August 13
Zoeanne Olsen, P.O. Box 2022, Fremont, California, 94536, great-great granddaughter of Annie Gaines, visits the Park and takes a boat ride. Annie Gaines died one month after giving birth to Mrs. Olsen’s great grandmother.
August 19
A camper caused fire spreads to 1/8 of an acre near the summit of Garfield Peak. Three men spend the night on the peak working to extinguish the blaze in a small grove of 400 year old White Bark Pine.
August 22
Bob Hillman, Pasco, Washington, great great great grand nephew of John Wesley Hillman visits the Park.
August 22
Roger Wade, 33, 1245 W. Almas, Fresno, California, reports seeing an upright type of Sasqash animal cross 50 yards in front of his car, three miles west of Annie Spring, on the West Entrance road. Roger described the animal as being upright, 6 foot tall, with light brown and cinnamon hair. The animal crossed the road from south to north, left to right.
Written statement from Roger Wade: I back tracked to confirm this morning’s 9:00 sighting of something running across Highway 62. I discovered what appeared to be large footprints. One of the prints seemed to give the impression of a middle toe being the longest, which is characteristic of Sasquashes. I marked off a couple of prints with sticks and stones. While tracking through the woods, I found human footprints where someone had run down a hill. I don’t know whether this is significant or whether these two incidents are related. But here is the information anyway. The clothes are still laying where I found them, 50 yards or so from the roadway, on the same side as the turnout. The large footprints are located near, 15 yards before, the first turnout on 62 after you leave the Park entrance and head toward Union Creek. (Just about exactly 4 miles from the Park Entrance.)
August 27
A Jeep Wagoner and travel trailer are completely destroyed by fire on the North Road between North Junction and Pumice Desert.
August 27 & 28
A 2800 acre Klamath Basin forest fire burns the Park Electrical Transmission lines. The Park runs on emergency generator power for two days until the overland lines are reconnected.
September 4
Edmund Heinz, age 62, of Fremont, California, dies of a massive heart attack in Cabin F behind the Rim Cafeteria. CPR was administered for 45 minutes on the way to the hospital, but to no avail.
September 5
Seasonal Ranger Lloyd Smith “retires” from Crater Lake National Park after working 21 summers for the NPS. Lloyd worked: four summers on Maintenance, one summer as a trail boss at Rocky Mountain National Park, one summer at the North Entrance, was the Park’s first campground patrol ranger working in Mazama Campground for one summer, and then he worked 15 summers as a law enforcement Patrol Ranger. Lloyd set the Park Seasonal Housing record of 11 summers in the same house, Stonehouse #30.
September 26
Eleven year old Brian Smith runs up the Cleetwood Trail in 10 minutes flat. (Brian later sets a new long distance running record at his school.)
November 24
Dennis Dalton of Klamath Falls pushes his 1980 Chevette auto into 300 foot deep Annie Creek Canyon, 1.5 miles inside the South Park boundary. Claiming that the car had been stolen earlier in the day, Dalton hoped to obtain insurance payments because he had fallen behind in his car payment. A PP&L electrical repair crew spots the car in the canyon and Dalton’s fraud scheme is exposed.
December 11
480 acres of the new Park extension is proposed for transfer back to Winema National Forest because the timber had already been sold, prior to the 1980 boundary extension. The legislation also includes $31,000 to fund a Lake study to find out why the waters of Crater Lake is becoming cloudy and less clear. Congress adjourns before action is taken and the land swap is still pending.
Season Visitation: 536,719. Studies indicate that 85% of Park visitors remain in the Park less than 8 hours and 65% remain less than 4 hours. 3,800 people pass through Rim Village daily. Less than 15% remain overnight and less than 5% stay 2 or more nights.
Entrance station and campground revenues reach $181,000.
Fiscal year 1981 $300,000 spent on fire and safety improvements on Crater Lake Lodge.
Season 1981 Visitation: 536,719
