Changes at Mt Rainier -- road closed Tues, Weds

...Grooming the Paradise Valley road would require finding the funds to acquire, operate  and maintain a grooming machine -- 

Doesn't the park still have that quarter-million dollar Pisten Bully that they use to groom the tube runs and cut down the parking lot snow walls when they get too high?  (Work that was done for decades with a surplus D-7, BTW)

I've seen them trash, -er groom, the road to 4th Crossing on numerous occasions.  Don't get me wrong, I prefer the wild snow, but it would be no great stretch for the park to groom the Paradise Valley Road as far as Stevens Canyon Wye if they wanted to attract more winter visitors.  The grooming could be paid for by using RMI's mothballed shuttles to haul the nordiques & snowshoers (separate lane!) back to Paradise at $5 a pop.  I agree Narada Face would be too dangerous to groom, but backcountry skiers might also use a shuttle from Narada.  The unplowed Paradise Picnic Area (Barn Flat) could also be groomed and a warming yurt set up.

Having maintained the winter trail markers by myself back in the Old Oolitic Silurian, I agree with Randy that an expansion of the marked trail system would be a lot of work.  If additional routes were to be marked, Mazama Ridge should probably be highest priority.  I think the poles would be quickly lost on the above timberline routes like Muir or the E Skyline Bench.

Gee, and the MTTA grooms 20 miles of trail, maintains 3 backcountry huts and 1 yurt, with a reasonable amount of signage, and a good map--all thru volunteers and donations with no guaranteed budget that I know of and no entrance fee or membership required (even to stay at the huts), only a snow-park permit. And, gosh, I use to ski groomed trails on FS land out of Bellingham and Snoqualmie Pass etc. etc. and didn't even have to pay an entrance fee (but needed a snow park permit).

I'm certain that with a positive "how can I help" problem solving attitude a group of people could approach the park service and work on improving conditions at the park as volunteers. I've found that working with the park service people to be a generally positive experience. Some of their priorities don't always align with mine, for example in past seasons a Nordic Patrol task was collapsing abandoned snow caves and igloos in the group camping areas on Sunday afternoon. The park service was concerned about potential liability if later campers fell through the roof of cave or igloo obscured by later snowfall. In recent years this task has been shifted from "something that should be done if possible" to "do if there is nothing better to do -- including just going skiing" -- In my view is that for many years the park has operated in very "liability adverse" manner, but that this is starting to shift a bit for the better.

Approaching the park service people with a confrontational, dismissive and disrespectful attitude seems unlikely to result in any changes for the better.

It looks like the NPS clarified its new policy on Wednesday.  Camping will be allowed above Longmire on Tuesday/Wednesday.  You can even drive up on Monday to Paradise, leave your car there for the closure, and then drive down on Thursday.  Source:  www.nps.gov/mora/parknews/winter-access-changes.htm

I added this comment to MRNP's Facebook post:
"I am deeply dissatisfied with this new policy. With no week-day amenities at Paradise, I don't understand how this closure decreases the park's operating costs. The road will still need to be plowed during closure days to maintain access, rangers will still be staffed for LEO, the visitors desk in Longmire, and the entrance gate. There was no public comment period and no prior announcement. While I'm glad for the clarified statement that allows for overnight camping above Longmire, the new policy appears poorly planned and explained. Please reconsider this policy while I write to my government representatives."

I think its time for an access-fund styled organization for human-powered, winter sports.  Even the sled-heads are better organized than this.  In this vein, I'm going to contact the Washington Climber's Coalition and the Access Fund about start-up strategies.  Anyone else interested in this cause?

I think its time for an access-fund styled organization for human-powered, winter sports.  Even the sled-heads are better organized than this.  In this vein, I'm going to contact the Washington Climber's Coalition and the Access Fund about start-up strategies.  Anyone else interested in this cause?

Is this the sort of space Winter Wildlands Alliance (or coalition) works in or do they only deal with issues in the Rockies?

