Magnificent Mount Rainier

I blogged Mount Rainier last year, but geez, it's such an awesome mountain! Even from Puyallup, it's amazing. You see buildings and trees, and then all of a sudden this huge mass pops into view and looms over the scene. From up close, of course, it's even more massive. It dominates its surroundings like no other mountain in the continental US. There are equally high peaks in California and Colorado, but most of them rise from much higher elevations and have little or no domination over the surrounding terrain. Only Mount Shasta can be compared with Rainier but it is not nearly as massive. Mount Adams is shaped similarly but its summit is over two thousand feet lower. Rainier on the other hand towers over the landscape, over two and a half miles above the sea level plains, and utterly dominates its surroundings. It has no competition for scenic attention. And the glaciers give it a wild, primeval aura. It's magnificent!!

The previous shot was taken two days ago...this pic is from this morning. No clouds...a gorgeous day. Top down on the Solara all the way from Puyallup to La Grande.

In November 2006, a Pineapple Express hit Mount Rainier National Park, and dumped an unbelievable amount of rain on the area. I don't recall the exact totals, but it was over a foot of moisture in just two or three days. The result was devastating flooding that trashed the park. Many roads were washed out and are still being rebuilt. The channel of the Nisqually River gives a hint of how destructive the floods were. All the rocky areas...and probably some of the adjacent forest...were filled with raging water.