Mount Ruth

David, Iris, Payton, Winston, and Erik at the cloudy peak of Mt. Ruth

On August 21st, the crew completed their last peak of the 2024 field season with all of the 2024 interns. We were also joined by a 2023 intern, Erik. With rain potentially on the forecast in the afternoon, we efficiently climbed the 5 miles and 4600 feet of elevation gain up Mt. Ruth. Luckily, we avoided any rain, but sampled in the clouds making some visibility challenging. Some interesting finds were Ranunculus grayi and Draba aureola (a rare species). Mount Ruth marked the first of a series of peaks we sampled in Mount Rainier and the tallest at an elevation of 8690 feet. At this high elevation, we still observed 44 different species making this trip an interesting and unique addition to the project. 

Ranunculus grayi

Payton, Erik, Iris, and Winston taking a break before finishing the long climb up Mt. Ruth

Draba aureola