Carbon River, named for coal deposits found in the area, is located in the park’s northwest corner. This part of Mount Rainier National Park receives consistently high amounts of rainfall so the climate and plant communities found here resemble that of a temperate rainforest.  The Carbon River area includes old-growth forest and inland temperate rain forest. The Carbon Glacier is the lowest elevation glacier in the lower 48 states.  The Carbon River road was washed out by the 2006 flood and is open to vehicles only to the Carbon River Ranger Station at the park boundary. Bicycle and pedestrian traffic are permitted on the remainder of the road inside the park. Carbon is reached via the Carbon River road, off of State Route 165.  The historic Carbon River Road was heavily damaged during a November 2006 storm event that resulted in heavy flooding and closed the road to vehicle use since then. Due to aggradation, rocks and gravel have raised the bed of the Carbon River up as much as 31 feet since the Carbon River Road was constructed next to the river in the 1920s. Several sections of the historic road are now lower than the adjacent river and increasingly vulnerable to flood damage.

Credits and Sources:

“Carbon and Mowich.” Mount Rainier National Park: Washington. National Park Service. Last Modified June 27, 2015. http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/carbon-and-mowich.htm (Retrieved June 9, 2015).

“Carbon River Project.” Mount Rainier National Park: Washington. National Park Service. Last Modified June 29, 2015. http://www.nps.gov/mora/learn/photosmultimedia/carbon-river-project.htm (Retrieved June 9, 2015).