MRNP responded to my FB comment:
"By focusing staff on fewer days, the park will be better able to provide access and services during times of greatest visitation, including more consistent road plowing and emergency patrols for visitor safety, than by distributing those same resources seven days per week. Specifically, plowing and patrol operations will be available to work longer shifts and will be more available to respond to emergencies on the five days that the road is open. This one of many changes, large and small, that Mount Rainier National Park is making to make its operations more efficent and responsive to public needs with limited resources available."

I seriously question that scheduling two down days for snow plowing operations - which I assume means minimal plowing. I do understand the argument that this way they can provide more robust coverage for emergencies (including stuck cars) the other five days of the week.

Its just another example that when you insist only on budget cuts, you reach a point where instead of limiting services agencies will simply choose to eliminate service altogether - its the easier solution.

"By focusing staff on fewer days, the park will be better able to provide access and services during times of greatest visitation, including more consistent road plowing and emergency patrols for visitor safety, than by distributing those same resources seven days per week. Specifically, plowing and patrol operations will be available to work longer shifts and will be more available to respond to emergencies on the five days that the road is open. This one of many changes, large and small, that Mount Rainier National Park is making to make its operations more efficent and responsive to public needs with limited resources available."

This heart-warming justification was almost surely not written by the park superintendent, even though the press release bears his name.  Most parks have a full-time Public Relations Specialist, making probably fifty grand a year, to crank out their propaganda.  Larger parks like Yosemite and Grand Canyon have several of these positions with a PR supervisor.  It's basically taxpayer-funded spin supporting management's decisions.

Edits for spelling

Approaching the park service people with a confrontational, dismissive and disrespectful attitude seems unlikely to result in any changes for the better.

I seriously doubt the Hurricane Ridge folks were "confrontational, dismissive, or disrespectful".  They even brought a big bag of money to the table and were still screwed by frequent closures and late openings for two winters, until management abandoned even the pretense of weekday opening.  ONP got a new plow and several new job positions for their well-oiled nepotism/cronyism machine.

NPS management feels that rules and regulations are for the public, not themselves.  There's a thoroughly documented list of their regulatory shortcomings at:  www.freehurricaneridge.blogspot.com/

I think its time for an access-fund styled organization for human-powered, winter sports.  Even the sled-heads are better organized than this.  In this vein, I'm going to contact the Washington Climber's Coalition and the Access Fund about start-up strategies.  Anyone else interested in this cause?

Yes! I tried contacting SkiWA a few weeks back but got no reply, worth a shot with WA climbers coalition (though their website seems pretty screwed up right now).

[...
This heart-warming justification was almost surely not written by the park superintendent, even though the press release bears his name.  Most parks have a full-time Public Relations Specialist, making probably fifty grand a year, to crank out their propaganda.  Larger parks like Yosemite and Grand Canyon have several of these positions with a PR supervisor.  It's basically taxpayer-funded spin supporting management's decisions.

Edits for spelling

IMHO, Randy King, the MRNP Supt. is genuinely a nice guy, based on a number of interactions with him that I personally have had; I know other people in the hierarchy, from Randy down to the LEOs, Maintenance crew, and gate/visitor people; the ones I know are all really nice people.  Gary, I know you know many nice Park people, but sometimes you come across as if you do not.  Some Park people may be really psychopathic or criminal or parasites on the American people--but I don't know them, although I had met and talked with the very personable Supt. Uberuagua on a number of occasions and he turned out to be borderline criminal, according to the Inspector General who referred him for prosecution; he was also very embarrassed in a public meeting when he tried to assuage the public with untrue statements and was rebutted by a Pierce County employee.  I suspect the PR person and the Community Outreach person earn substantially more than $50k/year.

I do think, based on IMHO, that Park decision makers can be, often are, subject to group think (if you google it, you will find there was a book written on it) and tend to be inward looking, not outward looking.  I think NPS group think have led them astray from their founding legislations.  I really do believe they could benefit from an advisory committee that would be their to challenge group think, provide constructive criticism, engage in fruitful discussion, and support the Park when consensus has been achieved.  I have watched National Forest Provincial Advisory Committees in action, interacting with the Forests and lobbying for the Forests after constructive interaction.

I would much rather be in collaborative interactions with the Park than in adversarial ones.  But that is up to the Park.

