SEATTLE — The Mount Rainier National Park will be requiring visitors entering the park through popular entrances to make reservations during peak hours this summer.
The temporary reservation system is designed to reduce crowding and environmental damage at the Paradise and Sunrise corridors, the National Park Service (NPS) said.
Park visitors will need reservations to enter the Paradise Corridor from either the Nisqually Entrance via State Route 706 or Stevens Canyon Entrance via State Route 123 from May 24 through Sept. 2. They will also need reservations to enter the Sunrise Corridor at the White River Entrance via State Route 410 from July 3 through Sept. 2.
Reservations are required for entering the park between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. No reservation will be needed before or after those times.
The $2 reservations are for a two-hour entry window and include one personal vehicle. There is no required departure time.
“In recent years, it’s been too common for visitors to sit in idling cars for a couple of hours at the entrance stations and then make laps through the parking lots hoping for an empty parking space,” said Superintendent Greg Dudgeon. “We are testing a system that will spread visitation out throughout the day and season to reduce crowding.”
According to the NPS, reservations can be made using recreation.gov or by calling 877-444-6777.
Dates through July will become available to reserve beginning Feb. 21 for the Paradise Corridor and April 1 for the Sunrise Corridor. Reservations for August through Labor Day will be available May 1.
NPS said block reservations will be released each day at 7 p.m. for the following day throughout the summer.
More information on the reservation system can be found at https://go.nps.gov/.