Longmire - Trail of the Shadows

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Several species of Usnea, a lichen, hang from trees in tufts. These pendant lichens are popularly called Spanish moss like in Florida, although they are neither Spanish nor moss. A pose in front of Longmire Museum. We learned a lot in the museum, in particular from one very knowledgeable park personnel by the name of Ruth, about this section named for pioneer James Longmire, who capitalized on the thermal springs percolating through this meadow in 1883. A plaque designates the venerable heart of a Douglas-fir, and markers commemorate historically significant events during its life until cut down on national forest land in 1963. Daddy, Joe, & Mother marveling at the tree cross-section. Then we enjoyed our visit inside the Longmire Museum, with exhibits that tell the story of early days, at the site of Longmire's Medical Springs, now a national historic district.
We watched the doe and her two fawns, who watched us from the middle of Mineral Spring Meadow, Longmire; this site housed the headquarters of Mt. Rainier National Park. Follow the leader. Doe leading fawns into the forest. We saw an elk calf, too. Park wildlife: 159 birds, 63 mammals, 18 native fishes, 16 amphibians, and 5 reptiles; and, over 800 vascular plants. With constant cloud cover and rain showers we didn't see Mount Rainier from Longmire today, but were captivated by the close-up crossing of a doe with her two fawns.
At Longmire Springs, white & black pines grow side by side; common and Alaska cedars meet on quiet, sloping ground. Douglas-fir & white cedar begin to give way to other types. Joe got wet in some of the 87" from the orographic effect. Elevations 2,800-4,000', the upper forest is characterized by trees covered with gray hanging forms of lichens, smaller trees, and a gradual transition to alpine types. Longmire's cabin stands by the ferrous Iron Mike Mineral Spring. High iron content precipitates as the water cools, tinting mossy rocks a vivid orange between the stone walls built in 1920. The Longmires' road, lodge, and baths drew tourists, eventually generating support for a national park. A copious quantity of Mount Rainier's precipitation shapes the surroundings, like dense stands of Douglas-fir, western redcedar, & western hemlock beside the bubbling waters.
Near the boardwalk a travertine mound bubbles & oozes, formed by only the warmest springs in this meadow from soft, white calcium carbonate minerals (primarily calcite and aragonite); traces of iron-rich minerals lend a brown color. Joe in Al's poncho pondering the Pacific Northwest intense green, the result of moisture-laden weather systems at Longmire, June 29. (Paradise receives about 126 inches.) The Trail of the Shadows is an easy .7 mile round trip with interpretive signs describing the early homesteading and development of the mineral springs—and beaver dams. Close-up of horsetail (Equisetum), one of four species of horsetail growing in Mount Rainier National Park, and common in the marshy soils of the Longmire meadow.

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