The health of America’s national parks depends upon the health of the waters that surround, and flow through, them. At the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), we work every day to protect and restore waterways across the country to benefit national parks, the communities that surround them, and the millions of people who visit them each year.

The contracting process for rehabilitation of 12 miles of the Lake Crescent section of Highway 101 and four miles of East Beach Road at Olympic National Park in Washington state remains under way, so this spring’s construction schedule has been adjusted. Construction is now slated to begin in late April this year. This project is being managed collaboratively by the Federal Highway Administration and the National Park Service.

There's nothing like a good book or two to help you prepare for a national park visit, whether you're looking for some historical background, a trail or two to hike, or interested in the natural resources or local culture. With that in mind, here are a few titles you might consider in preparation of a visit to Olympic National Park in Washington state.

A federal judge has agreed with the National Park Service's reasoning behind a decision to repair five historic buildings located in official wilderness in Olympic National Park, holding that the agency "made a reasoned finding of necessity by determining both that the structures are necessary to preserve historic values in Olympic National Park and that it was necessary to repair each one."