High altitude hiking trails in Olympic National Park, Washington

Keywords: protected places, mountains, biogeography, geomorphology
Session Type: Virtual Poster Abstract
Day: Friday
Session Start / End Time: 2/25/2022 03:40 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/25/2022 05:00 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 49

Abstract

In Olympic National Park, Washington, the 611 miles (983 km) of over 150 hiking trails go through multiple types of ecosystems, including temperate rainforests, lowland forests, montane forests, subalpine meadows, and the alpine tundra. Subalpine and alpine meadows as well as tundra ecosystems are to disturbances, which may lead to in soil compaction, leading to increased erosion; lower species diversity near the hiking trails may also be recorded. The type and amount of disturbance is related to accessibility, popularity, length, scenery, and destination of a hiking trail. Over 25 trails in Olympic NP were identified as passing through these three high altitude biomes, totaling over 200 miles (240 km) of tracks. In preparation for a larger project on micro-scale trail erosion impacts, Google Earth was used to record the widths, trail tread conditions, and lengths the trails actually travel through the three biomes. The NPS had five categories of trail treads: primitive, rough, infrequently maintained, maintained, and well-maintained. In Google Earth, these categories translated in those trails noted as primitive and rough had very narrow widths and, in the rocky alpine tundra, occasionally were barely discernible whereas with well-maintained treads, the tracks were easily followed. In regards to the lengths of the trails, approximately 20% of the lengths of the trails tracked through the three biomes of interest. This project is the first step in a broader project on the impact of hikers on the environment.