10 Things to Listen for in Washington’s National Parks


April 30, 2019

By Kelly Sanderbeck, Donor Engagement Manager

Nearly always there was a breeze in the trees and an occasional distant rumble of ice shifting uneasily on the upper glaciers. Nearer at hand there were the calls of birds and the ‘eek’ of conies on the talus slopes below the ridge. Occasionally too a marmot would become worried by our invasion of his sovereign domain and feel called upon to protest in shrill whistling. This would start the birds and the chipmunks chattering…

–from A Year in Paradise by Floyd Schmoe

Part of the reason many of us go to the parks is to escape sound, especially the sound of a city. We go to hear that ‘Natural Soundscape’ created when animals, water, wind and weather combine to create a mixture necessary to wildlife as well as to the visitors who experience these wild places.

You might not know that it is actually within the National Park Service’s mandate to improve soundscapes so that visitors can better experience the natural environment, and wildlife can better hear and communicate for survival. “The National Park Service (NPS) will preserve, to the greatest extent possible, the natural soundscapes of parks.” (NPS 2006 Management Policy, Soundscapes Section 4.9). The Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division of the NPS works with parks to assess the quality of the park soundscape and recommend solutions for managing sound-related issues and preserving vulnerable soundscapes.

We thought you’d enjoy ‘tuning in’ to some of the sounds from Mount Rainier, North Cascades and Olympic National Parks! Our Top 10 favorites:

  1. The mating calls of Nuthatch and Chickadee.

According to the Audubon Society, Mount Rainier hosts 182 species of birds. The red-breasted nuthatch will line the entrance to its nesting cavity with drops of sticky conifer resin. It is thought that this may be a tactic to discourage predators or nest competitors from entering the cavity.

  1. The chatter of Western Toads.

Western toads have a wide range in Washington state, although they are not generally found in the southeastern portion of the state. They are land dwellers and can be found in woodlands, meadows and mountainous wetlands, and dig shallow burrows in loose ground or shelter under rocks or logs.

  1. The echo of a thunderstorm off peaks and valleys.

Everyone always talks about how much rain Seattle gets every year (about 36 inches). By comparison, the Hoh Rain Forest gets as much as 14 feet of rain a year. The National Park Service states: If you hear thunder, you are close enough to be struck by lightning. REMEMBER: There is NO PLACE outside that is safe during a thunderstorm!

  1. The faint call of the rain and barred owl.

Barred Owls have a distinctive hooting call of 8–9 notes, described as “Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you-all?” This call carries well through the woods and is fairly easy to imitate. During courtship, mated pairs perform a riotous duet of cackles, hoots, caws and gurgles.

  1. The crush of Sol Duc Falls.

Sol Duc Falls is, by most accounts, one of the most photogenic waterfalls in Washington State and by proxy is one of the most sought out waterfalls by photographers. The name comes from the Quileute meaning “sparkling waters.” Set within the thick temperate rain forest of the Olympic Mountains, the Sol Duc River creates one of the more uniquely shaped waterfalls in the northwest where it splits into as many as four channels – depending on the volume of the river – hurtling 37 feet off the side of a cliff into a narrow canyon, followed by an 11 foot flume-style drop as the river exits the canyon into a broader gorge below.

  1. Crashing ocean waves against the beaches.

Olympic National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, offers mountains, lakes, rainforests and ocean. In fact, the park includes approximately 62 miles of wilderness coastline, the longest undeveloped coast in the contiguous United States. In If Wildlife Could Speak, we hear crashing waves, among the other myriad ‘voices’ in the park.

  1. The bugle of the Olympic Roosevelt elk.

The Roosevelt elk (Cervus canadensis roosevelti), also known as Olympic elk, is the largest of the four surviving subspecies of elk in North America. Their range includes the rain forests of the Pacific Northwest, extends to parts of northern California, and they were introduced to Kodiak, Alaska’s Afognak and Raspberry Islands in 1928. The desire to protect the elk was one of the primary forces behind the establishment of the Mount Olympus National Monument (later Olympic National Park) in 1909.

  1. Sounds we don’t want to hear in the parks – gunshots or a helicopter during a fire.

72% of Americans say one of the most important reasons for preserving national parks is to provide opportunities to experience natural peace and the sounds of nature (Haas and Wakefield 1998).

Bighorn sheep are less efficient at foraging for food when they are exposed to aircraft noise, and mountain goats often flee from the sound of helicopters and airplanes than birds in quieter environments. Birds forced to sing at a higher volume have to expend increased levels of precious energy to attract a mate or warn of predators.

Research has demonstrated that noise can adversely affect reproductive success in caribou and communication in whales, and has been associated with suppression of the immune system and increased levels of stress-related hormones in animals.

  1. The silence of one of the quietest places on earth.

In fact, Olympic National Park has been said to possess the quietest place on earth in the One Square Inch project from independent researcher Gordon Hempton, who says “Silence is the think tank of the soul.” Out of that came the documentary Being Hear.

The Hoh Rainforest – a unique ecosystem that has remained unchanged for thousands of years and is now the most carefully preserved rain forest in the northern hemisphere – is said to be home to this special place. Efforts are taking place to preserve that electrifying sense of quiet by preventing the air force from performing flyovers at the park.

From A Year in Paradise by Floyd Schmoe:

Silence was the most conspicuous element of the scene. Silence is an awesome thing – few people have ever experienced it. There was the wind, and occasionally the weird racking and groaning of the glacier. But there were periods of almost total silence, and it was my first conscious experience of the absence of sound.

  1. The squeeky-toy voice of a pika.

A pike up closeAmerican pikas are small, rodent-like mammals (7-8 inches) with short, stout bodies; big, round ears; and no visible tail. They might appear cuddly, but are among North America’s toughest lagomorphs (hares, rabbits and pikas). Pikas are one of the few mammals in the lower 48 states that can survive their entire lives in alpine terrain, the barren, windswept land above tree line.

Protecting these Places

The diverse soundscapes of our national parks are incredible to experience — and worth protecting, so future generations can experience them, too.

If you can, support our efforts to protect these parks for years to come by donating today.