Artwork marks marine
sanctuary’s 50th anniversary
By Matthew Nash
Olympic Peninsula News Group
One of the scenic spots on the Olympic Peninsula made its way onto a stamp set to help celebrate the National Marine Sanctuary system’s 50th anniversary.
It’s one of 16 photos of wildlife and ecosystems in America’s national marine sanctuaries and national monuments photographed by the public and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration staff.
The National Marine Sanctuaries Forever stamp series released on Aug. 5 at post offices nationwide, with 38 million produced at $9.60 per sheet. They are also available at usps.com/stamps.
Crying Lady Rock is part of the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, which spans 3,188 square miles of marine waters off the Olympic Peninsula coastline and extends 25-40 miles seaward.
Visitors can access the sanctuary from an approximate 0.7-mile forested trail with a 2-mile stretch of beach by the rock.
The Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary protects marine mammals, seabird faunas, kelp and intertidal algae populations, and invertebrate communities with about 48 miles open for visitors to see beaches, shoreline, tidepools and more.
Stamp sets commemorate the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act being signed into law Oct. 23, 1972.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries serves as the trustee for more than 620,000 square miles of marine and Great Lakes waters with 15 national marine sanctuaries and two marine national monuments, including Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary.
Olympic Coast Discovery Center, 115 E. Railroad Ave. in The Landing, Port Angeles, operated by NOAA’s Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary docents, is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily for free through Labor Day and will remain open Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from September to mid-October.
For more information, call 360-452-3255 or visit olympiccoast.noaa.gov.
Matthew Nash is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. Reach him at mnash@sequimgazette.com.
