The Pinnacle Peak Trail runs 1.3 miles from Reflection Lakes to a saddle between PInnacle Peak (6,562') and Plummer Peak (6,370') with rangy views down Butter Creek to Mount Adams. Established way-trails split off the saddle for Class II - IV scrambling routes to Pinnacle, Plummer and The Castle.

Mount Rainier (14,410') is a relatively young volcano at 500,000 years old (the Cascade Range of which it's a part is over 12M years old!)

The Butter Creek Research Natural Area is currently being used as a sampling site to study alpine and subalpine meadow vegetation in Mount Rainier National Park

The scientific name of common heather is 'Calluna vulgaris'; 'calluna' is from the Greek word 'kallune' which means 'to clean', a reference to its use in broom making

Plummer Peak (6,370') is a relatively easy Class I-II scramble, depending on your approach

Pink Mountain Heather forms low, branched mats in meadows along the way-trails

Way-trails lead across broad, open slopes under Pinnacle Peak (left) and The Castle (right)

Butter Creek drains into the Cowlitz River near Packwood

The Pinnacle Peak Trail begins across the street from Reflection Lakes - not a bad place to start any hike!

The Nisqually Glacier is perhaps the most studied of all Rainier glaciers, with a photo record that dates back to 1884

True alpine vegetation is probably not present in the Butter Creek RNA; precipitous slopes preclude its development in this area

Krummholz - a German word meaning twisted wood - describes the stunted, irregular growth patterns of trees in the ecological transition zone between subalpine forests and alpine tundra

Two heather types occupy moist and cool sites in the Butler Creek RNA: Phyllodoce empetriformis/Lupinus latifolius, and Phyllodoce empetriformis/Vaccinium deliciosum

The Tatoosh Range was historically used by the Taidnapam (Upper Cowlitz) Indians as a late summer hunting and gathering ground

Subalpine meadows have a very short growing season and are slow to repair; visitors are asked to remain on designated trails and existing paths at all times

The Butter Creek Research Natural Area covers 2000 acres of a nearly pristine drainage on the south flank of Pinnacle Peak, Plummer Peak and The Castle