Special events are planned on the North Olympic Peninsula on Monday to commemorate Martin Luther King Day.
Olympic National Park will waive entrance fees on Monday.
The entrance fee for the park is $25 per vehicle. The entrance fee waiver does not cover camping or special tours such as guided snowshoe walks.
Hurricane Ridge Road is scheduled to be open for the holiday on Monday in addition to its normally scheduled days of today, Saturday and Sunday. Weather permitting, the road is scheduled to open at 9 a.m. and close to uphill traffic at 4 p.m.
Hurricane Ridge is subject to high winds and heavy snow during the winter and the road’s opening is always dependent on current road and weather conditions.
All vehicles are required to carry tire chains.
Parking is limited and the Hurricane Ridge parking lot often fills early, causing long delays at the Heart O’ the Hills entrance station. Visitors are encouraged to arrive early and carpool.
For up-to-date information about road opening times and conditions, call the park’s recorded Road & Weather Hotline at 360-565-3131 or follow @HRWinterAccess on Twitter. As of Wednesday morning, the Ridge had 51 inches of snow at its sensor.
Most park areas, including Lake Crescent, all park beaches and the Quinault, Queets and Hoh Rain Forests are open. The Elwha Olympic Hot Springs Road remains closed to vehicle access due to flood damage and the Staircase area is closed to vehicle access due to a washout just outside the park boundary. Deer Park Road and Sol Duc Road are closed for the season.
For more information about visiting Olympic National Park, see www.nps.gov/olym.
Other activities for MLK Day are:
King’s speeches
PORT TOWNSEND — The speeches of Dr. Martin Luther King will be played in the Cotton Building from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Monday.
The building at 607 Water St., will be open to members of the public who choose to walk in and listen for any amount of time.
For more information, contact Dennis Daneau at 360-379-2949 or dennisdaneau@gmail.com.
Community gathering
PORT TOWNSEND — A community gathering in observance of Dr. Martin Luther King day will occur at noon Monday.
“Let us Gather at the Fountain: A Celebration of Dr. King’s Living Message” will be held at the Haller Fountain, 900 Washington Street.
Featured will be readings of King’s letters and speeches. Singers in the Rain and other area singers will provide music. For more information, contact the East Jefferson Ministerial Association at 206-817-6530 or rev.dandrews@hotmail.com.
Help with cleanup
The North Olympic Land Trust will partner with the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Olympic Peninsula’s Carroll C. Kendall Unit in Sequim and the Port Angeles School District’s AmeriCorps Program in hosting a cleanup along the Olympic Discovery Trail from noon to 4 p.m. Monday.
Exact cleanup locations along the trail have yet to be determined.
Register to volunteer at north olympiclandtrust.org/event/martin-luther-king-jr-day-of-service/.
For more information, call 360-683-8095 or see www.bgc-op.org/CCK-sequim.
