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2017
January 3 2017 Jonathan Jarvis, the 18th director of the National Park Service whose seven-year stint at the top of the agency witnessed the highs of the National Park Service Centennial and the lows of scandals, on Friday announced that he would retire on January 3, 2017. Fall 1982 through the Middle of 1986 – Jon Jarvis – Director of the National Park Service served as Crater Lake Resource Management Specialist until 1986 when he became chief of Resource Management at North Cascades National Park. Jon followed Mark Forbes when he moved to the regional office in Seattle. Jon spent much of his time at CLNP writing the Park’s wilderness proposal. The plan still has not been enacted by Congress. The proposal took on new life when Jon was appointed NPS Director in 2009.
January 10 2017 An avalanche closes Highway 62 from Union Creek to Crater Lake National Park’s western boundary. The park will be closed for the next several days. A layer of snow about 18 inches deep and 100 feet wide slid onto the road between Munson Valley Road and the Pacific Crest trailhead. Numerous trees fell along the highway stretch.
January 12 2017 Park rangers confirmed rescued three visitors after recent snowstorms forced the visitors to take refuge in a heated comfort station at Rim Village. A rotary snowplow cleared a path on the 3-mile road from park headquarters to Rim Village to reach the stranded visitors. None of the individuals sustained major injuries. Stacey Valle and Jason Hwong were sight-seeing at Crater Lake when they became stranded by snow. They were discovered by a stranded snowshoer, Christ Fipps, who also took refuge in the comfort station. (H&N)
February 10 2017 National Park Service agents are offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of whoever stole about 10,000 rounds of ammunition last weekend from its park ranger program. The ammunition, which was a combination of rifle and handgun bullets, was taken from a building near park headquarters. The theft was discovered Monday morning when a ranger noticed a door in that building was open, and when he looked in he noticed the missing ammunition. (MT) Jennifer Evans is a spokeswoman for Crater Lake National Park. She says there’s also video showing what authorities call a “witness vehicle” passing by the Annie Creek entrance station on the southern portion of the park.
“The vehicle entered at approximately 2:30 am on February 6th,” Evans tells KLCC. “And investigators released it because they want to identify the occupants of the vehicle, in the event that they may have witnessed something that could help with the case.” The vehicle appears to be a pickup truck. Evans says despite the theft, there’s no perceived threat or danger to Crater Lake National Park or its visitors.
April 1 2017 (Notice the DATE!) (AP-Crater Lake, OR – Visitors demonstrating approved park transportation under new “no vehicle” policy. Citing a massive increase in visitation over the past two years that has resulted in significant crowding and near gridlock conditions in the summer, the National Park Service announced plans today to ban cars from Crater Lake National Park beginning in 2020.
A doubling of visitation from 400,000 to 800,000 has left roadways jammed, parking lots gridlocked and entrance stations at a near standstill during the peak summer season. According to park spokeswoman Emma Jo King the park will build two massive parking lots near both the north and south entrances capable of holding several thousand cars each. King said visitors will then be asked to hike, bike or use rental Segways to traverse the 90 miles of park roads and 33 mile Rim Drive. Recognizing that some visitors may be fatigued once reaching the 7000 foot elevation of the caldera, the park plans to install “people movers,” similar to those in airports at the most popular vantage points like the Watchman Overlook, Cleetwood Cove and Garfield Peak. “We had to do something to relieve the pressure” noted the park superintendent. “If off-season visitation shows the same trend over the next few years, similar measures will have to be enacted in winter, but using skis, snowshoes and dogsleds.” (From the Park’s website/FB)
May 1 2017 Yesterday we led our final public snowshoe walks of the season. In total, almost 2,400 participants joined us for an off-trail exploration through the snow. We set a new attendance record, despite the harshest conditions since 2011 and the frequent closure of the road to Rim Village.
FY 2017 117 walks 2,398 visitors
FY 2016 119 walks 2,383 visitors
FY 2015 115 walks 2,099 visitors
FY 2014 116 walks 2,252 visitors
FY 2013 104 walks 2,027 visitors
FY 2012 98 walks 1,794 visitors
FY 2011 104 walks 2,093 visitors
FY 2010 91 walks 1,949 visitors
FY 2009 81 walks 1,657 visitors
FY 2008 65 walks 1,323 visitors
FY 2007 50 walks 909 visitors
FY 2006 30 walks 507 visitors
I’d like to express my gratitude to all of you who helped make this such a successful winter. Thanks to Emily, Sarah, Tommy, David, and Larry Smith for leading visitors through the rain, sleet, snow, wind, and cold. You opened people’s eyes to aspects of the park that they never would have experienced on their own. And big thanks to the Crater Lake Natural History Association, whose employees were willing to cover the desk by themselves in the afternoons, allowing us to accommodate more snowshoers than we possibly could have otherwise.
