Category: Overnight Backpack (Page 4 of 4)

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.

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.

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.

Another great hike and/or backpack trip in Mt. Rainier National Park, I like to hit Glacier Basin as soon as the road to White River opens. Still lots of snow in the beginning of the season, so bring along some tire chains for your boots or snow shoes.

Last year I had my one and only bear encounter on this trail, with a younger beautiful cinnamon-colored black bear. He was just not interested in moving off the trail to let us by, so we waited around and got some good photos before he decided to munch his way further into the shrubs.

This is also the main route for climbers heading to Camp Schurman. The Glacier Basin trail  has been completely re-done by WTA in the last couple of years, and it shows… it’s a beautiful trail all the way up.