Field Trip: Big Four Mountain

Field Trip Leader: Sandra Ruffer

Signup by contacting Sandra Ruffner at slruffner57@gmail. Limit of 12 participants.

Fifty million years ago, there was no mountain at Big Four. The meandering streams that laid their sediments in this area have now been tilted vertically, creating the cliff face of Big Four Mountain. In more recent times, there was a glacier that extended from the top of the mountain to a glacial lake that filled the Stillaguamish River valley. Now all that remains of that ice are the avalanche cones that sit at the base of the mountain, reduced from four to two due to global warming. But this permanent snow feeds a beaver-created wetland that is home to many birds, amphibians and mammals, including the endemic aplodontia. The unique conditions here have led to a diverse flora spanning from lowland conifer and wetland species below to subalpine ones near the snowline, all this in the span of a couple of easy miles on good quality trail. But a highlight of the trip is a side trip to see the complex of 20 beaver dams that cannot be seen from the trail, so be prepared for a short stretch of bushwhacking.

Where to meet:
Meet for carpooling at Green Lake Park and Ride at 7 am or the second (Big Four Ice Caves) parking lot: https://maps.app.goo.gl/JVqtspQGdePP2nZc9 at 8:45 am.