Facts about Mount Rainier
Mount Rainier is a part of Mount Rainier National Park, established in 1899.
Mount Rainier ranks fifth in height of all mountains in the contiguous U.S., slightly lower than California's Mount Whitney (14,494 feet) and three Sawatch Range peaks in Colorado.
Glaciers are among the most conspicuous and dynamic geologic features on Mount Rainier.
The Carbon River, Puyallup River, Nisqually River, and Cowlitz River all begin at the glaciers of Mount Rainier.
On March 2, 1899, President William McKinley established Mount Rainier National Park as America's fifth national park.
Mount Rainier was first known by the Native Americans as Talol, Tahoma, or Tacoma, from the Puyallup word meaning "mother of waters."
Naturalist John Muir from Scotland climbed Mount Rainier in 1888, and although he enjoyed the view, he conceded that it was best appreciated from below.
About 1.3 million people visit the park each year, with 10,000 people attempting to conquer the summit of Mount Rainier.
Mount Rainier is a stratovolcano in Washington state, located 54 miles (87 km) southeast of the city of Seattle.
Hazard Stevens and Philemon Van Trump hired a Yakima Indian named Sluiskin to be their guide assisting them to reach the summit of Mount Rainier.
At the time of European contact, the river valleys and other areas near Mount Rainier were inhabited by many Pacific Northwest Native American tribes who hunted and gathered berries in the forests and mountain meadows.
The mountain and the surrounding area comprise Mount Rainier National Park, and covers nearly 380 square miles.
Mount Rainier is an active Cascade Range volcano encased in over 35 square miles of snow and glacial ice.
High on the eastern flank of Mount Rainier is a peak known as Little Tahoma, a volcanic remnant of an earlier configuration of Mount Rainier.
Mount Rainier's earliest lavas are over 840,000 years old and are part of the Lily Formation (2.9 million to 840,000 years ago).
At 14,411 feet, Mount Rainier towers 8,000 feet above surrounding Cascades peaks, such a behemoth that it creates its own weather.
Mount Rainier is a part of Mount Rainier National Park, established in 1899.