This is a labor-intensive program in a challenging environment, and we could not have done it without your hard work, dedication, positive attitude, and perseverance. Thanks Again! Ranger Grimes
May 2017 The City of Chiloquin has agreed to sell roughly 2.5 million gallons of water to the Park during May and June after the park was told it could no longer draw from Annie Spring. Crater Lake’s need for an alternative water source became apparent May 3 when they were informed Annie Creek was included in a call on water by the Klamath Tribes. The tribes, which hold the most senior water right, called the claim to keep water in the streams after analyses showed flows in the Wood River weren’t high enough to maintain healthy riparian habitats for native plants and fisheries. The state instructed the park not to withdraw water from Annie Creek, a tributary of the Wood River and the park’s water source. Plans are in place to drill a well as a permanent alternative near the PCT.
The cost of water from Chiloquin could total more than $37,000 while the park expects to pay Action Sanitary, of Lower Lake, Calif., approximately $400,000 to haul the water. The installation of tanks at the Park’s water plant is expected to add $10,000 to the tab between parts and labor. Action Sanitary, 6,000-gallon trucks would make the trip to and from the park an estimated eight to 10 times per day.
The need for an alternative water source became urgent when the park was informed Wednesday they are affected by a call on water made by the Klamath Tribes on the Upper Klamath Lake watershed, which includes Annie Creek. Crater Lake Superintendent Craig Ackerman told the city council, when the park stopped drawing from the creek Wednesday, they had roughly seven to 10 days of water left in reserve, even with significant water conservation measures in effect.
The park had been drawing from Annie Creek to supply water for drinking and fire protection since 1975.
The City agreed to sell water at $0.015 per gallon during May and June, an estimated total of $37,500. Ackerman said the park needed to find a solution quickly and went to Chiloquin because they were the closest, geographically. He said plans are in place to drill a groundwater well near the PCT for a permanent solution as soon as possible, but water needs to be shipped during the meantime. Guests and residents are encouraged to bring drinking water from outside the park, to use garbage receptacles instead of flushing trash down toilets, to take shorter showers and avoid baths, and to alert staff to leaking faucets and water lines at the park. (summarized from three articles from the H and News)
Season 2017 Crater Lake sets record drawing 756,344 visitors. The total was 23 percent more than 2015, when the park set the previous record of 614,712. Nearly 83 percent of visits in 2016, or 621,791, were recorded from June through September. Monthly visits peaked in July, with 190,231. Overnight backcountry stays increased to 4,706 in 2016, a nearly 45 percent increase from 2015’s 3,253. (MT)
May 21 2017 A man survives a roughly 1,000-foot plunge into the Crater Lake caldera. The 22-year-old was rescued by helicopter and taken to a Medford hospital Sunday evening after he fell over the rim just after 2 p.m. Park rangers had to rappel roughly 600 feet into the caldera just to spot the man. His fall landed him about 100 feet from the lake. The agency summoned a helicopter from Brim Aviation out of Ashland, which arrived on scene by 3:30 p.m. After a helicopter rendezvous in Prospect, Mercy Flights airlifted the man to a Medford hospital.
July 4 2017 20-year-old Kevin Octavio Pineva, from Orlando, Florida died after falling from a rocky cliff edge along West Rim Drive. The man had scrambled down inside the caldera just west of Rim Village. The incident occurred at about 5:45 a.m. Witnesses said the victim walked onto a rocky point when rocks he was standing on broke loose. He fell about 50 to 70 feet. Alec Chapman, a Crater Lake National Park supervisory ranger, said witnesses told park rangers the man had scrambled down inside the caldera and walked onto a rocky point, where rocks he was standing on broke loose. As he fell he dislodged a rock the followed him down crushing his head. (MMT)
July 6 2017 Crater Lake National Park’s temporary water system, which allows water from a well near the Pacific Crest Trail junction off Highway 62 to be transported to the park’s water treatment system, became operable July 1. Water for drinking and other uses had been transported to the park from Chiloquin since mid-May. Water deliveries of 36,000 gallons per day were necessary because of the Klamath Tribes call on water in May. Annie Creek, which normally supplies the park’s water, is a tributary of the Wood River and Upper Klamath Lake watershed affected by the call. Work on installing a permanent, underground line is scheduled to begin Monday and be completed late this summer. The cost of hauling water was about $400,000, while the cost of buying water from the city of Chiloquin was about $37,000. During May and June, the average daily use was about 44,000 gallons, but that volume has increased to about 55,000 gallons this month because of increased visitation. (H&News)
According to the park’s website, “Despite this winter’s above average snow and precipitation stream flows in the Wood River are not at the levels determined necessary to maintain healthy and productive riparian habitats for native plants and fisheries in the Klamath Basin.
