Olympic Wilderness named for former Gov. Dan Evans

OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK, Wash. – Former Republican Washington Gov. Dan Evans has been honoured with the renaming of the Olympic Wilderness to the Daniel J. Evans Wilderness.

The Seattle Times reports (https://goo.gl/8H3jwk ) the renaming is a tribute to his years of public service and accomplishments protecting some of the most beloved landscapes in Washington.

Three times Washington’s governor and a U.S. senator for Washington, Evans authored the Washington State Wilderness Act protecting 1.5 million areas of wild lands, and was instrumental in creating the North Cascades National Park, the scenic corridor in the Columbia River Gorge, and the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.

At Hurricane Ridge Friday, Evans told a crowd that when asked how much wilderness is needed, he always answered: “More.”

Evans says for him, the renaming of the wilderness — with a bipartisan, unanimous vote of the Washington congressional delegation — will always recall hundreds of hikes on several thousands of miles of trail.

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Information from: The Seattle Times, http://www.seattletimes.com