Mount Rainier ( ray-NEER), also known as Tahoma ( tə-HOH-mə), is a large, active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest in the United States. The mountain is located in Mount Rainier National Park about 59 miles (95 km) south-southeast of Seattle. At 14,406 ft (4,391 m) it is the highest mountain in the U.S. state of Washington, the most topographically prominent mountain in the contiguous United States, and the tallest in the Cascade Volcanic Arc. Due to its high probability of an eruption in the near future and proximity to a major urban area, Mount Rainier is considered one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world, and it is on the Decade Volcano list. The large amount of glacial ice means that Mount Rainier could produce massive lahars that could threaten the entire Puyallup River valley and other river valleys draining Mount Rainier, including the Carbon, White, Nisqually, and Cowlitz (above Riffe Lake). According to the United States Geological Survey's 2008 report, "about 80,000 people and their homes are at risk in Mount Rainier's lahar-hazard zones." Between 1950 and 2022, 471,792 people attempted to climb Mount Rainier according to NPS statistics. Approximately 84 people died in mountaineering accidents on Mount Rainier from 1947 to 2018.
Name
The many Indigenous peoples who have lived near Mount Rainier for millennia have many names for the mountain in their various languages. A linguistic analysis published in 2025 identified 20 indigenous names for the mountain. Lushootseed speakers have several names for Mount Rainier, including xʷaq̓ʷ and təqʷubəʔ. xʷaq̓ʷ means "sky wiper" or "one who touches the sky" in English. The word təqʷubəʔ means "snow-covered mountain". təqʷubəʔ has been anglicized in many ways, including "Tacoma" and "Tacobet". Cowlitz speakers call the mountain təx̣ʷúma or təqʷúmen. Sahaptin speakers call the mountain Tax̱úma, which is borrowed from Cowlitz. Another anglicized name is Pooskaus. George Vancouver named Mount Rainier in honor of his friend, Rear Admiral Peter Rainier. The map of the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804–1806 refers to it as "Mt. Regniere". Although Rainier had been considered the official name of the mountain, Theodore Winthrop referred to the mountain as "Tacoma" in his posthumously published 1862 travel book The Canoe and the Saddle. For a time, both names were used interchangeably, although residents of the nearby city of Tacoma preferred Mount Tacoma. In 1890, the United States Board on Geographic Names declared that the mountain would be known as Rainier. Following this in 1897, the Pacific Forest Reserve became the Mount Rainier Forest Reserve, and the national park was established three years later. Despite this, there was still a movement to change the mountain's name to Tacoma, and Congress was considering a resolution to change the name as late as 1924.
Geographical setting
Mount Rainier is the tallest mountain in Washington and the Cascade Range. This peak is located southeast of Tacoma, approximately 60 miles (97 km) south-southeast of Seattle. Mount Rainier has a topographic prominence of 13,210 ft (4,026 m). On clear days it dominates the southeastern horizon in most of the Seattle-Tacoma metropolitan area to such an extent that locals sometimes refer to it simply as "the Mountain". On days of exceptional clarity, it can also be seen from as far away as Corvallis, Oregon (at Marys Peak), and the North Shore Mountains in British Columbia. With 26 major glaciers and 36 sq mi (93 km2) of permanent snowfields and glaciers, Mount Rainier is the most heavily glaciated peak in the lower 48 states. The summit is topped by two volcanic craters, each more than 1,000 ft (300 m) in diameter, with the larger east crater overlapping the west crater. Geothermal heat from the volcano keeps areas of both crater rims free of snow and ice, and the world's largest volcanic glacier cave network has formed within the ice-filled craters, with nearly 2 mi (3.2 km) of passages. A small crater lake about 130 by 30 ft (39.6 by 9.1 m) in size and 16 ft (5 m) deep, the highest in North America with a surface elevation of 14,203 ft (4,329 m), occupies the lowest portion of the west crater below more than 100 ft (30 m) of ice and is accessible only via the caves. The Carbon, Cowlitz, Nisqually, Puyallup and North Mowich Rivers begin at eponymous glaciers of Mount Rainier. The sources of the White River are Winthrop, Emmons, and Fryingpan Glaciers. The White, Carbon, and Mowich join the Puyallup River, which discharges into Commencement Bay at Tacoma. The Nisqually empties into Puget Sound east of Lacey. The Cowlitz joins the Columbia River between Kelso and Longview.
Subsidiary peaks
The broad top of Mount Rainier contains three named summits. The highest of these named summits is known as the Columbia Crest. The second-highest summit is Point Success, 14,158 ft (4,315 m), at the southern edge of the summit plateau, atop the ridge known as Success Cleaver. It has a topographic prominence of about 138 ft (42 m), so it is not considered a separate peak. The lowest of the three summits is Liberty Cap, 14,112 ft (4,301 m), at the northwestern edge, which overlooks Liberty Ridge, the Sunset Amphitheater, and the dramatic Willis Wall. High on the eastern flank of Mount Rainier is a peak known as Little Tahoma Peak, 11,138 ft (3,395 m), an eroded remnant of the earlier, much higher, Mount Rainier. It has a prominence of 858 ft (262 m), and it is rarely climbed in direct conjunction with Columbia Crest, so it is usually considered a separate peak. If considered separately from Mount Rainier, Little Tahoma Peak would be the third-highest mountain peak in Washington.
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