As a result, a call for water has been issued and validated on the Wood River, and Crater Lake must use an alternate source of water for park needs.
“Like most western states, Oregon follows the “prior appropriation” doctrine of water use, often referred to as “first in time, first in right.” This means that when there is insufficient water to satisfy all water rights, water users with senior priority dates make a ‘call’ to receive water, and users with junior water rights are shut off until the rights of the senior users making the call are satisfied.
“Under the Treaty of 1864, the Klamath Tribes have the right to hunt, fish, trap and gather on former reservation land. The Klamath Tribes have legally determined claims that provide for in-stream flows sufficient for the protection of riparian habitat during spring runoff months.
“The priority date for these instream determined claims is ‘time immemorial,’ making them senior to all other rights. On April 13 the Klamath Tribes called their claim on the Wood River.
On May 1 the Wood River was regulated to “time immemorial,’ the earliest available water right. On May 3 the Oregon Water Resources Department informed Crater Lake National Park staff to cease withdrawing water from Annie Creek, the park’s primary water source.” (H/N)
Summer 2017 The Annie Creek Canyon Trail is closed for the summer. The trail and its footbridges were damaged by snow over the winter.
July 24 2017 Lightning ignites several fiers in and around the park. The largest of the blazes, the Spruce Lake Fire was discovered on July 29 burning on the western boundry.
Summary of Crater Lake summer fire activity. From the MT.
August 5 – Crater Lake National Park has issued a Level 1 Evacuation Notice for Rim Village and Park Headquarters. The Level 1 notice informs residents and visitors to “be ready” for a potential evacuation of Rim Village and Park Headquarters in the event that the Spruce Lake Fire approaches these areas. Current or projected threats from the approaching fire indicate that there may be a need to evacuate in the future. Mazama Village and other areas in the park are not affected by this Level 1 notice.
August 11 – Rim Drive between the lodge area and the North Junction closed since Aug. 4 because the fire was moving toward the caldera. Also, eight other trails or sections of trails, including the Pacific Crest Trail between Highway 62 and the Dutton Creek Trail intersection, remained closed, according to the park service.
August 11 – Fire activity slowed enough that the National Park Service lifted its evacuation notice this afternoon for park headquarters and Rim Village and reopened West Rim Drive and the Rim Trail. However, motorists were banned from stopping between Discovery Point and North Junction. Discovered July 29, the lightning-caused Spruce Lake fire was listed today at 4,681 acres
August 12 One hundred members of the Oregon National Guard is called up to help fight fires in the park. Lightning in late July and early August ignited over 40 fires west of Crater Lake. The two biggest fires together covered a total of more than 15 square miles. Combined, the fires have grown to 10,158 acres in size.
August 2017 Thousands of California tourtiseshell butterflies migrate through the Park, concentrated on the East Side. There is no real explanation and it happenes every five to six years.
August 12 2017 The 42nd annual Crater Lake Rim Runs and Marathon held as scheduled. Organizers decided to go ahead with the races — that usually draws about 200 to 500 people to the region — after conferring with Park Service officials over the presence of smoke in the park due to two wildfires burning on its perimeter (Races are 6.7 miles, 13 miles and the 26-mile marathon). Many runners, who usually travel long distances to the race opted out this year. Only about 50 runners show.
August 27 2017 Mazma Village placed under level one evacuation notice because of the Blanket Fire racing north east toward the Park’s interior. Eventually the fire turns south and burns in the Skylakes Wilderness.
Summer 2017 The Park’s only population of native bull trout, isolated for nearly 150 years in Sun Creek were reunited with the river system of its ancestors. More than a dozen government agencies, non-government agencies, and private landowners collaborated to reconnect Sun Creek to the Wood River at the streams’ historic confluence just south of the park. The connection was severed in the 1870s when Sun Cree was diverted to irriage ranch land. (Crater Lake Relections – Summer 2017)
September 3 -8 2017 West Rim Drive and North Entrance road closed due to the Spruce Lake Fire. West Rim Drive closed all month.
September18 2017 Fire updates By week’s end, two to three inches of rain could fall on the High Cascades and Umpqua North fire complexes burning near Crater Lake National Park and eastern Douglas County, respectively, Keene said.On Sunday, the High Cascades Complex was 16 percent contained and was 63,216 acres, fire officials said. The Spruce Lake fire, which is burning nearby but not considered part of the complex, was 15,826 acres and 22 percent contained. As much 1.5 inches could fall over the next several days on the High Cascades Complex burning near Crater Lake. That complex has grown to 63,216 acres and is considered 32 percent contained, according to the Incident Information System website. The Miller Complex, burning in the Applegate Valley, is 59 percent contained and is 35,845 acres, the site says. (MT)
Season 2017 (MT 9-5 reports) Road construction, frequently heavy smoke, a wait-and-see attitude about two upcoming vehicle-free Saturdays and myriad other factors have made Crater Lake National Park’s summer season anything but normal. Smoke from forest fires that began in July in and outside the park has been a major concern. At many times the lake hasn’t been visible from Rim Village or Rim Drive, and the lack of visibility, combined with delays created by ongoing road construction, has discouraged many visitors. This is the third year of a three-year road construction project to make major improvements on the heavily traveled West Rim Drive. Previously, crews worked on portions of East Rim Drive and Rim Village. Work is also continuing to expand the Cleetwood Trailhead parking area. The roads and parking areas in the park are hit hard each year by erosion and winter storms, and periodically need significant repairs.
