KC Pilon was busy Monday afternoon at Rasar State Park.

She weeded the park’s edible plant garden and emptied several trash cans. After throwing several bags of garbage into the bed of her heavy-duty golf cart, she drove to a campsite to clean out a fire pit, pick up debris, move a picnic table and rake gravel in preparation for the next wave of campers.

That — and more — is all in a day’s work for camp hosts at state parks throughout Washington.

Jack Hartt, park manager at Deception Pass State Park, said hosts are the lifeblood at his park. Deception Pass State Park has six hosts. Two are in the Cranberry Lake Campground and one each at Bowmen Bay, Sunrise, Cornet Bay and the Environmental Learning Center.

“They are our eyes, ears and extra hands,” Hartt said. “They do all the stuff we wish we had the time to do. Having them available in the campgrounds 24-7 is of a great help. They are a very important bridge between us and the campers.”

A 65-year-old retiree from Anacortes, Pilon said she’d always wanted to do something like this.

“This is my first summer and, in fact, my first month (of being a host),” Pilon said. “I called, received an application and then was asked to attend a five-day training session at Sun Lakes State Park back in April.”

Veteran camp hosts Lou and Alis Parris pull their 24-foot fifth-wheel into Deception Pass State Park each summer for their stint. They’ve been hosts the past five years, having gotten their start in 2004 at Rasar State Park.

This summer, the Parrises spent two months at the Cornet Bay boat launch before moving to the Cranberry Lake Campground.

Lou, 73, and Alis, 66, are responsible for 78 campsites, a picnic area and beaches. The two have a strategy — campground loop each day and the beaches on the weekend.

The retirees live in the Smoky Point area.

“Jack (Hartt) was convinced we’d become regulars,” Alis said, “and he was right.”

Lou said he and his wife have always enjoyed camping and the outdoors.

“We absolutely love it,” said Alis. “We are hosts four months out of the year. It’s a great time.”

Pilon said she learned plenty at the Sun Lakes retreat. The instruction went beyond the typical duties of a camp host. The state brought in specialists to speak on such topics as geology, botany and birds of prey.

“It was interesting,” Pilon said. “I learned a lot about that area.”

On her application, Pilon was asked to list five parks at which she’d be interested in staying.

“I didn’t want to go somewhere far from home, because of the cost of gas,” she said. “When I went to the training, I talked to a lot of folks who had stayed at a lot of different campgrounds. There were about 80 people at the training. I talked to many about their experiences. The good, bad and funny.

“I learned that some like to just host at parks with interpretive centers and others like to be by the water. Me, I’m a birder. So if there are birds, I’m happy. I’ve surprised myself by just how much I’ve learned about plants.”

The Parrises are part naturalists as well. Lou quickly rattled off huckleberry, blackberry and thimbleberry as some of the edible plants that can be found in the park.

“Mountain ash, you want to watch out for it,” he added. “It can do some terrible things to your insides.”

Two of the five parks Pilon wrote down were Rasar State Park and Deception Pass. Pilon will head to Deception Pass in September.

Hartt admitted there are times when hosts can be hard to come by. In fact, the state often struggles to find hosts.

“During the (off) seasons, it can be difficult to fill the positions,” he said. “A lot of these folks are snowbirds, so they are gone and don’t come back until a little later, while others just don’t want to be at the park during the winter.

“People who do come here during those (off) months generally are involved in more project-oriented work. There again, it’s another set of hands. And we can always use those.”
Each park has a say in who gets positions.

“They apply and we review those applications and then we give them a call,” Hartt explained. “Plus, we use references so we know if they would be a good fit for our park or not.
We try and get the cream of the crop here at Deception Pass State Park. We have a pretty good record for getting people who are a very good fit and who love being here. We get a lot of people who want to keep coming back. Others just aren’t interested in coming here. Everyone has their favorites (parks).”

Pilon likes the atmosphere at Rasar State Park.