Andrew I think your comments above are spot on. Park employees are (mostly) good people, but they operate in a bubble. See my rant on management turnover. www.freehurricaneridge.blogspot.com/2012...hy-all-turnover.html

A prime example is your earlier comment about how the MTTA can do what I would consider more (provide access to a consistant trail system) with less resources. In the case of Hurricane Ridge their requirement of $775,000 to keep the road open. Yes they can certainly spend that much for the Taj Mahal treatment, but allowing access to the snow could be done for essentially $0.

We all can understand their budget pressure, but I think the NPS has lost touch with their mission when the first reaction is closing gates.

Where I (and the PA community including County and City government and not just on the HR access issue) have become very frustrated is their unwillingness to engage in the "how can we help" conversations. Despite their national management policies that explicitly say that they will cooperate with local governments etc. For example the recent cooperation on the New Buffalo River NP (www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2012/11/bu...winter-closures10861) shows that cooperation can in fact happen as long as the individual park managers are willing. But we shouldn't have to hope for a responsive superintendent for that type of cooperation to happen.

Sorry Andy, I don't recall ever disrespecting any Park staff by name on this board, except Mr. Uberalles, the poster-boy for NPS corruption.  My sincere apologies to those who feel otherwise.  I've always tried to treat NPS field staff with respect.  I was one for almost half my life and have some idea of how management can make a tough job even harder.  The last thing some poor overworked ranger or volunteer needs is more demands from the public or me while they're on-duty.  

During my carreer, I knew quite a few employees who volunteered their time, working on their days off for nothing on SAR's and park rehab projects.  For others, it was not just a job, but a religion; 60-hour weeks at the office were common, frantically trying to accomodate their supervisor's shifting demands.  When I had a kidney-stone attack returning to Narada, the road-patrol ranger dropped everything at closing time to escort our vehicle down.  I'm sure they miss many a dinner with their families because of some pilgrim's foolishness, and sometimes they don't come home at all...  

On the other hand, a faceless unaccountable bureaucracy seems to me to be fair game for criticism; I consider that a patriotic duty!  It's not so much that the National Park Service is more corrupt than most human endeavors, but that the gap between the agency's carefully manicured public image and reality is so large, IMO and it's willingness to acknowledge any shortcomings, except in its funding, is almost nonexistent.  

I'm sure Andy is right that Supt. King is a nice guy; Uberuaga has got to be a tough act to follow.  I've never spoken with him, although I was told by his secretary when he was Acting that the superintendent's approval was required to release budget information.  My FOIA request was probably just misplaced, eh?

I think this bureaucracy's problems go deeper than 'group think'.  Most of those nice folks in the gray & green don't last long or go far without learning that dissent is ruthlessly punished.  PJ Ryan, the author of the wickedly funny Thunderbear ("The Oldest Alternative Newsletter in the Federal Government") put it best:  "All agency resources, local, regional. and national, are instantly mobilized to crucify the whistleblower."  Here's just the most recent episode of this long-running soap opera:  www.nationalparkstraveler.com/review/2012/worth-fighting9835  

NPS management displays unmistakable cultlike characteristics; the following indicators and concluding quote are snipped from:
www.prem-rawat-talk.org/forum/uploads/CultCharacteristics.htm

The group has authoritariansim without meaningful accountability.
The group is elitist and has a special mission.
The group has a polarized us-versus-them mentality.
There is no tolerance for questions or critical inquiry; questioning, doubt, and dissent are discouraged or even punished.
There is no meaningful financial disclosure regarding budget or expenses.
Members need to ask permission for major decisions.
Members may be underpaid or unpaid, and work in unsafe environments.
There are excessive demands on the time and energy of group members.
Members are physically and/or psychologically isolated from society.
There is strong behavioral control of where, how and with whom the member lives and associates with; what clothes, colors, hairstyles the person wears, etc.
Former members often relate the same stories of abuse and reflect a similar pattern of grievances.
"If a group has more than half of the cult characteristics on the list, then you should be concerned."

