Rangers balance tourism with park preservation
By Jennifer Morris

Davenport Project

Century-old Fort Spokane appears at first to be a mere skeleton of what it once was. Covered in snow and quieted by winter's lack of tourism, the fort stands empty save for the deer tracks scattered throughout the grounds. But the Fort Spokane rangers bring the historical setting to life after a call from area dispatch about a nearby car crash. Moving quickly within their secluded office, the rangers launch into one key aspect of the work for which they're best known: preserve, conserve and protect.

The accident scene was in a small canyon on State Highway 25, just south of the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area border. There, a heavy-duty construction vehicle lay tangled with a small, silver pickup. Leading the first responders was District Ranger Chris Rugel, and arriving with him on scene was Field Ranger Jeremy Miller, who, like many other rangers, is cross-trained as an EMT.

From fending off thieves to swearing in children as junior rangers, Fort Spokane rangers are constantly busy, and this single accident is just one of the many challenges they face in keeping the wildlife around them intact. More than one million visitors make their way to the 130-square-mile park annually. With popularity though, comes overuse. Campgrounds are packed, and roads are traveled heavily in the summer months.

"This is the hot spot of the area," Rugel said. "Encroachment is one of our biggest concerns."

Both private and commercial developments are on the rise, and the amount of waste on lake shorelines is increasing. Unable to purchase the surrounding land, Fort Spokane's biggest challenge is too much attention from the nearby homeowners and visitors who come to enjoy it.

"There's only so much a park can take," Miller said. "We're trying to reduce the visitors' and developers' impact on the resources, because this is a national treasure."

Rugel and Miller want to come to an understanding with area vacationers through education. They want to educate park neighbors about the impact that lawn chemicals and other landscaping can have on the environment. They want to educate visitors on cleaning up after themselves, as well as to provide a greater understanding of Fort Spokane's distinctive value and history. To do that, rangers offer boating, camping, living-history reenactments, guided canoe trips, bike tours and even displays of a Mountain Howitzer cannon's firepower.

New informational exhibits within the guardhouse are coming soon, said Lynne Brougher, Fort Spokane's chief of resources and education.

"We want to tell the story of the fort beyond just its military history," Brougher said. "We want to expand what we have to include the Native American stories of the land."

Fort Spokane rangers have year-round protection duties that include preserving the Native American artifacts and gravesites uncovered each spring with water-level fluctuations. In the fall, they monitor hunters who track deer, turkey and geese.

"It takes time to do this," Rugel said, "But knowing that families are getting a quality experience here is what makes the rest of this worthwhile."

Miller said he does his job simply because he loves nature.

"Being stewards of the land is what we do," Miller said. "Sure, there are incidents like the car accident, but those are mitigated with experience and time. I do this job because I can protect what I love the most and give back to everybody around me."

More than an hour after the initial accident call, Rugel continued to direct traffic and clear debris along the highway, while Miller returned to his Fort Spokane duties.

"In a lot of those situations, we don't hear the outcomes," Miller said, "But when someone comes out to the park to say thank you, that's the best."

For more information on Fort Spokane, go to:

National Park Service
www.nps.gov/laro

To reserve a Fort Spokane camp site, go to:
www.reserveusa.com