“Rasar gets a lot of families,” Pilon said. “It’s definitely not a party park. They have a Junior Ranger program here on the weekends and that is really popular. The park has an ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act trail) that runs through the meadow and ends at the river. The day-use area has a playground. There’s even an elk herd that comes into the meadow every evening.”

Camp hosts help park staff with routine services such as greeting guests and answering questions.

“We answer a lot of questions. Questions like, ‘Where can we go? What can we see? Where can we buy diapers and tequila?’” Alis Parris said with a laugh.

Hosts also help in critical situations.

“Flat tires on rigs and bicycles, and we always have jumper cables,” said Lou Parris.

“Our air compressor gets a lot of use,” chimed in Alis Parris.

Hosts are used in campgrounds, marine parks, interpretive centers and environmental learning centers.

“It’s our job to facilitate a good experience for the campers,” Pilon said.

Hosts are expected to work four hours a day, seven days a week. In return, they receive a free campsite and utility hookups at the park (minimum 30-day stay). Marine park hosts receive free boat moorage (minimum 14-day stay). In the Parrises’ case, since they are a couple, they each work 14 hours a week.

“You work just hard enough to earn your keep,” Pilon admitted. “But you feel good. You certainly don’t feel dead at the end of the day.”

“It’s about keeping the park looking good,” said Lou Parris. “You want everything in shape for the next campers and that means going as far as picking up cigarettes. In a campground this size, you can pick up a lot of cigarette butts.”

From the time campers leave until the time new ones arrive, hosts have about 1 1/2 hours to ready campsites. Pilon tries to stay ahead by keeping vacant sites yet to be reserved ready to go.

“That way I’m not running around like some nut,” she said.

Pilon is responsible for walk-in sites and two large campground loops, about half of which have hook-ups.

Hosts who serve at three parks within a calendar year earn a Volunteer Passport, good for three nights with utility hookups at any Washington State Park campground.

“This is just a beautiful park and campground,” Pilon boasted of Rasar. “To be able to come here and stay basically for free is just great. You are responsible for cleaning up the campground sites. You pick up garbage, sell firewood and things like that. I even weed flower beds.”

There’s also some rearranging to be done.

“People like to move the picnic table,” Pilon said. “They like to set up their campsite like it’s their front room. That’s not a big deal. I just move the picnic table back when I can.”

While folks like the Parrises boast fifth-wheel rigs, Pilon’s home away from home is a tiny, borrowed trailer and a large tent.

“A lot of hosts have these huge, substantial rigs,” she admitted. “They leave their houses and live in them for months at a time. Me, I have a small, borrowed rig. I wanted to make sure this was something I liked to do. Well, I’ve found out I do like it.”

Being a camp host becomes a way of life for many.

“The people that were here before us this winter are now in either Georgia or Alabama,” said Lou Parris. “When they left here, they were headed to Oregon. Most folks like to go where the weather suits them the best.

“Here, we are close to the water so we can get our ocean fix, and plus we love the mountains. You are 30 minutes to both.”

At Deception Pass, Hartt explained, hosts are usually put in campsites that aren’t reserved on a regular basis. There are four campsites for hosts only.

“We have a lot of fun,” said Lou Parris. “The park gives us our spot and we settle in. I’m amazed they have a hard time getting volunteers to do this. It’s just a great time. There is something for everyone. You can make your own job.”

Pilon had high praise for her park as well.

“I have a nice spot,” she said. “You even get cable at this park. That’s nice. I am having a great time. Plus I get to drive this groovy cart.”

Pilon is thinking about buying her own rig and taking the skills she has honed as a camp host to Southern California or Arizona.

“This place will be hard to beat,” Pilon admitted. “It’s beautiful. At my site, I can look straight up and see blue sky and still be completely surrounded by cedar and pine trees.”

So, will Pilon be back next year?

“I’ve already signed up,” she said.

Just like the Parrises, it sounds as if Pilon will soon be called a regular.

* Vince Richardson can be reached at 360-416-2181 or by e-mail at