Bailey & Bailey: Woody Plants of National Parks 3 



by the great interior valleys and coastal mountain masses, the rainfall is less 

 and the climate more severe than in the Pacific Northwest. Hence the forests, 

 v/hile more dense and luxuriant than those of the Rocky Mountains and South- 

 west, do not measure up to those of Mount Rainier and Olympic National 

 Parks. In this section are located Crater Lake and Lassen Volcanic National 

 Parks. 



Still further south, in the Sierra Nevada range of California, are three 

 other national park areas, Yosemite, Kings Canyon, and Sequoia. The dis- 

 tance airline from the northern boundary of Yosemite National Park to the 

 southern boundary of Sequoia National Park is approximately one hundred 

 miles. In between these two and adjoining Sequoia National Park lies Kings 

 Canyon National Park, which also includes the area formerly designated as 

 General Grant National Park. All have their eastern boundaries along the 

 crest of the Sierra Nevada. 



Olympic National Park 



The Olympic Peninsula, within which is located Olympic National Park, 

 is bounded on three sides by water. On the side next to the Pacific Ocean 

 is recorded the highest annual rainfall of any place in the United States, with 

 as much as 144 inches per year at the northwestern edge of the park. This is 

 in decided contrast to the 25 inch figure recorded for Port Angeles, where 

 park headquarters are located. Elevations range from 500 feet elevation on 

 the coastal side to 7,930 feet at the top of the snow capped Mount Olympus. 

 Rivers radiating out from all sides of the park are headed by active glaciers 

 fed by enormous amounts of snowfall which may reach as much as 250 feet 

 per year. 



Dense coastal forests of Douglas fir (Pseudotsnga taxijolia) , western 

 hemlock {Tsuga heterophylla), western red cedar (Thuja plkata) and Sitka 

 spruce (Picea sitchensis) follow the river valleys up into the park on the west 

 side. Under the heavy canopy there is little undergrowth, but wherever sun- 

 light can penetrate shrub species may be found. Among these are the shade 

 loving red whortleberry (Vacciniiim parvifolium) , blue whortleberry (Vac- 

 cinium ovalijolium) , and salal (Gaultheria shallon). Thick carpets of moss 

 cover rocks and fallen logs. 



On the other sides of the park, where precipitation is considerably less, 

 the lower valleys and slopes are also densely covered with Douglas fir, western 

 hemlock, western red cedar, and silver fir {Abies amabilis) . Bigleaf maple 

 (Acer macrophyllum) and red alder (Alnus rubra) are common along 

 streams. Undergrowth is not abundant, but in openings may be found the 

 red and blue whortleberries, western thimbleberry (Riibus parviflorus) and 

 rusty menziesia (Menz'esia ferrnginea). Alder and willow are common 

 particularly along streams. 



At higher elevations the western hemlock, western red cedar, and silver 

 fir are gradually replaced by mountain hemlock (Tsuga Mertcjisiana), Alaska 

 cedar (Chamaecyparis nootkatensis) , and alpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa) . Doug- 

 las fir continues for some distance into this belt, hut Sitka spruce is limited 



