Rod F sent me some stuff on early skiing at Deer Park and Hurricane Ridge. It has been added to the History Section of my Website.
http://www.windsox.us/VISITOR/Early_ONP_Skiers/Early_ONP_Skiers.html
I remember the old leather ski boots and cable bindings. Caused me to have a sprial fracture of my lower right leg in the early 60's. I bought the ski set at the Co-Op in Seattle when they still carried a lot of old army surplus stuff. I guess they call it "Recreational Equipment Incorporated" nowdays.
I skied at Deer Park a few times. I will never forget that high speed rope tow. It was not the best rope tow to learn on.
It was an interesting road to keep open in the winter.
Thanks for the post elderbob.
The book "Early Hiking in the Olympics" by Paul Crews has some information about early skiing in the Olympics.
Ira Spring's book "An Ice Axe, a Camera, and a Jar of Peanut Butter" has some information about early skiing in the Olympics also.
I remember the cable bindings with the bear trap toe piece. You were not likely have a ski come off. Then there were the longthong bindings.
"The mountains are calling and I must go." - John Muir
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"The mountains are calling and I must go." - John Muir
Thanks, Bob! Much more is available in Lowell Skoog's Alpenglow Ski History Project. Olympic NP archives contain over a thousand photos of skiing and the facilities at Deer Park, which were built with CCC assistance, opened in 1937, remained under USFS management until 1943 and operated until 1957, when the new Hurricane Ridge lodge opened.
A few selected historical photos and news clippings, and concerns over the endangered future of skiing at Olympic, are on the FreeHurricaneRidge blog and Facebook pages.
"of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt" - John Muir
"the wild is not the opposite of cultivated. It is the opposite of the captivated” - Vandana Shiva
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"of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt" - John Muir
"the wild is not the opposite of cultivated. It is the opposite of the captivated” - Vandana Shiva
Those pioneers would be very dismayed to say the least by the recent efforts and attitudes of ONP management. Their complete disregard for historical and/or local use during winter is reprehensible.
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