Pack Forest and Longmire, Mt. Rainier 3/31
Pack Forest
After arriving at the UW Experimental Pack Forest near the foot of Mt. Rainier, we split into smaller groups to take a short hike/ walk before lunch. We began in a wet, coniferous area dominated by douglas firs (as identified by the many douglas fir pine cones littering the floor and lots of branches on the ground from blow down that exhibited the classic pipe brush needle arrangement), hemlocks (identified by the softer needles that do not occur cylindrically around the branch), and cedars with their characteristic bark that is more dark and easily peeled and the dipping braches that curl back upwards near the end and the very closely arranged needles in a sort of scaly pattern. The forest floor had a lot of oregon grape, and ferns, with the majority of them being sword ferns, but also observed some of the smaller ferns like licorice and lady ferns. After a little while of walking we observed a transition to a more deciduous part of the forest, dominated b alders being identified by the tell tale catkins present on the tips of the branches, and lots of big leaf maples, as well as relatively infrequent madrones, as easily identified by their peeling red bark with the smooth coffee bark underneath and their crooked shape. In this part of the forest the floor had a large amount of salmonberry bushes, mostly not blooming yet but some pink flowers were noticeable. We did not see many animals, although throughout the walk we heard various birds calling, such as robins, winter rens, kinglets, towies, chickadees, and others I could not identify and was not made aware of. We encountered a stream, and found several types of fungi on downed logs and some mushrooms in the wetter areas by the stream. We headed back to the camp to leave for Longmire at about 3.
Longmire:
We then took the 40 minute or so drive up to Longmire in Mt. Rainier National Park, and took a short hour long hike through a short loop that took us through a coniferous forest. There was probably one to two feet of snow on the ground, so there was limited fauna visible and alive on the forest floor, but we saw a lot of ferns, and came across two cleared hotsprings areas with prairie-like grasses. The ground around these areas was rich with iron deposits all around the nearby areas. I am assuming it was hotsprings based on the sulphorous smell and colors, and the steam rising from the sater. The loop we took went around these two clearings. There were many pines, such as the pacific silver pine, with other conifers common such as yew and douglas firs.
Species List:
douglas fir
hemlock
red alder
red cedar
salaal
oregon grape
bigleaf maple
osoberry
ferns
pacific silver pine
yew
madrone
salmonberry
Observations
Photos / Sounds
What
Western Sword Fern (Polystichum munitum)Observer
drwlyonsDescription
This fern was very common in the deciduous forest in Pack Forest where we stayed for our field trip, being one of the dominant ground species. Growing many ferns out of a concentrated area on the ground, with the ferns being a couple feet in length. They had large spores on the bottom, and were relatively inflexible.
Photos / Sounds
What
Salal (Gaultheria shallon)Observer
drwlyonsDescription
Also very dominant on the ground in the deciduous Pack Forest. Bushes with dark green leaves and red stems connecting them. Most of the bushes were a couple feet off the ground.
Photos / Sounds
What
Osoberry (Oemleria cerasiformis)Observer
drwlyonsDescription
Very thin branches with clumps of about four or five small, light green leaves with very small, white flowers attached to the bottom. We saw this plant a couple times, but it was not one of the more dominant species in the Pack Forest. This particular one stood a little more than 10 feet high.
Photos / Sounds
What
Lawson's Cypress (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana)Observer
drwlyonsDescription
The needles on the tree were very flat, with rounded tips. On the tips of some of the needles were what looked like small red berries. It appeared to be alternate branching, with the two branches stemming out on either side not meeting in the same location on the main branch. This tree was observed on the campus of Pack Forest near the gazebo, so it was not observed in the forest.
Photos / Sounds
What
Pacific Madrone (Arbutus menziesii)Observer
drwlyonsDescription
Not very many of these were located in the Pack Forest, and many of the ones that I saw had fallen from the wind. They are very distinctive with the peeling bark and the dark red color and the smooth, coffee colored tree under the peeling bark.
Photos / Sounds
What
Common Douglas-Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)Observer
drwlyonsDescription
A branch of a douglas fir lay on the ground in the coniferous pack Forest, blown over by the wind. The needles went around the branch entirely, giving it a sort of "pipe brush" look that identifies it, as well as finding a tell-tale Douglas Fir cone.
Photos / Sounds
What
Dicots (Class Magnoliopsida)Observer
drwlyonsDescription
Standing between 6 and 10 feet tall, this ash displayed the opposite branching tell tale of an Oregon Ash. Found just off of the path in the more deciduous area of the Pack Forest, it was starting to bud, and had a green tinge to it.
Photos / Sounds
What
Pacific Silver Fir (Abies amabilis)Observer
drwlyonsDescription
In a couple feet of snow, this pine was just a sapling observed on the path from Longmire at Mt. Rainier. It has a bark pattern with grey/silver blotches, with pines that do not go all the way around the branches, unlike a douglas fir. Observed in a primarily coniferous and some old growth forest area with nearby hotsprings, there were other pacific silver firs around as well as yews and douglas firs.
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