In 1895, he joined the party from the Mazamas mountaineering club for the first heliograph signaling between the peaks of the Cascades which included, from north to south, Mount Baker, Mount Rainier, Mount Adams, Mount Hood, Mount Jefferson, and Diamond Peak. This endeavor was only partially successful due to smoke and logistical problems and only the parties on Hood and Adams were able to communicate. Also on this expedition, three people from the Mazamas measured the altitude of Adams. Rusk, who had long held that Adams was one of the tallest in the range, was pleased to learn that it was over .