Port Angeles, WA - Long-time local invites public as guests to gather on inholder property for a 'time of remembrance' for two lakes to be lost to dam destruction
Posted 9/11/2011
THIS IS YOUR INVITATION
"Shall We Gather At The River"
Sat. Sept. 17, 2011
The public is invited to be our guest at the Rains Family ONP [Olympic National Park] Inholders property
Located on the Olympic Hot Springs Road
For a time of remembrance of what used to be
Two of the finest public recreational areas on the Olympic Peninsula
Lake Mills - Lake Aldwell
Clean energy - Flood control
Pearl Rains Hewett
Trustee George C. Rains Sr. Estate
______________________________________________________________________
THESE ARE ANSWERS and comments TO YOUR ONLINE QUESTIONS
"Shall We Gather At The River" on Sat. Sept. 17, 2011
Prepare for a primitive day hike, sack lunch, bottled water, pack it in, pack it out.
This is an opportunity to visit and walk in a place that may soon be lost to the wilderness.
This is simply an invitation..
With so many planned events on Sept. 17, 2011, there is no way for anyone to anticipate how many guests we will have.
There is a rest room at the small camp ground.
There is a parking lot at the ONP gate.
We are planning to have Rains Family Inholder property owners at both the ONP gate and at the entrance road to our inholder property.
Those who attend will be referred to as invited guests of the Rains family.
I commit myself to being at our ONP Inholders property from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2011 and I am extending an invitation to the public to be our guest on our private Inholder property.
The Rains Family wants to share their beautiful Elwha River property with those who would prefer a walk by the river to a gathering at the Pier to watch TV.
Go West on Highway 101, turn left up the Olympic Hot Springs Road (just before the Elwha Bridge). The Rains Property is through the ONP gate and about 3 miles up the road on your right.
Retired council mentioned the following;
With the publicity generated by the June 28, 2011 PDN [Peninsula Daily News] front page picture of Pearl Rains Hewett and story
ACCESS DENIED
it would be more damaging for ONP to deny access to an Inholder, than to let us in.
Their is no law that denies my right to invite guests to my private property.
The sign inside the ONP, on the entrance road, at the gate to our property, states for property owners and guests.
ONP may try to deny us access for security reasons, using court intervention.
How can ONP legally deny Inholders and their guests access to private property?
If ONP has security issues they can barricade the Olympic Hot Springs Road beyond our Inholder access road.
The one thing I am sure of is, on Saturday Sept. 17, 2011, I would rather be walking our beautiful Elwha River property than go down to the Pier to watch a big screen TV, listen to a band and dance.
This is a time to remember, walk, talk, enjoy the beauty of the day and make plans for our future.
Photographs? The Elwha River is beautiful, deer, elk, moss covered trees, an occasional spotted owl and perhaps even a sighting of the endangered marbled Merlette.
We are miles away from the event at the Dam.
It is my belief that when the Dams are removed, there won't be any reason to maintain the Olympic Hot Springs Road.
With the Olympic Hot Springs Road gone "Access will not only be denied, it will be impossible".
I believe the ONP portion of the Elwha River Valley will become an inaccessible "Wilderness Area" before the spring of 2012.
I for one, am not satisfied with watching the invited 400 celebrate our loss on a big screen at the pier.
If we are refused vehicle entry, we may be taking a little longer walk.
If I am denied access, I will be at the ONP gate.
I look forward to seeing you.
Pearl Rains Hewett
Trustee George C. Rains Estate
THE ELWHA RIVER - WHAT USED TO BE
OLYMPIC HOT SPRINGS RESORT
This Public recreational facility, on public land was destroyed and returned to wilderness for the benefit of "We the People" by Olympic National Park.
Documented in "Conspiracy Exposed" by George C. Rains Sr. 1992
It was one of the finest public recreational facilities on the Olympic Peninsula..
It was originally built and maintained by Everett and Harry Schoefell and family.
His resort business was very successful for many years. Long leases and plans could be made to maintain and improve his business. When the Olympic Nation Park put the squeeze on Harry Schoefell by giving a lease for only one year at a time. This put a squeeze on improvement programs and you had nothing certain to make improved facilities and maintenance work for the future.
I was told by Harry Schoefell that all he received in the end from ONP was $10,000.00 for all of his years of work.
