parks, wildlife refuges, national forests, and other federal recreational areas. More information about the passes can be found at: www.nps.gov/findapark/passes.htm.
General park information is available at the Longmire Museum, open daily from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm. The Henry M. Jackson Memorial Visitor Center at Paradise remains closed except for weekends. The National Park Inn and Longmire General Store are open year-round to provide lodging, dining, and gift-shop services.
AN IMPORTANT REMINDER TO ALL PARK VISITORS: Effective Nov. 1, all vehicles are required to carry tire chains when traveling in the park, including 4WD vehicles. Weather in the mountains can change rapidly at this time of year and mandatory chain use may become required, even for 4WD vehicles. Visitors are reminded to be prepared for possible sudden storms.
www.nps.gov
Park information, announcements, and the Mount Rainier webcams are posted on the park’s official website, nps.gov/mora.
* Get additional information and updates by joining the Mount Rainier community on Facebook: facebook.com/MountRainierNPS
* Find out breaking news and road status updates through Mount Rainier’s Twitter feed: twitter.com/MountRainierNPS
* Explore the park and behind-the-scenes operations with our videos on YouTube: youtube.com/MountRainierNPS
* Share your own photos of Mount Rainier with other visitors in the Mount Rainier Flickr group: flickr.com/groups/MountRainierNPS
About the National Park Service- More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 413 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
