The Forests of Mount Rainier National Park

by G. F. Allen

Fig. 12.—Noble fir (Abies nobilis), 6 feet in diameter.

The wood is strong, close grained, and elastic. It is used for lumber and particularly for inside finishing. The noble fir is a slow-growing and long-lived tree. Old trees in mixed forests are easily distinguished from the associated species by the ashy-brown outer bark broken into large irregular plates.

ALPINE FIR (ABIES LASIOCARPA).[3]

Fig. 13.—A cluster of Alpine firs (Abies lasiocarpa), whose spire-shaped crowns are characteristic, at 5,500 feet altitude, in Cowlitz Park, Mount Rainier National Park.

Photograph by A.H. Barnes.

The alpine fir ([fig. 13]) ranges from Alaska to New Mexico. It is a common tree in the park at elevations above 4,500 feet. It is a tree of the high mountains and with the white bark pine and the mountain hemlock, is found up to the limit of arborescent life. It demands moisture and is generally restricted to regions of deep snowfall.