Olympic’s Hoh Rain Forest access road closure enters third month

SEATTLE – The temporary closure of Olympic National Park’s Hoh Rain Forest area, where heavy rains partially washed out an access road in December, has lasted more than three months, with no signs of reopening.

An official at Jefferson County, which maintains Upper Hoh Road adjacent to the Hoh River, said a lack of emergency federal funding for repairs is behind the lag.

Eric Kuzma, assistant public works director for Jefferson County, said the “most viable option” to pay for the estimated $1.3 million in repairs would be to receive funding from the Federal Highway Administration’s Emergency Relief program, which the county has previously relied on to pay for storm damage to Upper Hoh Road.

The road meets all the criteria to receive the emergency funding, but the FHA has yet to decide whether to award Jefferson County the money, Kuzma said by email Friday.

“There have been countless meetings, emails and calls,” Kuzma said. “Meanwhile, the repair cost and associated environmental impact continue to increase.”

An FHA representative did not immediately respond to inquiries Friday.

Repairs to Upper Hoh Road could be finished within a month if the county had the necessary funding, Kuzma said.

Washington State Department of Transportation spokesperson Barbara LaBoe said the agency does not provide emergency funding for repairs to nonstate roads like Upper Hoh Road. The agency does, however, request and help coordinate federal funding from the FHA to repair damage after storms like November’s bomb cyclone.

Jefferson County was not listed in then-Gov. Jay Inslee’s state of emergency declaration during the bomb cyclone, so it would “be a challenge” for the county to receive any corresponding federal funding to repair damage caused by the December rainstorm, LaBoe said by email Friday.

SFGate reported that some campers received emails that they should cancel their reservations at Hoh Rain Forest Campground if those were for June or before.

Jefferson County announced the closure Dec. 23. Heavy rains that week heightened the river’s flow and caused several feet of the road to erode, breaking off some of its barrier and downing at least one large tree, the county said online.

The county in December said the road was in “imminent danger of failure” at milepost 9.7 and that it was working with state and federal partners to find a solution. But by Feb. 28, the road’s condition had not significantly changed, the county said.

The Upper Hoh Road, which also closed in winter 2020 for repairs, provides the only access to and from the Hoh Rain Forest Visitor Center, campground, picnic areas and trailheads, according to the National Park Service.