MT. RAINIER

rising to an elevation of over 14,000 feet in the state of Washington like a world by itself is Mount Ranier many Indian tribes of the northwest have for centuries revered this ancient Fire Mountain making pilgrimages to do honor to the great white spirit their name for it is Tacoma some of the Indians pronounce this to covet which means great white mountain or snow mountain though it's correct and official name is ranier no Indian would call it by any other than the euphonious title Tacoma the noblest peak of the Cascade Range four years ago only the red men came to pay homage to Tacoma it's beautiful vistas are open now to tourist groups who visit this mountain in ever increasing numbers each year many parties are formed under the leadership of native guide to climb the great volcanic peak it is from these guides that much of the Indian folklore and ancient legends are heard stories whose origins are lost in antiquity one concerns the reason why there are no reptiles or vicious animals living on Mount Rainier the Great Spirit became displeased with the actions of the people on the earth he ordered a medicine man to shoot an arrow into the low-lying clouds of Tacoma then to shoot another arrow into the end of the first and continue until there was a chain of arrows extending from the clouds to the earth then he was ordered to take his his children at all good animals up the chain of arrows but about half way up the chain the medicine man discovered that many snakes and bad animals were following what to do like a flash of inspiration from the Great Spirit came an idea he cut the chain of arrows the snakes and bad animals all fell down the hillside to the floor of the valley when the medicine man and his family were safely housed in the clouds the rain began to fall it rained continuously for many days and night the water rose until it reached the snow line of Tacoma when the waters receded the good man and his family returned to find that every bad animal and snake had been drowned Tacoma was rid of them and remain so forever more the unruffle surface of a lake reflects the glorious image of mouth veneer fringed with evergreen forests and caps an eternal ice and snow as one climbs the trails on foot or horseback the great silence is unbroken except for the humming of insects or the call of the bird in the foothills there are many fine stands a timber great trees 300 feet in height gradually growing smaller until finally the stunted growth that marks the Timberline at 6000 feet looks like dwarfed imitations of the great forests below Mount Ranier was named by the Explorer Vancouver while sailing in Puget Sound on a voyage of discovery he was probably the first white man to lay eyes on what the Indians called Tacoma he named it mount ranier after his friend Admiral Peter ranier of the British Navy who incidentally commanded a fleet of British men-of-war during the American Revolution above the tree line for a distance of two miles there is a band of profuse wildflower grove Mount Rainier at one time spotted forth lava which flowed down its now snow-covered slopes this deposit of lava ash is undoubtedly the chief source of support for these thousands of blooms they are often to be found three hundred different specimens in a given single acre plot as the snow melts the Avalanche flower sometimes called a deer tongue appears shimmering in the cool brisk mountain air a hearty and colorful flower in this wild garden toward the upper margin of the flowers own are to be found extensive beds of many shaded heliotrope and the blue loop them in a dazzling riot of color the delicate tinting of these mountain flower petals Nature has been most generous they run from the deep fiery pink of the MU mulus or monkey flower found beside icy streams to the pure white of the Heather and the snow Bush a kind of Road addendum as midsummer arrives and the snow patches leave the flower area the white blossoms of the Indian basket dot the landscape the Indians dig up this plant and reach its long fibrous leaves from this material they fashioned baskets mats and many other novelties Eskimo hat is the odd name given to a peculiar shape flower it's fine silken floss on the end of a strong stock looks like the shaggy head of a poodle dog or an ostrich plume above all this other cloud nestling on the cone of the extinct volcano clad in a mantle of everlasting snow and ice from a distance these enormous areas of white space seem to be stationary but on the contrary they are in ever constant motion down the sides of the mountain a woman is one of the professional guides to lead adventurous ones who would dare this perilous climb she knows every foot of the dangerousness Kuala glacier the gal are just ice pack of the 32,000 acres of glacial surface on the slopes of Mount veneer glaciers are always dangerous because the tremendous weight of snow and ice on the inclined of mountain sides drives the entire mass downward they are never still the lower end of the field slowly melts because of higher temperatures and the thinning out as the ice spreads over a wider area but it is constantly fed from above by new snow storm the technique of mountain climbing is similar the world over the rope around the guides waist is fastened in turn to all members of the party everyone is equipped with an ALPHAN stick a stout staff with a steel point on one end and an axe on the other every step of the way must be cut out of the ice to ensure a proper foothold for the heavy hobnail boots beneath the Placid and solid looking surface lurks sudden death in the form of crevasses and air holes huge gorgeous torn in the ice for the constantly shifting weight of the glacier sometimes these are covered with a coating of thin ice topped by snow consequently every step must be tested before this taken false footing may result in a plunge to the bottom of an ice crack 100 feet below the forward movement of the Glacial body is sometimes impeded or even stopped by the rock formation in its path when this happens the upper crust just files over the lower frequently forming curious cave like hollows these two are dangerous to explore for the very force which created them is constantly moving to obliterate them everything in the path of this inexorable grinding mass must move on or be destroyed huge rocks are carried great distances plowing up the surface contour of the mountain constantly changing it the crest has been reached and the party turns it steps downward now the problem is different the album staves are used to check progress while the yawning crevasses are an ever-present reminder to proceed slowly and with caution below the glacier the Timberline begin it is here that rivers are born constantly fed by the melting snow only trickles at first they are joined by many other rivulet and fight their way to the sea over rocks around Boulder cutting gorges through solid masses the Falls anuradha dropped with thunderous reverberations from a height of 168 feet and its far-flung spray the Indian still sees a spirit of good or evil according to his move when sheer cliffs appear the mountain streams bound over the edges and tumbling joyousness with a roar that can be heard for great distances in the stillness of the forest rich in Indian legend the rushing torrents the deep forest the flower garden the glaciers that radiate in all directions combined to give beauty and majesty to mount ranier