You could say that it takes a lot of grace to survive the deep snowy winters at Paradise. Winters are long at that high an elevation above sea level; more than 5,400 feet. The snow can start accumulating in mid-October, so the snowpack might get 8 or 10 or 15 feet tall. Snow storms are not unheard of in May or even June. And snow in the Cascade Mountains has a special nickname – Cascade Concrete. It falls from the sky light and fluffy, but there’s so much water in it that after a few days it settles as hard as concrete. Ok, maybe not that hard, but pretty dense.
Imagine spending October to May buried under 10 or 15 feet of Cascade Concrete. Do you think you could handle it?
That’s just what mountain hemlock, Tsuga mertensiana, does in a very graceful way. Mountain hemlock are easy to find at Paradise because they have branches of short needles and are quite flexible, even graceful. The leader at the very top of the trunk, reaching for the sky, bends over gracefully in the wind and snow. By bending and flexing, mountain hemlocks can shed snow very well.
But as the snow gets deeper and buries the smaller hemlocks, they bend under the weight into snowy arches. You’ve probably noticed the snow mounds they make. When warmer temperatures and sunshine come back to Paradise, the snow melts away freeing the trees.
Where have you noticed and photographed one of these graceful mountain hemlocks? ~ams
NPS Photo (top). Snow covered trees glisten in the sunshine during the winter at Paradise. Mountain hemlock in foreground on right side. December, 2012. NPS Photo (middle top). Close up of bright green, short needles on mountain hemlock branch. NPS Photo (middle bottom). Close up of two mountain hemlock cones lying on snow. May, 2019. NPS/A. Spillane Photo (bottom). Mountain hemlock along creek in Paradise after melting out of the snow. Drooping leader noticeable against blue sky. April, 2016.