Upwards of 6,000 people have registered to bicycle, walk or run along the 26-mile stretch of East Rim Drive from the North Junction to Munson Valley for two weekends in September.
Season 2017
2017 was a challenging year at Crater Lake National Park. By Lee Jullierat, Mail Tribune
Forest fires threatened to damage buildings and clouded views of the lake. Seemingly never-ending, still uncompleted road construction projects snarled traffic. A boat dock bulkhead was crumbling, and drinking water had to be trucked in.
This year the September visitor totals were 84,340, down from 131,760 a year earlier. As of Nov. 1 the park had more than 702,000 visitors.
Water concerns
Park officials were forced to have water trucked into the park during May and June at a cost of $500,000. Despite the problems, park officials developed a strong working relationship with the Tribes. “This is a super success story of everybody working together.”
Road/parking lot construction
Ongoing road construction, including enlarging the Cleetwood Cove parking lot, was supposed to be completed during the summer but was not. The West Rim Drive between the North Entrance and Rim Village was closed during the week, causing severe vehicle backlogs. The project is more than 100 days behind schedule.
Visitor Center
Plans to build a true visitor center have again been delayed. The park wants to demolish the 1924 camper store, and build an entirely new 11,000-squarefoot building that would cost an estimated $9 million to $11 million.
As designed, it would have a multipurpose room for films, school groups and changing exhibits in the basement, an information desk, sales area and exhibits on the first floor, and a lake-viewing area and larger exhibits on the second floor. Along with more than $5 million in projected NPS funding and a loan from the park’s future fee concessions funding, it’s hoped the Crater Lake Trust can raise about $3 million.
Cleetwood Cove boat dock
The new boat dock-bulkhead at Cleetwood Cove will have to be replaced. Built at a cost of about $1.5 million with a projected 75-year lifespan, the bulkhead’s concrete block exterior shifted during winter storms shortly after it was built and is now unusable. A geotechnical firm will recommend plans for a new bulkhead dock and “entire lake front” for improving the 1.1-mile Cleetwood Cove Trail, which is regarded as an area of high hazard.
Forest fires
Two forest fires that started just outside the park in late July — Spruce Lake fire and Blanket Creek fire — caused road closures and the evacuation of Rim Village, park headquarters and Annie Springs facilities. Heavy smoke often obliterated views of the lake and caused the cancellation of boat tours and discouraged park visitors. The blazes burned 25,000 to 30,000 acres in the park.
Concession contract
The park’s current concession contract with Xanterra, expires in 2018. Thirty representatives from seven potential concession applicants, including Xanterra, toured both Crater Lake and Oregon Caves National Monument during the summer. As part of a new contract, new boats will be required for ranger-guided lake boat tours. The concessionaire will be responsible for both Crater Lake and Oregon Caves.
Trail Management Plan
Comments are being sought on a proposed Trail Management Plan, which will guide trail developments, over the next 25 years. A high priority trail is a Ponderosa Trail near the park’s south boundary.
A proposed Munson Valley Trail would be open for a variety of users and offer “some of the most spectacular scenery in the park.” A diversity of trails is wanted because, “We need to look at ways to disperse visitors” away from heavily used Rim Village and provide reasons to encourage visitors to extend their stays.
New programs launched
It wasn’t all bad news at Crater Lake last summer. A guided hike program to a bird banding station, a cooperative project with the Klamath Bird Observatory, was launched. Country singer Dierks Bentley visited the park as part of an upcoming Parks 101 360 Degrees video.
Smoke concerns impacted the annual Ride the Rims bicycle hiking event and Crater Lake Marathon-Rim Runs.
On two Saturdays in September, the Ride the Rim drew 1,500 participants, down from 6,000 last year.
Smoke concerns also reduced the number of participants in the annual Crater Lake Marathon-Rim Runs in August.
Year summary 2017
Budget base: $5,470,000
$3 million in entrance fees
Visitation: 711,749
July was the busiest at 208,237
Winter visitation between November to April – 6%
2,390 out on ranger-led snowshoes trips
6.8% of visitors attended a ranger program –
Crater Lake operates on less than one cent per US citizen
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