Author Topic: Alpine Gardens on Mt. Rainier (Read 13360 times)

bossgard · « **on:** June 17, 2012, 07:35:36 PM »

Hiking Up, Looking Down (South)

Paradise Park with Tatoosh Range in background.

An early morning sunrise casts its shadows, as we are welcomed to Paradise.
And what a welcoming sight it is.

It encourages us to go forward and upward to one of the most thrilling and beautiful hiking adventures Toby and HB have ever had.

Eric Hardy · « **Reply #1 on:** June 19, 2012, 07:38:23 AM »

Hi Toby, what a wonderful place! I see that you have now mastered the art of posting photos on the forum. Well done.
Eric

bossgard · « **Reply #2 on:** June 23, 2012, 08:54:00 PM »

Welcome to a mountain wonderland famous for its dense forests, dazzling wildflower meadow, tremendous snowfields, and rugged glaciers. if you visit on a sunny day take time to absorb the fresh smell of living trees and soil, the soothing and sometimes deafening sound of falling water, and the intense green of the Pacific Northwest. If you visit on a cloudy day, remember that you are experiencing the park in its most frequent guise: cloaked in. moisture and hooded by snow. Moisture-laden weather systems move off the Pacific Ocean, batter the sides of Mount Rainier, and drop record-setting quantities of snow at higher elevations before drifting eastward. The huge amount of total precipitation - about 87 inches each year at Longmire and 126 inches at Paradise - shapes everything you see, from the 26 glaciers that cap the mountain to the dense stands of Douglas fir, western redcedar, and western hemlock that contribute to the old-growth forest at its base. In the subalpine parks, or meadows, on the mountain's shoulders abundant moisture blends with volcanic soils and intense summer sunlight to bring forth some of the most breath-taking wildflower meadows on Earth. - National Park Service.

Come and view some Alpine Meadows of Mount Rainier, located in the Pacific Northwest corner of the United States in the State of Washington, at Paradise Park.

bossgard · « **Reply #3 on:** June 23, 2012, 09:00:52 PM »

MOUNT RAINIER NATIONAL PARK

Mount Rainier, called "Tahoma" which means "the great mountain" by local Indians was established as a National Park by United States of America President Teddy Roosevelt on March 2, 1899.

Indians kept logging and mining companies away from the Mountain because it is a part of their heritage and religious beliefs. Even so, the US Government allowed a group of mineral experts to create "the Camp of the Clouds" in 1898 through 1915. The Camp of the Clouds was really used to get money from wealthy nature lovers looking for adventure.

'It was once widely believed that Indian people seldom used Mount Rainier's imposing mountain landscapes. That view began to change in the early 1960's with discovery of the park's first archaeological site - a subalpine rock shelter later found to be about 1,200 years old and containing charred goat, mountain beaver, deer, elderberry and wild hazelnut remains in association with pit features, fire cracked rock, broken projectile points, and profuse stone tool re-sharpening flakes and debris.' - National Park Service

In 1883, James Longmire established the first hotel; his advertising for "miraculous water cures" helped generate early tourism and a constituency for the creation of the National Park. Upon hiking to a high valley, Longmire's wife said "This is Paradise".

At 14,410 feet to the top of the mountain, it is one of the largest volcanoes on earth.

In 1870, Robert Stevens is known as the first person to reach the Summit of the mountain, except for maybe some Pacific Northwest Indians, but no actual records before 1870, have been recorded.
The Mountain has 4 Sides or Valleys, Paradise (between Emerald Ridge and Cowlitz Divide), Sunrise (between Cowlitz Divide and Sunrise Ridge), Carbon River (between Sunrise Ridge and Ptarmigan Ridge), Sunset Amphitheater (between Ptarmigan Ridge and Emerald Ridge), the latter accessible only by hiking. Each is a study in how different climates affect Nature. Carbon River is a temperate zone that gets a lot of rain; Sunrise is wind-whipped and gets the hot eastern sun. Paradise is moderate in weather, where life grows abundantly.

Sunset Amphitheater gets plenty of rain and lots of sunshine. All 4 areas are unique in their flora and fauna.

bossgard · « **Reply #4 on:** June 23, 2012, 09:06:57 PM »

Sphagnum Bogs, Moss, Wheatgrass, and fragile subalpine meadows mix with Red Paintbrush, Glacier Lilies, Pink Mountain Heather, Fireweed, Western Basque, Phlox and Shooting Star are among the 40 types of flowers found there.

Dense Coniferous Forests surround the Mountain, while Western Red Hemlock, Douglas Fir, Western Red Cedar, Sitka Spruce, Whitebark Pine and other subalpines mixed with Elvin Timber cover the hillsides.

Animals are everywhere including Squirrels and Chipmunks, Saw Hoot Owls, Black Tailed Deer, Elk, Brown Bears, Marmots, Mountain Goats, Cougars, Tomcats. Foxes, Coyotes and Wolves make themselves very evident. Birds include Steller's jays, Clark's nutcrackers, gray jays, and ravens.
Visitors Centers are at Paradise and Sunrise. Rangers have named it "1,000 Parks in One Place".

