Meadow Rover of the Year

Each and every one of you has made a difference in Mount Rainier National Park and I for one could not ask for better people with whom to work. However, the time has come to announce the Meadow Rover of the Year Awards. These awards are given not only for the number of hours spent volunteering in our meadows, but also for the manner in which the individual approaches their duties. The following individuals have been standouts this summer among the many nominations:

Jodie Hollinger-Lant
Jodie stepped up to handle the coordination of the Meadow Rovers at Sunrise. With the changes in the program this year, Jodie handled all the new regulations with ease. She implemented an excellent reservation system for the radios and constantly monitored her territory to place people where they were needed. On top of this, she roved in her free-time and also assisted at the information desk. As overall coordinator, I could not have survived without her work on the east side.

David Howerton
David is a familiar face in the Sunrise area. He has accrued a whopping 303¼ hours of roving time between July 1st and September 30th. During this time, he has made 5623 contacts. But more than hours, he was the volunteer who assisted Lynn as she stepped in for Jodie. When she nominated him, Lynn reiterated how instrumental David was in helping her keep the program running smoothly.

Gwen Remmen
As a brand new Mt. Rainier Volunteer, Gwen managed to accumulate over 100 hours of meadow roving between July and September. Her enthusiasm never waned even on the longest, craziest days in late August. Visitors were highly entertained by her humorous messages among them the poor flower screaming "don’t step on me!" But amongst the laughter, they rallied around to pass on the message of protecting the meadow.

Each of these individuals will choose between lunch with the park administrator of their choice or a hike with one of the park scientists.

We will have two more weekends of roving at Paradise -- 10/26-27 and Nov 2/3. Snow continues to linger hiding parts of the trails, but not deep enough to protect the vegetation. Some visitors have arrived with sleds hoping to catch the slopes. The weather has been absolutely gorgeous... warm and sunny with crisp blue skies. Come up and have some fun.

Maureen McLean
Coordinator MORA Meadow Rovers

Roving Sunrise

Hello Meadow Rovers!

This is Jodie Hollinger-Lant, Sunrise Volunteer Coordinator during July. Many of you are friends and fellow rovers from Paradise where I have been a year-round volunteer for several years.

Roving is up and running through the meadows (not really) and down the trails around Sunrise. Trails are almost completely snow-free with the exception of both sides of 1^st Burroughs, Frozen Lake down to the gravel road, and down into Berkeley Park. The mosquitoes arrived last weekend and in their own way are having a good time welcoming unprotected visitors.

Just as at Paradise this season, Sunrise requires you to have a radio to rove farther than a ½ mile from the Visitor Center. We have 7 radios available to reserve for rover’s use. Simply email MORA_Meadow_Rovers@nps.gov  with “radio request” in the subject heading and one will be reserved if available for you on as many days as you need it.

Remember to sign-in and out in the upstairs Rover Room. If you have reserved a radio and arrive earlier than 10:00, knock on the Visitor Center door to pick up a radio as generally someone will be in the VC after approximately 8:45. You may still sign-in and out after hours in the outside box next to the north door but will not be able to rove farther than a ½ mile without a radio.

Flowers are blooming with the peak approximately 2 weeks away for many trail areas. The Shadow Lake trail, the gravel road, and Silver Forest are already looking good with spreading phlox, broadleaf lupine, cinquefoil, paintbrush, American bistort, subalpine daisy, Sitka valerian, and glacier lilies blooming. Sourdough Ridge has pasqueflowers, glacier lilies, and spreading phlox leading the early flower display.

Remember the Sunrise area is often clear with blue skies, brilliant sun, and a great mountain view when the rest of Puget Sound is gray and covered in marine air. Your day spent roving at Sunrise will renew your appreciation for our planet’s natural state, help protect this spectacular resource for future generations, and assist many visitors to better understand and appreciate what Mt. Rainier National Park is.

Hope to see you on the mountain soon!