Olympic National Park has closed all National Park Service-managed beaches and coastal areas on the Olympic Peninsula to park visitors to slow the spread of COVID-19.
The additional closures include all parking areas, trails, beaches and facilities at Kalaloch, Mora (Rialto Beach) and Ozette. These closures are in effect until further notice, said Penny Wagner, park spokesperson, in a press release.
Wagner said the NPS made the decision partly because Easter weekend is a busy holiday weekend. But it was largely made, she said, about complaints the park was hearing from local communities about how many tourists were still coming into the area to visit the beaches.
“We continue to see a lot of visitation (in these areas). There’s a lot of concerns from the communities about the number of visitors,” Wagner said. “We’ve been definitely hearing that they would like to see this happen.”
Closures also include Olympic National Park sites such as Third Beach, Ruby Beach and the Kalaloch beaches along Highway 101 between the Hoh River and Kalaloch Lodge.
The National Park Service will notify the public when it resumes full operations at these recreation sites through the Olympic National Park website at www.nps.gov/olym/index.htm and social media.
Wagner said no end date for the closures has been set. They are simply closed until further notice.
Additionally, the beach at Dungeness Spit — which is in a national wildlife refuge managed by U.S. Fish and Wildlife — cannot be accessed because Voice of America Road through the Dungeness Recreation Area County Park has been closed by Clallam County until April 30.
Also, Shi Shi Beach is closed as access to the beach is on the Makah Reservation and the reservation is closed to visitors for the time being. The Quileute Tribe has closed the Quileute Reservation to the general public and this includes the trailhead to Second Beach.
A statewide “stay home, stay healthy” order is in place until May 4 to control the spread of COVID-19.
Updates about park operations will be posted on www.nps.gov/coronavirus.
This means most if not all roads into the park are closed at the park boundary. These closures include Staircase Road; Hurricane Ridge Road; Ozette Road; Mora Road; Upper Hoh Road; Lower and Upper Queets roads; and North Shore (residential traffic only), North Fork and Graves Creek roads in the Quinault Valley.
The Olympic Hot Springs Road and Whiskey Bend Road in the Elwha Valley are closed to vehicles at the Madison Falls parking area due to the washout of Olympic Hot Springs Road. Sol Duc, Deer Park, Obstruction Point, and Hurricane Hill roads have not opened for the season and remain closed at this time.
All overnight camping, including in wilderness, is currently suspended. All drive-in park campgrounds are closed. These include Staircase, Heart O’ the Hills, Ozette, Mora, Hoh, Kalaloch, Queets, North Fork and Graves Creek. Deer Park, Fairholme, Sol Duc and South Beach have not opened for the season and remain closed at this time. No other areas in the park are authorized for camping.
To make changes to or cancel existing wilderness permit reservations affected by this closure, please contact the Wilderness Information Center at 360-565-3100 (option 4) or email Olym_WIC@nps.gov.
All public facilities including visitor centers, contact stations, and restrooms are closed. Kalaloch Lodge, Creekside Restaurant and The Mercantile closed.
Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort, Campground and RV Park has delayed opening until May 15 at the earliest.
