New Mt. Rainier - Mt. Fuji Program

"Mount Rainier's history with Mount Fuji dates back to 1935 when former Park Superintendent Owen Tomlinson presented a rock from the summit of Mount Rainier to Issaku Okamoto, Consul of Japan to Seattle. Japan reciprocated the exchange in 1936, beginning an eighty year relationship between Mount Rainier and Mount Fuji.

In 1993, the Japanese Volunteer in Parks Association was founded and began sending volunteer teams of 20-30 students to Mount Rainier each summer. The Mount Rainier-Mount Fuji sister mountain relationship was formalized in 2003 with the establishment of an exchange program with the Fuji-San Club. The mountains are both Pacific Rim stratovolcanoes of the Konide type and share a similar status as icons of regional and national identity."

For information on the program, check out Mount Rainier's Education Program website at:

http://www.nps.gov/mora/forteachers/professionaldevelopment.htm

Or contact Mount Rainer Ranger, Anne Doherty, directly at mailto:anne_doherty@nps.gov or by phone at (360) 569-6039.

More information on The Mountain Institute is available at http://www.mountain.org