'The authors and publishers acknowledge the use of information taken from the 'The Tahoma News', issues for 2008 and 2010, and 'Mount Rainier', current issues, which are official publications of The National Park Service, US Department of the Interior."

bossgard · « **Reply #5 on:** June 23, 2012, 09:36:54 PM »

Hiking Up, Looking Up (North)

Paving of First Hill Trails prevents erosion of the most used trails.

This hard surface of the trails also provides safety for tourists in particular, as they start their trek upward. The open toed sandals and flip-flops they might be wearing are not adequate on the further trails that they will encounter. It also encourages them to stay on the trails.

'Mount Rainier is a place of great beauty and inspiration. You may be inspired to take a picture or to get a close-up look at a wildflower. But stop and consider your actions before you step off the trail. With each step you take onto a meadow an average of 20 plants are impacted! Subalpine vegetation survives in a harsh environment. With a short growing season, plants take longer to recover from damage. Much of the plant's energy is spent on rapid flowering. Even if a plant survives the weight of your footstep, it may be stunted for years.

So when exploring Mount Rainier's fragile meadows... Please, Stay on Trails.' - National Park Service.

bossgard · « **Reply #6 on:** June 23, 2012, 09:44:57 PM »

Hiking Up, Looking Up (North)

Mount Rainier viewed from Paradise Park.

Notice the signage along the trails. Obey all rules; remember we are protecting this for all of those who will be coming here in the future. Another rule or two to follow: 'If you pack it in, you pack it out!' also, 'Don't feed the wild animals'.

Eric Hardy · « **Reply #7 on:** June 23, 2012, 10:35:38 PM »

It certainly looks quite a place, Toby. I am amazed to see the trails surfaced, they are much better than the track past my front gate

NightHawk · « **Reply #8 on:** June 23, 2012, 11:08:43 PM »

Thanks for all that historical info there Toby, and the photos.

I can well imagine that the surfaced paths are necessary to cope with the heavy pounding from all the tourists.

Laurie.

bossgard · « **Reply #9 on:** June 25, 2012, 03:04:17 PM »

Hiking Up, Looking Up (North)

Dead Horse Trail through Paradise Park.

A meadow of Wheat Grass in foreground of this subalpine terrain is mixed with Douglas Fir and Western Hemlock trees. On the right are some mighty Douglas Firs with some Pine Trees in front of them.

bossgard · « **Reply #10 on:** July 01, 2012, 04:21:29 PM »

Hiking Up, Looking Down (South)

Paradise Park looking from Left to Right; Stevens, Boundary, Unicorn, Pinnacle, Plummer and Lane Peaks with Unicorn and Pinnacle Glaciers.

Wheatgrass with Red Paintbrush and Pink Mountain Heather in foreground. Amongst the dark green shrubs called Krummoltz in foreground are yellow Glacier Lilies and small twisted trees called Elvin Timber.

'You make choices daily that could impact the environment of the park. How you landscape and care for your yard and garden is critical for the global health of wildlife, water and air. The companies that you support through your purchases and the ways you choose to dispose of trash have an effect on life beyond your neighborhood.'- National Park Service.

bossgard · « **Reply #11 on:** July 06, 2012, 03:04:03 PM »

Hiking Up, Looking Up (North)

Paradise Park looking at Left to Right; Van Trump, Wilson, Nisqually, Muir Snowfield, Paradise Glaciers on Mount Rainier

On the left you can see White Bark pines, mixed in amongst the Douglas Firs. Wheat Grass is constant, but also assists the growth of the Pink Mountain Heather, White Daisies, Glacier Lilies and Krummoltz Shrubs.

bossgard · « **Reply #12 on:** July 07, 2012, 02:48:28 PM »

Hiking Up, Looking Up (West)

Paradise Park looking at Mount Rainer with Success Divide on the left, and McClure Rock on the Right.

The rather large boulders that you see in the foreground are what the Marmots like to lie on to sun themselves. There are no Marmots in this picture, but we did see several along the way sunning themselves as we went up the mountain. Marmots are a rather large animal that are similar in size to a full grown domesticated cat (or even larger), with large tail and all. They feed on smaller animals such as rats, chipmunks, squirrels, also berries and nuts to survive. When the snow falls, and the weather worsens they survive by eating nuts that are stored and grasses that are dug up out of the snow.

bossgard · « **Reply #13 on:** July 10, 2012, 12:01:08 AM »

Hiking Up, Looking Down (South)

Paradise Park looking at Eagle Peak on the left with Lookout Mountain (in background, left) and the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.

An interesting patch of undisturbed Wheat Grass plays host to (look closely) White Daisies, Yellow Glacier Lilies, Purple Phlox and Red Paintbrush.

ideasguy · « **Reply #14 on:** July 10, 2012, 09:55:17 AM »

Fantastic scenery Toby, and such a wealth of natural flora. It must have been so beautiful up there on that hike. (You are a very fit guy, that's for sure!)

bossgard · « **Reply #15 on:** July 10, 2012, 03:43:16 PM »

George, here’s a fun thing you and other Forum Members might want to do:

This link will get you to the United States National Park Service.:

http://nature.nps.gov/multimedia.cfm

When you are there, scroll down until you come to WEB CAMERAS. Click on it.

