Mt. Rainier National Park, WA

Dates

Sep 9th - Sep 15th 2012

Service Project

Re-vegetation, planting native species

Free Days

Day hikes to Mt Rainier vistas & falls, photography, wildlife viewing

Accommodations

Tent camping by cars in developed park campsite

Trip Rating

Active : Bending, kneeling, digging, planting

Leaders

Robin Rose
Frank MacMurray

Equipment

Mt. Rainier National Park, located in west-central Washington, was established in 1899 as the fifth national park in the United States. The park contains 378 square miles including all of Mount Rainier, a 14,411-foot volcano. As the highest point in the Cascade Range, the mountain rises abruptly from the surrounding land with elevations in the park ranging from 1,600 feet, up to its namesake summit. Surrounding Mt. Rainier are verdant valleys, numerous waterfalls, subalpine wildflower meadows, old growth forests and more than two dozen glaciers. The volcano is often shrouded in clouds that dump enormous amounts of rain and snow on the peak every year, often hiding it from visitors who flock to catch an exposed glimpse.

Ninety-seven percent of the park is preserved as wilderness, including the Clearwater Wilderness and Mt. Rainier Wilderness, designated in 1988. Immediately adjacent to the park lie the Tatoosh Wilderness, Norse Peak Wilderness, and William O. Douglas Wildernesses. Mt. Rainier National Park is even listed on the National Register of Historic Places, making it truly a destination holding a myriad of wild treasures!

Our service project is lending much needed volunteer help to the Park Service to re-vegetate previously impacted areas by planting native species throughout the park. We're currently focused on the area around Sunrise campground in the northeastern section of the park. Volunteers will be car and tent camping at the nearby White River Campground for the week, a developed site with amenities. From our base at White River, we'll make daily forays to Sunrise and into the backcountry. This is an active service trip appropriate for newcomers to backcountry volunteerism and does not involve backpacking.

Check out more photos from last year's Mt. Rainier project in our gallery.