Cross-Posting from NWHikers.net -- it would appear that there already is (at least one) 501(c)(3) organziation that is working in cooperation with the NPS to

to Maintain, Restore, Nurture, Protect, and Appreciate the natural values of its namesake, Mount Rainier National Park Associates (MRNPA)

the Zachster wrote: If anyone is passionate about this issue and would like to help out... (nice segway, eh? :winksmile: )
mrnpa.org/
Seriously, I was at a meeting last week with Randy King and he made it clear that, under the current financial constraints, the Park cannot operate without volunteers. MRNPA is just one option. I personally find it very rewarding to give back to something I feel very strongly about. And we have alot of fun. And brownies. :hockeygrin:

Sorry Andy, I don't recall ever disrespecting any Park staff by name on this board, .....

votski -- for the sake of argument, let's say that everything you say about problems with NPS administration are true -- What is your proposed solutions and how would you implement them?

I don't often post up here, but there's a lot of good discussion and good ideas here. It seems far too easy to let this fade into frustration without any good coming of it. Instead why don't we try and get a group of folks together and potentially form an Access Fund like organization for ski touring in WA.

I'd be happy to start coordinating some of this. If you're interested in helping out / lending input send me a PM with your e-mail address. From there I can imagine meeting up and see what might make sense to put together/do.

Andrew Carey, vogtski, and samthaman - you guys would be very helpful in this effort based on what you've contributed to the thread.

Andrew

The NPS theoretically takes its marching orders from Congress, so I think ultimately the problem is us.  Until our larger society reverses course and truly strives for sustainability rather than growth, I doubt we'll see much improvement for such a slender reed in the legislative winds as the Park Service.  It should not be surprising that sixty years of the pork barrel mentality has evolved a class of park managers who buy into the more at any price philosophy and make it their top priority.  They seem to enthusiastically embrace each new unfunded mandate (climate change planning, baseline resource monitoring, green energy, community outreach, international sister parks, etc, etc) that together have crowded visitor access to a lesser priority. 

Don't get me wrong, I haven't voted R-Prez since Goldwater, but the Teahadists have a real point hidden under the bat-sh*t craziness.  Growth is simply going to be unsustainable, whether population, economies, or bureaucracies.  On a finite planet, our kids are going to have to learn to be satisfied with, and work their arses off to maintain, some fraction of what we have now.  Personally, I think term limits and a tax on each Wall Street transaction would be a good start.   

The recent Hurricane Ridge experience has me pessimistic about the probability of much short-term improvement in winter National Park access.  It will take a lot of patience and a lot of bird-dogging self-serving bureaucrats to restore the idea that public access should be a prime priority. 

Here's a few hairball ideas that might offer some long-term improvement, but I don't expect to live long enough to see any come to pass:
The NPS needs to show real enviromental leadership and start planning its own downsizing; local control should be the goal, rather than top-heavy federal centraliztion. 
Move the NPS out of the Sodom & Gomorrah Department of Interior into an independent status like the Smithsonian.
Eliminate the grotesquely wasteful and unproductive NPS Regional Offices and the Denver Service Center.
No (always underfunded) new park units without decommissioning two existing ones.
All "National Recreation Areas" and most NPS historical sites should go back to their respective states.
All urban national park units go back to their respective cities.
At least a decade-long moratorium on new development and large construction projects; retire the engineers and landscape architects who are often the most highly paid employees at each park.
Change the federal employee rules so that the inevitable budget cuts must be applied from the top down.

As far as MRNP specific ideas, the following is snipped from a 2008 TAY thread:
www.turns-all-year.com/skiing_snowboardi...x.php?topic=10692.50

This was pre-twitter, but I'd really like to see the daily phone message restored...

SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVING PARADISE WINTER OPERATIONS

CONTINUE RECENT IMPROVEMENTS IN PHONE MESSAGE. For years, this was really frustrating because of no updates or updates that didn’t mention what day they were recorded. These problems have been corrected. Even the new estimated opening time is fairly reliable. Hats off to whoever was responsible. It would be convenient for us locals if the message could be updated when the Paradise gate actually opens. A real improvement would be to make the open/no open decision sooner, so that people could make alternate plans before wasting most of the day waiting for the gate. The weather phone message offers ‘current conditions’, but is really just a summary of the generally available forecast. Perhaps the standard script could refer callers to the webcams, or how hard is it to just update the weather conditions a few times a day? At least the recording no longer prattles on about the total snow amount compared to the previous year. More useful to those without web access would be the amount of new snow overnight & perhaps a wind summary, since they affect trip choice, trail breaking difficulty, time management, and avalanche hazard. I don’t understand why the current avalanche hazard is not on the recording each winter day.