When it opens you will find a map of the United States. In the upper left-hand corner you will find three National Parks in the State of Washington.

Click on Mt. Rainier, and you will see an instant webcam shot of Mt. Rainier from Paradise Park. The web camera is located very close as to where we started our hike up Mt. Rainier in these photos.

Click on the other two in Washington State – North Cascades and Olympic. Check them out. In fact click around all of the locations shown in the USA if you and others are so moved to do so.

These are National Parks; it takes an act of Congress to create them! They are protected for all to enjoy! Admissions are usually charged, although by an act of the President of the United States he can open the National Parks to the public free of charge for a short time period. .

Interesting, huh?

- Toby

Eric Hardy · « **Reply #16 on:** July 10, 2012, 06:27:54 PM »

Thanks for the link Toby, I got to the Mount Rainier web cam but it was quite hazy. I will try again later when it might be clearer. There was an interesting Clear/Hazy comparison but the view I got was hazier than "Hazy". I will be back.

Eric

ideasguy · « **Reply #17 on:** July 10, 2012, 10:35:49 PM »

Very interesting Toby and very clever. No doubt you would take a look at that before setting off for a hike

The Landmark tag gives very useful info about the terrain.
Here's the status when I visited:
Visual Range is about 50 miles • updated 07/10/2012 02:15 PM PDT
I'd say the comparison is Hazy.

bossgard · « **Reply #18 on:** July 10, 2012, 10:44:53 PM »

Eric,

Think light rain or snow! It was quite 'hazy' when I looked at the webcam this morning, but so was our weather here. There has been quite a bit of morning moisture in the air, and then quite warm and clear in the afternoons. One extreme to another.

The webcam that I looked at early yesterday morning was clear, but had snow on the ground which is common for this time of year.

The photos that I'm posting with the full sun and glorious blue skies is a rarity, and only happens in August on the Mountain. We were very, very lucky to get the photos with that kind of weather and the flowers out in all their glory. It all came together so nicely for us. A once in a lifetime thrill!
Don't expect it every day! We were very fortunate!

Also take into consideration, the time of day when you are looking at the webcam, and the time of day here.

- Toby

Written just before George had posted his entry.

bossgard · « **Reply #19 on:** July 11, 2012, 02:55:30 PM »

Hiking Up, Looking Down (South)

Dead Horse Trail, looking at left to right; Plummer, Lane, Wahpenayo, Chutla and Eagle peaks of the Tatoosh Range.

On the right, a Meadow of Wheat Grass with hard to see Purple Phlox and Red Paintbrush. At lower right is Western Pasque Flowers, which is difficult to distinguish from Yellow Glacier Lilies in this photo.

This is photo #2 of the panorama, right to left.

Eric Hardy · « **Reply #20 on:** July 11, 2012, 04:54:59 PM »

Quote from: bossgard on July 10, 2012, 10:44:53 PM

Also take into consideration, the time of day when you are looking at the webcam, and the time of day here

Just had another look, Toby. Much clearer this time. How good to be able to check the weather before setting out on a hike!

Eric

bossgard · « **Reply #21 on:** July 12, 2012, 03:02:27 PM »

Eric,

I'm glad that you are getting a good view from the Mt Rainier Paradise webcam! It is very hazy this (Thursday) morning here in the Seattle, WA (USA) area.

Here's today's photo of our climb in the Alpine Gardens:

Hiking Up, Looking Up (Southwest)

Dead Horse Trail, Looking at Mount Rainier from Success Divide to McClure Rock, with Van Trump, Wilson, North Squally, Muir Snowfield and Paradise Glaciers in between.

A knoll covered in Wheat Grass with a patch of Purple Phlox, surrounded by White Daisies, Yellow Glacier Lilies and a small Red Paintbrush on the left.

Photo #3 of the right to left panorama.

Eric Hardy · « **Reply #22 on:** July 12, 2012, 05:44:30 PM »

The air looks crystal clear in your last two photos, Toby. Beautiful!

Eric

ideasguy · « **Reply #23 on:** July 12, 2012, 11:37:52 PM »

and a beautiful blue sky and that rare thing called sunshine

Excellent photo Toby!

bossgard · « **Reply #24 on:** July 13, 2012, 02:50:56 PM »

Hiking Up, Looking Down (South)

Dead Horse Trail looking at Tatoosh Range on the left and Lookout and Dixon Mountains in the background. On the far Right is the start of Rampart Ridge.

Boulders dot a hill of Wheat Grass with a good view of the slight difference between Pink Mountain Heather (lower left) and Purple Phlox (center). Look closely, you will also see Yellow Glacier Lilies and Red Paintbrush.

Photo #4 of the right to left panorama.

Author Topic: Alpine Gardens on Mt. Rainier (Read 13360 times)

NightHawk