Mt. Rainier and Emmons Glacier from Sunrise, Mt. Rainier National Park - Ansel Adams Photo Hunt on Waymarking.com

This photo was taken from "Emmons Vista", a popular overlook at the Sunrise area of Mt. Rainier National Park. When I saw the Ansel Adams photo, I immediately knew where it had been taken as this is one of my favorite views of the mountain. It focuses on Emmons Glacier, the largest glacier in the contiguous United States, as it snakes its way down the side of Mt. Rainier.

On the day we visited you could only see the lower portion of the mountain, but the glacier and familiar ridges in the AA photo can be seen. You have to be lucky to see the Mountain on a cloud-free day. You'll notice that the surrounding trees around the overlook have grown a bit since 1948, when Adams took his photo from this spot. The overlook was built in the early 1940's by the CCC and the nearby trees at that time would have been cleared for the view.

You can also notice a difference in the glacier. In 1963 a huge rock slide off of Little Tahoma covered the lower portion of Emmons glacier. This insulated the glacier causing the glacier to advance at a rapid pace. It advanced rapidly for 30 years, and is still advancing, but at a much slower rate.

To reach the overlook, take the Emmons Vista trail from the Sunrise parking area. It's a short tenth of a mile to the overlook. Sunrise opens in mid-July and closes down in the fall. It is the best visitor area of the mountain for vistas of Rainier.

Visit Instructions:

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Date Logged Log User Rating   08/19/2016 RN escape visited it 08/20/2007 Hikenutty visited it 07/12/2004 Raven visited it

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