START SNOW REMOVAL EARLIER on weekends and holidays. Model A’s kept the road plowed almost to Narada by working all night. Starting a couple hours earlier would give backcountry travelers more safety cushion on short winter days.

PARTIAL OPENINGS ON WEEKDAYS. In the seventies, the Paradise gate was opened when the lower (JVC) lot was cleared, unless there were too many cars waiting in Longmire. A volunteer (often me) would keep people away from the plows while the upper lot was finished. As long as the parking capacity is not exceeded, I don’t see why it can’t be SOP that the road is opened to Cougar Rock, Glacier Bridge, Narada and the lower Paradise lot as the plows reach them. All it would take is a few cones & barricades. It looks like some of the so-called Rangers could use a little exercise getting in out of their vehicles more often anyway.

COUNT VEHICLES AT THE ENTRANCE ON BUSY DAYS with late openings. Hold vehicles there until the Paradise gate opens when parking places in Longmire and the lower turnouts are full. Sooner or later, a TV crew is going to air news footage of the annual holiday gridlock semi-riot to the Park’s considerable embarrassment, or at least I hope so. Speaking of Longmire gridlock, why not have a red/green light on the museum and Inn (or even a semaphore signal) to show the gate status and reduce the cruising and premature lineups?

INSTALL A WINTER EMERGENCY PHONE AT NARADA comfort station. This could make a real difference in case of a Mazama or Tatoosh accident.

MARK THE DOWNHILL LANE WHEN THE CHAINUP LOCATION CHANGES. A simple portable sign: “End Chain Requirement” would save chains, tires, gas and the pavement.

USE THE GUIDED SNOWSHOE WALKS TO EDUCATE VISITORS about potential conflicts such as walking/webbing in XC ski tracks. At Olympic NP there are small, simple signs at the parking lot: “Skiers & snowshoers please make separate tracks”.

HAVE A CHILDREN’S SNOW PLAY AT COUGAR ROCK OR LONGMIRE CG. Why not store a heap of gravel before it snows or use the plows to build a small sliding hill so kids wouldn’t be so disappointed if Paradise couldn’t be opened? A lot of parents might appreciate not having to brave the drive to Paradise as well. Of course, this would require a couple portable toilets on a low trailer, but the Park should already have that setup. They could put them on the Westside Road in the summer or developed areas in an emergency.

LET STEVENS CANYON AND THE VALLEY ROAD MELT OUT NATURALLY. Or at least delay the premature plowing of recent years. Besides saving dozens of more trees from being snapped off by bulldozers, the Park could use the equipment time and money saved to open Cayuse and Sunrise sooner.

EXPLORE COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS WITH THE STATE AND USFS to try to keep Skate Creek road open as much as possible in winter. Most of the road is lower than Longmire and is on the books as a future State highway. This would be a PR coup for the Park and a real boost for local businesses.  With a shorter route to White Pass, snowplayers would have another option if the Park was unable to open Paradise

For what it is worth, at ONP the claim is that the three day access is all that can be done with a single crew (3 guys). Opening the fourth and fifth days ala the new MORA plan required a whole additional crew of 3, and therefore it was just as efficient to go to seven days.

(Nevermind that they allowed that they do have a second crew that works the lowland roads northeast portion of the park-which have been closed the past two years)

Obviously the Rainier decision makers have come to a different conclusion. It might be interesting to ask.

You're all well intentioned but frankly you're all  farting into the wind if you think any sort of communication/discussion with them is going to change anything. But it's nice to rant...useless, but nice and cathartic.

Only thing the NPS will take any notice of is if somebody files legal action( if that's possible)

Sue them....get an injunction.......nothing else will work.

Sue them....get an injunction.......nothing else will work.

Scotsman, as usual, has hit the nail on the head. I would support such a legal effort.

