By Mark Erskine, WNPF Marketing Communications Advisory Council Volunteer and Meadow Rover
Like many park visitors who first learn about Meadow Rovers at Mount Rainier, I wanted to sign up immediately! In the summer of 2023, I was fortunate enough to officially become one of nearly 300 Meadow Rover volunteers. To preserve the park’s fragile ecosystem, Meadow Rovers roam the trails, playing a pivotal role in ensuring visitors have a safe, educational, and unforgettable experience. This popular volunteer opportunity is a great way to give back to a park that you love to play in. But as I learned in my training, this role requires passion, patience, and park knowledge.
Meadow Rover training consists of various topics, everything from speaking to hikers about dog regulations, offering safety tips and route recommendations, the importance of these wildflower meadows, or simply just using the radio during shifts.
Of course, as part of our training, we must hit the trail for our first in-person orientation at either Paradise or Sunrise. I was nervous about how I’d react to people who were not staying on trails or unintentionally not following park rules. After all, you don’t want to come off as angry or bossy, and I feared that I might sound that way after a long day’s work. I trained with Natalie Matias, who oversees the Rovers at Sunrise. Her personality and energy are perfect for the task, and I immediately wanted to emulate her on the trails.
To paint the picture, we were discussing encountering someone who was flying a drone, which many seasoned park-goers know is not allowed in national parks. Her recommended approach played out like this:
“So you’re flying a drone! How cool!” in a surprised, excited, and fun tone. “Hey, are you aware that drones can’t be flown in the park because they can severely impact search and rescue anywhere on the mountain?” in a genuinely caring voice.
She shares that when you then give the person an opportunity to react – most often – they admit they were not aware. You follow with a gentle ask if they can immediately bring down their drone and cease flying. Same kind of treatment with dog owners, or any other often unintentional mistakes visitors might make. The bottom line in my training was that Meadow Rovers are not rule or law enforcers; we are there to assist park visitors so that they can have a memorable experience, all while taking care of the fragile resources that these meadows provide.
My first scheduled rove was on the Nature Trail to Sourdough Ridge, then Dege Peak to Sunrise Point, and return. All the park visitors were wonderful to speak with. They welcomed me when I cheerfully asked where they were headed with their children, gently asking if they had plenty of water and sunscreen, and making sure they were happy with their trail plans. Each rover is provided a counter so that they can report the number of times they assist park visitors. It can be as simple as helping them identify a wildflower, to giving young children a button that reminds their parents to stay on the trails. At the end of the day, I was shocked to see I had helped 68 visitors! Many experienced rovers contact over a hundred visitors in a day and at the end of the 2023 season, the program reported over 200,000 contacted park visitors – talk about making a positive impact on the park.
What’s truly remarkable is that many of the park’s Meadow Rovers were once park visitors themselves, inspired to become part of this vibrant community that helps the park thrive. So many visitors I met wanted to hear about our volunteer program and I was delighted to share that it’s made possible by the significant funding that Washington’s National Park Fund provides to the park, among other priority projects. Things like radios, uniforms, training, coordinators, etc. This program provides park visitors significantly more one-on-one assistance than the park would be able to afford without the Meadow Rover program. I look forward to my next rove as I get to shape a visitor’s experience as well as take care of the park I love.
Want to support volunteer programs or projects that shape your experience as a vsitor? Consider a gift to WNPF on GivingTuesday, November 28th! Your gift can double by taking advantage of a $15,000 match. Will you join us?
Washington’s National Park Fund is the official philanthropic partner to Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks. We raise private support to preserve and protect Washington’s national parks by funding scientific research, youth and family experiences, and projects that will keep these parks strong and vital now and forever, for everyone.