Park Projects

For your generation, for their generation and the future generations. Our park projects maintain, preserve and educate. Please participate.


There are many projects on the agenda for Moran State Park.  Some projects are maintenance some are improvements, but 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:

Kokanee Fish Hatchery

Fish Hatchery operations have gone on at Cascade Lake off and on since the 1960’s, but recently 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. Visitors can peak into the life of a Kokanee through the observation window on the front of the building. Future interpretive panels 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 return of 2010 was not nearly as successful but we are continuing to make improvements so that returns will be higher, 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

Update: We are preparing to open May 2012!  Its been two years in the working and we’ve still got a few final touches, like the newt habitat. You will find a wealth of information about KVOS history, measure your arm span against that of the bald eagle and discover our Nature Shop filled with educational materials and What’s Newt? souvenirs.

We’ve created a timeline of KVOS history along side some great displays and information on some of the creatures who make their home in Moran State park.

Outside, work is ongoing to return the summit to its natural landscape. The KVOS antenna has been removed and mother nature is coaxing the spread of native vegetation.

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

With volunteer help and park staff we have completed minor repairs, insulated, painted and installed some shelves.  We’ve paid close attention to the building ambiance like painting and educational displays.  Volunteers are crucial for this project.  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.

Bat Housing

Have you noticed something that looks like a water tower behind the park manager’s office?  Orcas high school science teacher Greg Books with some help from Russel Barsh and volunteers built a “Missouri style” bat house for the rare Long-eared Myotis bats living in the attic of the CCC-era office cabin.

The Bat house was completed in late spring just in time for the bats to arrive, but this year they were late and most of them choose to return to the office attic.  Most of us see bat houses placed in trees, but these are just day roosts for one or more bats.  Hundreds or thousands of bats may depend on a single maternity colony, however, which is why it is so important to protect them.   Russel Barshof the Lopez-based conservation laboratory KWIAHT checked on the new bat house with infrared video camera and found some bat nesting, but not as many as we had hoped.

In detail we hope to seal up the office attic, add bright lights and some high frequency noise to deter bats from choosing this attic for their nursery.  By adding some more internal structure to the new bat house, we hope it will be more attractive to the bats in the spring of 2011. We can use a few extra, reasonably skilled hands to pound nails and do some finishing work.  Please call or email if you are interested in learning more or volunteering.

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

The tower was built by the CCC in 1936. In the year 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 rebar were encapsulated and patched. 80% of all mortar joints were repointed. 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.

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 13th year.  The event was co-sponsored by Friends in the past.  This year we will be taking the lead roll to continue a fun and heartfelt event. The event is scheduled for Sunday September 4th.  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, we’ll have registration forms, information and maps in the near future.  Don’t forget to bring your enthusiasm for our warm up. Race starts at 9 am.

Educational Outreach

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 belive 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.

Friends of Moran also support the Jr. Ranger program in Moran State park. We help by providing funds for materials needed in the classes provided by naturalists on a seasonal basis.
We hope to provide educational experiences with a future interpretive center.  Our creative possibilities and excitement are limited only by funding and volunteers.

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.

Past Events

Summit Bike Challenge

The bike challenge started in 2007 as a funding event for the KokaneeFish 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 trailheads, 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.