I'm not the Lone Ranger in my opinions and experience of NPS management 'cult'ure:

"...within The Case of the Indian Trader Mr. Berkowitz peels back the luminous outer skin of the Park Service to reveal a dysfunctional culture, one that by his accounts has more than a few times placed itself above the law. It is a culture that at times seems to struggle with the question of whether the ends justify the means. One that, despite findings and warnings from the Interior Department's inspector general, outwardly seems to have resisted change."

www.nationalparkstraveler.com/review/201...ell-trading-post8015

"What also makes this book hard to review is Berkowitz’ unflattering analysis of NPS culture, its law enforcement program and its senior management. While he admits that there are lots of good NPS employees, he is relentless in his criticism of what he sees as corruption, cronyism, and lack of respect for law and policy within the ranks of NPS leadership."  (This by a highly-respected former NPS superintendent & chairman of the retired employees association).

www.nationalparkstraveler.com/review/201...ell-trading-post8533

For those of you who still have faith in FOIA:
www.schundler.net/FOIA.htm

In recent years, the National Park Service has ranked near the bottom of all Federal Agencies in annual employee job satisfaction surveys; the common thread of comments and complaints is poor leadership:

2009  www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2009/06/su...vernment-agency-work
2010  www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2010/09/be...ed-still-far-top6511
2011  www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2011/11/na...es-work-rankings9091

....
For those of you who still have faith in FOIA:
www.schundler.net/FOIA.htm
...

Yes as the article in the link shows, when an agency has something to hide the FOIA process requires determination and endurance to pursue.

At the conclusion of the link you cite above:

And so change can happen, the effort was worth it, and at least one park in the National Park Service is doing a little better!

The point of the link was to show the national extent of the problem.  The fact that the public is routinely put thru this crap does indeed make it look like the NPS has something to hide!

"Mr. Schundler is no newbie when it comes to FOIA, for as a businessman in New Jersey he had "worked under the guidelines of the Sunshine Law and the Freedom of Information Act." Too, he also was a town councilman who had to deal with government openness from that side of the desk. And yet, despite this experience, he has been subjected to a correspondence-heavy, administrative maze since requesting information on Mesa Verde's fiscal 2007 and fiscal 2008 budgets, the travels of its superintendent, and the number of unfilled vacancies at the park. Mesa Verde officials initially put off his first requests for the information, saying the staff was too busy to comply immediately.

"What is ironical," Mr. Schundler wrote in response, "is that the information I requested in my first letter could have been generated on some computers within five to ten minutes. They are basic and standard reports; they are easily generated..."

www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2010/02/in...ess-impedes-goal5366

VotSki -- From my knothole I think important point is whether you are actually interested in improving conditions at Mt Rainier Park -- This will certainly required a fair amount of sustained effort on your part using the FOIA act to expose the mismanagement that you have indicated.

Bruce Schundler's considerable and sustained FOIA efforts at Mesa Verde park actually did result in the replacement of the park superintendent and his manager and improvement in the management of Mesa Verde park.

Venting about these problems in this forum may feel good, but that alone seems unlikely to change park management and practices for the better.

Letter writing to congressional representatives as I indicated above is an additional way to bring political pressure to bear on the NPS to become more efficient and responsive. Here is that contact information again:

www.house.gov/representatives/find/
www.senate.gov/general/contact_informati...ors_cfm.cfm?State=WA

Okay, I’ll bite:

Seems to me that before this latest change in operations, the biggest gripe (though not the only one) among us backcountry types about MRNP was the consistently late gate opening times during the winter at Longmire. If the goal of the Tuesday-Wednesday closing is to free up resources that will allow for earlier gate opening times on days when more of us are likely to be headed to the Paradise or Tatoosh environs, then this seems like it could be a VERY GOOD THING and could EVEN be in response to feedback from the public about the late opening problem.

If they are actually responding to public input with this move, I’ll feel pretty bad about the beating the Parkies are taking right now, at least in this venue. And, if they are actually responding to public input, and earlier gate openings are actually the goal, and they are paying attention to this bitch fest, I imagine that they will feel like they just can’t win.

I agree it’s too bad for the folks who get to play on Tuesday and Wednesday, but then, I don’t feel too bad for those folks. Plenty of other un-crowded places on those days.