NOW AND THEN
The resort was abandoned and left to deteriorate, eventually torn down and the road leading to it was removed by ONP. This Public recreational facility, on public land was destroyed and returned to wilderness for the benefit of "We the People" by Olympic National Park.
There used to be an unmaintained trail to what was left of the resort, 35 years ago, I took my two nieces on a hike to Olympic Hot Springs.
All that was left were two small pools of steaming mineral water with several naked hikers lounging on logs. The area around the pools was contaminated with human excrement.
I never went back, is the trail to the Olympic Hot Springs still there?
I Pearl Rains Hewett, have living memory, of when I was a girl, visiting OLYMPIC HOT SPRINGS RESORT with my family and swimming in the pool of mineral water.
Pearl Rains Hewett
Trustee George C. Rains Sr. Estate
SHALL WE GATHER AT THE RIVER
Sept 17, 2011 9:00am to 5:00pm
INHOLDER PRIVATE ELWHA CAMPGROUND
As documented in "Conspiracy Exposed" by George C. Rains Sr. 1992
I developed one of the finest recreational campground facilities the Elwha River area has ever known. We subdivided and developed it into campsites with underground electricity, water system, good roads and restroom facilities.
NOTE: This campground area is where we will gather at the river.
( Private recreational campground developments are no longer allowed in Clallam County)
In the course of the development I noticed a small breach through a narrow strip of land on the south end of the big island which is owned by the Park (ONP). I could foresee a lot of damage if something was not done to protect the property below and the Olympic Hot Springs Road. I contacted Del Hur Industries to get an estimate on what it would cost to plug the breach and put in a small rock dike to prevent further damage to our property and the road.
After getting the estimate I contacted the Park (ONP) people, and they would do nothing to help remedy the situation. I also offered to provide free from cost all of the rip rap from our rock quarry on Little River.
The problem was ignored. Finally some time later the river came up high enlarging the breach and washing out a section of the Olympic Hot Springs Road, and cut a channel through our development and took out our bridge.
The Olympic Hot Springs Road had to be rebuilt by moving it to higher ground on the hillside. At a later date when I was in the area after the road was rebuilt, I noticed men working with a drilling outfit on the east side of the new road. Federal highway crews were doing the work and testing the fault area above the Olympic Hot Springs Road. They informed me that if the rock dike was not build that to keep the river in its original channels, more of the area east of the road would slip into the river. They informed me that the whole hillside for a great distance up the hill was nothing but a fault ready to sink into the river if the problem was not corrected.
To this day they (ONP) has done nothing to remedy the threat and a good portion of our property was destroyed through their (ONP) sheer negligence. The National Park Service has no respect for private property ownership and rights.
Summer of 1976 documented by Pearl Rains Hewett personal account.
My two sons, Delane R. Hewett, Gregory W. Hewett and I were going to spend the entire summer on my mother's recreational lot on the Elwha River. In a beautiful mobile home with a large windowed sunroom attached. Even after the wide spread damage to the recreational area, we still had water and electricity. The extended members of the Rains family were enjoying a carefree summer, the boys fished, sat around the bonfire, hiked, explored and enjoyed an the enchanted ambiance of nature.
There were occasional sudden releases of water from the Dam that created high water on the river. It concerned me, I reported it to the ONP, we were living out there and we should be notified.
SUMMER 1976 NOTHING PERSONAL
I woke up in the middle of the night to the roaring sound of rushing water, I went to the back door and the water was running over two feet high up onto the steps of the mobile home. I immediately woke up the boys, "We have to get out of here". In the dark we grabbed what belongs we could fit in the car and drove away. This can be Documented by Sandy Rains, we woke her up and found shelter at her house on that horrendous night and stayed at she and my brother, George C. Rains Jr. home until we found a rental.
The entire mobile home and sunroom, where my son's and I were sleeping, was washed away. The only thing remaining of our private Inholder's development was the concrete slab and the electrical box.
Did you or someone you know own one of destroyed sites?
George C. Rains Jr., Delane R. Hewett and Gregory W. Hewett are documented legal Inholder property owner's on the Elwha River.
We Shall Gather At The River on Sept 17, 2011 in remembrance of all that we have lost.
Pearl Rains Hewett
Trustee of the George C. Rains Sr. Estate
Inholder and legal owner of Elwha property