About
the
Flowers of Rainier Story
Thank you for visiting Flowers of Rainier
I hope you enjoy this virtual exploration of Mount Rainier’s wildflowers. This is a complete revision of the site I launched in 2008. I dedicated that site to “hikers and all those who through their curiosity and enthusiasm for discovery desire to more fully appreciate the glory of Mount Rainier National Park.” That continues to be the mission.
How it all started
Over twenty years ago my wife Linda and I began focusing our hiking exclusively at Mount Rainier with a “wonder if” challenge. We wondered if we could hike all the trails in the park as day hikes?
Shortly thereafter a wildflower guide was released, “Wildflowers of Mount Rainier” by Laird Blackwell, and while not all that interested in wildflowers at the time, I wondered if I could take my own photo of every flower in the book. I would have accomplished my hiking goal if the Westside Road had remained open. More importantly I far exceeded the photography challenge. And so, here we are!
Curiosity's journey
As my photo collection grew and as I became more knowledgeable of Mount Rainier’s flora I wanted to share what I was discovering. I joined the Washington Native Plant Society and launched the first website. Then I had the good fortune to meet David Giblin, the collections manager of the UW Herbarium, and eventually was asked to co-author the wildflower guide “Alpine Flowers of Mount Rainier.” So, it doesn’t hurt to ask those “wonder if” questions!
I welcome your feedback
I hope you find the non-technical plant descriptions, photo galleries and the wildflower hikes helpful resources in your exploration of the park and appreciation of its flora.
I would be happy to entertain your comments and questions and will attempt to provide referrals to those I can’t answer. Contact: donovan@flowersofrainier.com.
Use of Photos
I hope you enjoy the photos of Flowers of Rainier. They are a result of nearly 250 days of hiking in and around the park over many years. For any use of the images please credit either me as the photographer (Donovan Tracy) or the website as the source (FlowersOfRainier.com). Please contact me at the email above for any use in publications or for commercial purposes. I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thank you.