Our Projects maintain, preserve and sustain our park. Our Events celebrate, collaborate and educate our visitors.

Projects

Friend Events!

There are many projects on the agenda for Friends and Moran State Park.  Some projects are maintenance or improvements; some are a one time need while others are ongoing.  All need volunteer help. Here are some of the current projects. Call us or email us for details, project time lines and how you can get involved

Project Details

Kokanee Fish Hatchery

Fish Hatchery operations have gone on at Cascade Lake off and on since the 1960’s, a few years ago the park decided to make the hatchery more available to park visitors and make use of Moran Creek hear the Day Use Area at Cascade Lake. Now you can visit the Moran Creek Kokanee Hatchery. Visitors can peak into the life of a Kokanee through the observation window on the front of the building. Future interpretive panels and handouts are planned so visitors will better understand the hatchery process and appreciate this landlocked species of salmon. We have about 80,000 Kokanee that will be released into Cascade Lake by mid June depending upon water levels and fish growth.

The attractive window at the Fish Hatchery building gives visitors a glimpse of the Kokanee fry. They are still a little wary of human faces so they may dart for a shady corner in the tank when you first look in, but give them a minute to venture back. See if you can find any albino Kokanee. We had 5 albino Kokanee last year. (Albino Kokanee are a beautiful opalescent pearl color.)

In November of 2009 we had a record number of Kokanee return to Moran Creek.  Dave Castor estimated that the creek had between 300-400 Kokanee returning.  The subsequent returns have not been nearly as successful but we are continuing to make improvements so that returns will be higher.  We expect with higher returns eggs can be harvested and raised in the hatchery then released into Cascade Lake.  This would eliminate the need to buy eggs and provide a sustainable way to stock Cascade Lake for sport fishing and our famous Bill Yarlot Fishing Derby in April!

Summit Learning Center

The Learning Center opened in May of 2012. Inside you’ll find a self guided tour about the history of KVOS Television at the summit since the 1950′s. As you venture further in you’ll find a 90 gallon tank filled with Kokanee fish from our Moran Creek Hatchery.  In the back room kids can visit our Newtarium and learn more about the Rough Skinned newts that call Summit Lake home.  Kids will find the wingspan of a bald eagle compared to the raven and blue heron.  Or take time to play a matching game and find the hidden deer prints.  Take some time to borrow a clipboard and our treasure hunt.  See how many natural treasures you can find around the summit. We have some great displays and information.  We have some amazing naturalists on hand to answer questions. We can help you set out on a spectacular nature walk, treasure hunt or just tell you which island you are looking at. 

The Jones family and KVOS leave behind quite a legacy at the Summit building which Friends hopes to honor and continue to improve in the rustic building along with information relative to the natural and human history at the summit.

If you are excited about learning more or want to share your knowledge and time with curious visitors both local and from all over the world come visit us at the Summit or email us. 

Volunteers are crucial for a successful learning center. We operate on volunteer staff. If you are interested in donating to our project or have some talent to lend to our educational projects please inquire by email.

Summit Gift Shop

The Summit Gift Shop was opened in May of 2007 and raised a substantial amount of funds for the state park. The shop was staffed entirely on volunteer efforts. We were open every day in the summer from 11-4 pm. We found locally made goods along with unique items directly connected to Moran State Park. Of course everyone loves a well fitting hat or t-shirt to take home, but many also found our local art to be a valuable memory. We expect to continue building on our success by providing items you can’t find anywhere else. Where else would one find “brew with a view our Daily Constitution” a specially roasted coffee from Local Goods?

Stone Tower Restoration

Our tower maintenance usually occurs in August when the weather is most predictable and accommodating for outdoor work. You can volunteer to work on this project by emailing us or checking back for updates. The stone tower was built by the CCC in 1936. In 2002 the historic tower was closed because it was in need of major repairs. Local contractor, Rolf Eriksen was chosen to lead the restoration. Repairs included but were not limited to the removal and resetting of about 1200 stones and replacing 107 stones. The Summit House atop the stone structure was completely rebuilt including the entry door and the wooden stair systems. Over 1000 compromised sections of re-bar were encapsulated and patched. 80% of all mortar joints were re pointed. The lightening arresting system including adding underground copper pipes filled with conductant was repaired and or replaced. The tower was bonded to steel tower grounding. All intermediate windows were rebuilt or replaced. Crucial to this project was replicating to the extent possible all historic hardware.

During restoration, interpretive panels were installed and the interpretive cabinets were put into place. To finish off the months of work, the floors were sealed with epoxy to prevent water intrusion, the electrical service was rebuilt and the entire structure was given a light exterior cleaning.

