Join a ranger for a snowshoe hike at Mount Rainier this winter/Margot Tsakonas

Editor's note: The following article was written by Margot Tsakonas, a volunteer and supporter of Washington's National Park Fund.

One of the many great things about our National Park System is the opportunity to be a “VIP”—Volunteer in the Park.

At Mount Rainier National Park, roles are various, ranging from visitor education to citizen science to archive work to campground host. For seven years I have been a “Meadow Rover,” helping to ensure visitor safety and positive experiences while protecting resources. It’s a fun, satisfying, and sometimes challenging role.

But the summer season is very short, so I decided to try out winter volunteering by assisting at the Henry M. Jackson Visitor Center at Paradise. One of our roles is to assist the interpretive staff rangers with guided snowshoe walks—acting as “sweep.” These walks are less than two miles, intended to enable just about any visitor to get a small taste of our winter environment. The sweep helps with snowshoes (loaned out by the park) and keeps everyone together.

To some people it might sound not so exciting. No quad-burning steep ascents to pinnacle–like summits, no turning and swooshing down crazy steep slopes. But, I have come to realize that my volunteer days are all about visitors, what they experience and learn, and what their experiences teach me.

Here are some examples of the great people I got to meet: 

* A family from Columbia who had never seen snow. This is actually pretty common with our visitors, whether they are from Florida or India or wherever. There is a look of awe on people’s faces when they see the mountain on a sunny day, and then step on to the snowshoe trail and realize they can walk on it. Not to mention the kids trying out their first snowballs!

* A local family stunned when they realized, as we looked at the Nisqually Glacier and its running stream, that this was the origin of the river near their home. Kudos to these parents for getting their adolescent and pre-teen kids into a park! This gave me renewed hope that younger generations will step up when the time comes to protect our national heritage of parks and wild places.

* Another local woman who had the same surprise about the Nisqually – and a very personal connection, as her husband dives for clams out in the delta. These folks literally earn their living from the mountain in ways they never realized before. I hope they too were inspired to protect it.

Lastly, I can’t forget the folks planning to spend New Year’s Eve snow camping under the full moon. That way beats out Times Square