Recreational Roads Will Remain Closed

Two popular recreational roads in the Carbon River area in and near Mount Rainier National Park will remain closed this season due to flood and landslide damage.

The Carbon River Road within the park and the Cayada Creek-Coplay Lake Road, leading to the main trails in the Clearwater Wilderness area, may not reopen next year, either, officials said.

Flood and landslide damage closed both dirt roads during the winter and spring of 1996.

Officials hoped the roads would be reopened this season. But the park’s chief planner says the Carbon River Road to Ipsut Creek Campground may not open until 1999, if at all. The Cayada Creek-Coplay Lake Road probably won’t reopen at least until the fall of 1998.