 |
| Standing tall and alone at over 14,000 feet, Mount Ranier proudly projects it's crater shaped top into the atmosphere. This is one of the many lodges on the western slope. We ate lunch and visited the museum here. |
 |
| This Douglas Fir started growing in the 12th century. |
 |
| The mountain is a mix of fire and ice. Fire builds it taller. Ice brings it down. The glacial rivers are full of sediment and large rocks. The streams go fast. We saw many waterfalls and some of them were 100 feet high. We hiked the trail of shadows in a light rain. The other hikes we had planned were cancelled because of the downpours. Although the rain ruined our hike it did make for spectacular waterfalls. |
 |
| Fungi |
 |
| Old growth forests have a mixture of living and fallen trees, much diversity in tree species and insect species, and are continually changing. |
 |
| This side of Ranier can get 100 inches of rain a year. In fact it was raining today. We saw the clouds climbing up the slope. |
 |
| From this vantage point you can not see a pristine view of Mount Ranier. You will just have to take my word for it that it is right there in front of me above those trees in the distance. People can stay in the park for weeks and never see Ranier. I want to come back again and explore this national park further. |
No comments:
Post a Comment