Andrea's adventures on the trail...
Love love love the hike to Upper Palisades Lake in Mt. Rainier NP. No good views of the big Mountain itself, but this hike definitely has its own beauty. There are only 2 campsites at Upper Palisades Lake, so if you’re looking for an un-crowded area in MRNP, this is a good spot. The meadow below the Palisades cliffs is beautiful, makes you feel very small. When I was there late last summer, gentians were blooming everywhere. This will be another one of my “must do yearly” backpack trips.
This is the first overnight hike of the season into Mt. Rainier NP for me, because of its lower elevation. Unlike most other campgrounds, you hike down to South Mowich from the Paul Peak trailhead, not up. Not any great, spectacular views of the Mountain except for a few spots on the Paul Peak trail, but the South Mowich River valley is beautiful in and of itself, and when everything else around Rainier is still under feet of snow, this is a good option.
I leave a little bit of my heart at Skyscraper Pass every time I go out there. It’s one of my favorite places at Rainier… so much so that I’ve been known to hike out with a good book and a JetBoil to brew myself a pot of tea, and park myself at the top for 8 hours enjoying the view and talking to people as they pass by. Having to go through Berkeley Park to get there is the icing on the cake. (for photos of Berkeley Park in full wildflower bloom, stay tuned for my Wonderland Photos).
Just once in your lifetime (or several times, in my case) it’s worth it to get up well before dawn and drive out to Sunrise before the sun comes up, just to sit there and watch Rainier light up like a Christmas tree with alpenglow. It’s magical… the photos don’t come close to describing what it’s really like to watch the color change.
The Skyline Trail out of Paradise at MRNP is the classic dayhike at Mt. Rainier. Granted, it’s packed with tourists all summer, but it’s so gorgeous it’s worth the crowds, especially in the height of wildflower blooming season (these photos were taken in mid-August). Even then, on some years you can expect to cross some snow at the top near Panorama Point. Great views of Mt. Adams and Mt. St. Helens along the trail too. Did I mention the over-abundance of wildflowers? Sensory overload, in a good way…
Sheep Lake is another one of those “gotta do this once a year” hikes… it’s an easy 2 mile hike in from Chinook Pass. Expect wildflower overload in August-ish (along with mosquitoes), not to mention a gorgeous mountain lake perfect for a picnic lunch. It’s a perfect easy dayhike, but there are also some nice camping spots around and near the lake.
Above Longmire at Mt. Rainier, there is a nice little hike from Narada Falls up to Reflection Lake and back down on the Lakes Trail. August is usually prime wildflower season. If it’s waterfalls you’re looking for, this is a great trail!
The Naches Loop off of Hwy 410 at Chinook Pass has to be my absolutely favorite fall hike for colors. It’s an easy 3-mile loop around Naches Peak, great for beginners, or for rehabbing knees after surgery. In October it lights up like a Christmas tree with fall colors. This is one of my yearly pilgrimages… Too bad the road is closed for winter, or I’d be up there snowshoeing too.
I went through Ape Cave on the south side of Mt. St. Helens when I was a teenager and loved it… then I got to take my kids and DH through it too 🙂 It’s a 2-mile long lava tunnel, pitch dark, full of huge boulders to be scrambled over, and definitely not for the claustrophobic! I need to do this again… when I took K&T through it was recently after a knee surgery and I didn’t have all of my leg strength back, which does come in handy when scrambling over boulders the size of cars.
Babysitting my four-legged niece and nephew in Oregon has perks, namely hiking through some gorgeous scenery. I dropped Tori off at Timberline Lodge with $20 and her current book at the time, I think Homer’s Odyssey, and I headed out the Timberline Trail (part of the PCT) for a nice day hike.
It was pretty dusty compared to what I’m used to around here, but still a gorgeous trail. I have to say, after spending so much time around Rainier, Mt. Hood looks pretty tiny, though I know it’s not. Some day I’d love to hike the entire Timberline Trail… maybe next year.
Wet wet wet wet…. Ipsut Campground is in the Carbon River rainforest area of Mt. Rainier NP. Sharon and Steve and Chris braved some pretty nasty spring PNW weather to go out here with me and camp overnight. I don’t think we had so much as 5 minutes of non-rain time, but we survived 🙂
This used to be a car campground, but now it’s a 5-mile walk down the old gravel road to get to Ipsut Campground since the river has washed the road out too many times to keep repairing. It’s easy to hook up with the Wonderland Trail from here, or to hike out and get up close and personal with the Carbon Glacier.
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