Anyway, I guess we’ll see.

As with conditions: “High hopes and low expectations”.

Cheers,
Monty

fwiw, I agree with what Monty wrote.    While the lack of public input on the decision is frustrating- my primary gripe was the proposed camping ban up on the mountain when the road was closed, and that item was clarified/changed within a couple days of the road closure policy being released.   
Granted there wasn't any new snow at Rainier during this past weekend, so the plowing was probably less of a chore than the usual stormy days but it was pretty nice to see that the road was opened before 8am both days.   We had a carload of folks there on Sunday and it was certainly welcome to not waste the morning waiting at Longmire.   
I'll be curious if the park service can continue those early openings on days that require more plowing, but it seems possible that Rainier will get more overall wintertime visitors even with the two day shutdown if they can get that road open earlier than in the past.

The park has been posting information about the gate opening on Twitter @MountRainierNPS for while now -- so with a bit of data mining it would be possible to chart and compare gate opening times this season vs. last and correlate inches of snowfall with gate opening times.

Looking that the Twitter feed this season -- so far at least they seem a bit more consistent with tweeting both projected opening times and when the gate is actually opens

... with a bit of data mining it would be possible to chart and compare gate opening times this season vs. last and correlate inches of snowfall with gate opening times...

Randy, I have the twitter data from last winter and this year so far in a daily log format, one line per day with tabs.  If you or anyone else want to try adding snow data, drop a PM with email address and I can attach my .rtf files to a reply.

I like Stormking's approach of analyzing how many employees the parks allocate for a particular job.  I'm not sure where he gets his figures; perhaps Olympic is more forthcoming with such information than Rainier? 

I'm guessing the weekday road crew for the Paradise Road is 4-5 people, weekends maybe 6-8.  Probably the number of weekday LEOs is 3-4, and maybe twice that on weekends?  The VC is only open weekends; say 6-8 naturalists are on duty.  What am I forgetting?  Maybe a maintenance man for the VC and a couple more to haul the rubbish and swab the restrooms.  I'm not counting the entrance station or sewage treatment plant, since presumably these are staffed whether Paradise is open or closed. 

I'm sure Randy or someone will correct me if these estimates are way off, but by my calculus about ten people work Paradise each weekday, and perhaps more than twice that many on weekends, say 25.

Again, there's no way to know for sure, but word on the street in Ashford is that the park has a hundred permanent employees.  On any given day about 15% would be on their day off.  Say another 10% are on leave or at training.  I'd guess about five folks each are stationed at Carbon, White River, and Ohana all winter.  It would seem that on most winter days the park has a workforce of about 60 on the SW side.

Here's my question:  What are those other 35-50 people doing each day that is more important than having enough staff to allow the public up to Paradise? 

I don't know staffing or budget details.

I do know from monitoring LE radio traffic while volunteering on Nordic patrol that the LE is kept very busy with "the general public" just driving the road.   I recall one Saturday there was a heart attack (and subsequent airlift), a DUI arrest and multiple cars slid out and stuck and that was on a day without new snowfall.    On a typical weekend there is an injury incident on the Paradise sledding hill that requires ambulance transport to Tacoma (and a ton of paper work).   On weekends there is an ambulance "on call" at Paradise, so that most of the time injured sledders don't have to wait two hours before transport arrives.

I've waited plenty of times for "that damned gate" to open on powder days -- it is annoying for sure.   My guess is that the park's priority is not to open the gate as quickly as possible in the morning, but rather that everyone gets back out of the gate at the end of the day.  That means keeping plow crews on duty until late in the afternoon -- in case of new snowfall or slides over the road (particularly in the section just above the Nisqually bridge).    Having the plow crews start at 4AM would get the gate open earlier, but a second crew or some sort of split shift arrangement would be needed to ensure the road remained drivable into the evening.

Thanks, Randy.  I'm pretty sure they already have split shifts for both LE and road crew on weekends/holidays and my guesstimates reflected that.

Here's my question:  What are those other 35-50 people doing each day that is more important than having enough staff to allow the public up to Paradise? 

Dunno, maybe their jobs? Pretty unlikely they are all trained snowplow drivers. There are other aspects to running a NP.