The Mount Rainier Region is, of course, anchored by the 14,411 foot monolith of Mount Rainier and its surrounding National Park. The region, bordered by Interstate 5, Highway 410, Highway 12 and the Naches River drainage, is the smallest region in Washington State.
The lofty peak of Mount Rainier, the highest in the Cascade range, contains perhaps the best catalyst for waterfalls in the state of Washington – the largest single mountain glacial system in the United States outside of Alaska. The 26 active glaciers on the mountain serve to fuel approximately 150 known waterfalls in the National Park alone. Because of the heavy glaciation on the mountain, waterfalls over 300 feet tall are fairly common in the park. Outside the boundaries, the average height is much smaller, but the density remains the same, resulting in one of the most densely populated region of waterfalls in the state. |
