Tolmie Peak

Tolmie Peak
View along ridgeline from summit
Highest point
Elevation5,920+ ft (1,800+ m) NGVD 29[1]
Prominence760 ft (230 m)[1]
Coordinates46°57′29″N 121°52′38″W / 46.9581611°N 121.8773262°W / 46.9581611; -121.8773262[2]
Geography
Map
LocationMount Rainier National Park, Pierce County, Washington, U.S.
Parent rangeCascade Range
Topo mapUSGS Golden Lakes

Tolmie Peak is a 5,920+ -foot (1,800+ m) peak in the Mount Rainier area of the Cascade Range, in the U.S. state of Washington. It is located 2 miles (3.2 km) northwest of Mowich Lake, in the northwest part of Mount Rainier National Park.

Streams that drain the slopes of Tolmie Peak, including Tolmie Creek and Ranger Creek, join the Carbon River, which flows into the Puyallup River and Puget Sound. Just south of Tolmie Peak, in a basin carved by glaciers, lies Eunice Lake.[3] To the northwest is Howard Peak.

Tolmie Peak is named for William Fraser Tolmie.[4] In August 1833, employed by Hudson's Bay Company and stationed at the newly built Fort Nisqually, Tolmie made the first recorded exploration of the Mount Rainier area. Unable to summit Rainier itself, Tolmie and two Indian guides, Lachalet and Nuckalkat, summited one of the snowy peaks near the Mowich River headwaters. Although Tolmie Peak is named for this event, it is not known exactly which peak was climbed.[5]

  1. ^ a b "Tolmie Peak, Washington". Peakbagger.com.
  2. ^ "Tolmie Peak". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  3. ^ Beckey, Fred W. (2000). Cascade Alpine Guide, Vol. 1, Columbia River to Stevens Pass (3rd ed.). Mountaineers Books. p. 133. ISBN 0-89886-577-8.
  4. ^ Majors, Harry M. (1975). Exploring Washington. Van Winkle Publishing Co. p. 125. ISBN 9780918664006.
  5. ^ Morgan, Murray (1979). Puget's Sound: A Narrative of Early Tacoma and the Southern Sound. Seattle: University of Washington Press. pp. 30–36. ISBN 0-295-95842-1.