Trip back to Rainier

My wife and I decided to make the short trip back up to Rainier after visiting it for the fist time last year. With new eyes (through my short time studying indigenous rocks), I expected to find pyroclastic rocks during my hike. To my surprise many of the exposed rocks were very fine, lacking visible crystals or significant textures. I did not even occur to me until researching after my trip. Our hike took us to the top of a melting glacier. It look truly like an alien landscape, but little like what one would expect at the top of a volcano. It turns out the glaciers do their part in hiding and removing pyroclastic flows. This in turn exposes rock which is fine in texture. I hope to plan a trip to other active volcanoes in Washington State soon!