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Sunrise Visitor Center Exhibits at Mt. Rainier National Park

  • Exhibit: When Fires Meets Ice
    © Mk Nelson
  • Old wooden trunk filled with
    geological tools/equipment
    © Mk Nelson
  • Exhibit: Wildflowers and Volcanic Rocks
    © Mk Nelson
  • Park rangers are on duty
    to answer questions.
    © Mk Nelson

We were eager to see the new exhibits; so eager, in fact that we drove up a day too early and found the Sunrise Visitor Center closed. We hiked in the snow instead so the day was not a loss. On our next visit, we arrived too early and had to wait for it to open. The Visitor Center at Sunrise doesn't open until 10 a.m. so you can afford to sleep in a bit if this is your main purpose for a visit to Sunrise.

Some exhibits are hands-on, others inside display cases... but where to start? Why not start with the display for the Emmons Glacier. Psssst! You can look right out the window and see the glacier or better yet, hike to the Emmons Glacier overlook after a look at the displays.

Reader boards give brief and compelling descriptions about glaciers and how they form. Some of this information may be "old hat" to some who live in the Pacific Northwest but if you've never stared up the throat of a glacier before, this is a good place to start.

At this display a vial contains rock powder (glacial flour) created from rocks transported by the movement of glaciers. The sample at Sunrise is at least 12,000 years old and Time is the name of the game. Glaciers take a long, geological time to grow, but can you visualize how a glacier begins to form from a single snowflake? These displays describe in words and in easy-to-comprehend graphs and illustrations.

To get a feel for the thickness of a glacier - there is a chart where you can measure your height to see how many "yous" it would take to equal the thickness of the Emmons Glacier. At 5' 7" it would take a little more than 36 "Karens" to equal the glacier's present thickness. This display will especially appeal to the kids in the group.

Another interesting display entitled "When Fires Meets Ice" illustrates the process by which hot lava cools and cracks into hexagonal columns. We knew about the columns but didn't know that the columns point toward the source of cooling - ask the rangers where you can see examples of these. The columns on display at this exhibit were formed from andesite, a common type of lava found on Mount Rainier. Other examples of rocks can be found throughout the exhibits.

Another display attracting visitors of all ages is "Between a Rock and A Cold Place. "Here is a model of Mount Rainier - to see how lava and glaciers shape a mountain, push the "start" button. The display lights up illuminating the flow of lava and glaciers on Mount Rainier.

Ponder the display of an old wooden trunk filled with old geological tools and equipment; similar to what is used today.

There is also an informative wildflower exhibit where you can raise the lids over the displays to learn details about a specific flower common to higher elevations at Mount Rainier and an explanation of why it is so important to stay on established trails. Some of the heathers at Sunrise and other high elevations are over 200 years old and a single footstep can destroy them.

You'll learn how each flower has adapted to withstand the harsh environment on Burroughs Mountain just uphill from Sunrise, dwarf lupine being one example. The fine hairs on dwarf lupine help the flower to retain warmth and moisture.

There are also exhibits that display implements used by Native Americans on the mountain including arrowheads, stone tools and an Atl Atl (a spear thrower).

A pair of friendly, experienced park rangers are on hand to answer questions and to lead short, daily hikes at Sunrise. The hikes begin at 1 and 3 pm - meet at the flagpole outside the Visitor Center.

- Karen Sykes, Visit Rainier Hiking Expert