The list of all restoration efforts is lengthy and proved the maintenance on an annual basis is lot less expensive. All the time, consideration and effort accomplished by Rolf is appreciated beyond words. Rolf Eriksen is our board historian and, needless to say, Lifetime Member. He generously and graciously dedicates his time and talents to Friends and Moran State park.

Now that you’ve read about it, don’t wait any longer to see it for yourself. We’ve illustrated why it is important to continue maintenance of our historic stone tower which faces harsh elements year after year. We couldn’t do it without your support. Friends is dedicated to the preservation of the historic tower, you can help with your time your talent or your tax deductible donation to Friends.

Educational Outreach

In 2009 we created an educational outreach program called Creatures of the Forest. The program consisted of three weeks of classes, four days each week for one hour.  Our initial intent was to reach the local kids aged 4 to 10 years. We contacted several of the schools both public and private in addition to the homeschooling groups in area and aimed to get kids into the park. We believe kids need to be immersed into the environment.

Small groups of kids came each day, so that each child attended a total of 3 classes: birds, mammals, and biodiversity.  The naturalist held classes at the day use shelter by Cascade Lake at Moran State Park. There were a few programs that were split between the park and the class room.  Over all we  considered it a huge success and ran the program from Winter of 2009 through the spring of 2010.  We are already looking forward to the next round of kids in the park.

More classes and lecture will be scheduled in the new Summit Learning Center.  Our center is a work in progress.  We hope to provide positive educational experiences for our community and our visitors. Our creative possibilities and excitement are limited only by funding and volunteers. So join us!

Second Sunday Park Projects

On the second Sunday of each month we help organize volunteers to help the park in an outdoor area.  We meet at the Park office at 10 am and from there the rangers will direct volunteers to the project at hand.  Our first Second Sunday park project was helping clean up after the tree removal.  There was a lot of debris left behind and campsites were not ready for campers.  You can learn more about upcoming projects on our homepage or follow us on Facebook.

Events

Bill Yarlott Annual Fishing Derby

The fishing derby has taken place for 12 years now, in honor of Bill Yarlott. It celebrates the beginning of fishing season and a rite of passage for kids. The derby is named after Bill because he was instrumental in getting Cascade Lake stocked when fish numbers began to decline. He was also influential in getting the hatchery up and running. Bill makes some fine tasting chili and has enjoyed watching youngsters over the years catch Kokanee, Cutthroat and Rainbow trout from Cascade Lake. Everyone gets a prize. The event is co-sponsored by Orcas Outfitters, who generously donate prizes year after year.

Annual Clean Up

Every year just about Earth Day many hardworking individuals gather, and at the direction of park rangers, clean up nature’s windy winter weather playground. Campsites are prepared for the busy season and trails are maintained, cleared of fallen trees and repaired as necessary. It may be one of our most labor intensive projects, but it’s the most rewarding for the efforts volunteers provide to park staff. Join us next year, celebrate Moran State Park, Earth Day and a free lunch. If it snows again we’ll have roaring fire and hot coffee to warm your hands.

Steve Braun Memorial Triathlon

The Steve Braun Memorial Triathlon is in its 14th year.  Our triathlon is a fun and heartfelt island park event. The event is scheduled on the Sunday of Labor Day Weekend. We had nearly 100 participants last year and look forward to continuing the tradition of a triathlon in the most unique manner and pacific northwest location!  Start training now.  You can find registration and course information here. 

Past Projects and Events

Interpretive Panels

Interpretation has always been the vision of Friends. On your visit to the historic Stone Tower you’ll find porcelain panels which elegantly pay tribute to Robert Moran and the Civilian Conservation Corps. The panels provide information that was not previously available. They describe the generosity and foresight of Robert Moran who donated the original 3600 acres of land to Washington State Parks. The panels also illustrate the impact of the CCC in Moran State Park history and how they enhanced the great gift from Robert Moran. The interpretive panel project cost more than $20,000 and took approximately three years to research and complete. Knowing that potentially 800,000 visitors per year come to know more about the history behind Moran State Park and the Stone Tower makes it a legacy Friends will always be proud of.

Summit Bike Challenge

The bike challenge started in 2007 as a funding event for the Kokanee Fish Hatchery now located in the park building across from Cascade Lake Day Use Area. The ride is a fun family event to celebrate the coming of fall and a ride up Mt. Constitution Rd with less traffic than our summer season. We have snack/refreshment tables at three main trail heads, Cascade Falls, Mountain Lake and the Summit. Riders are encouraged to go as far as they’d like. Some have taken the opportunity to see if they can make it all the way to the top, and they have indeed! You’ll even find the park rangers taking part to enjoy a challenging but awesome ride up to the Summit.

Art in the Park

Art in the Park is one of our past events that served the community well. With local artists, various vendors, good food and entertainment, it was a beautiful way to spend the afternoon. The event was a great way to raise funds for the park and support local artists.   Continue to check the web page because great events always resurface.