Tag: Mount Rainier National Park

Mt. Rainier National Park – Norther Loop Trail Day 4

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date August 21, 2015
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I had another night of poor sleep as my stomach decided to mutiny shortly after 11pm so I was happy to finally see the sky begin to lighten in the morning. After having breakfast and packing up we left Fire Creek Camp and climbed back up to the Northern Loop Trail.

We had over 2000 feet of elevation gain ahead of us again today but we were feeling surprisingly good as we set off. We were tired but at the same time we both felt like we could do this for at least a few more days. It was encouraging since someday we’d like to do a long trip when we have the time.

We had just over a mile and a half climb to reach Grand Park. Along the way we a couple of viewpoints offered great views of Mt. Rainier.

Grand Park lived up to its name. Despite the dry weather it was still an impressive sight and the views of Mt. Rainier were spectacular.

As we were passing through one of the smaller meadows we noticed that there was frost on some of the plants. It was funny how excited we got seeing the frost. It has been such a hot and dry year that the sight of the frost was a welcome sight.

After leaving Grand Park the trail headed down a ridge.

We had been able to see the trail far up the valley climbing out of Berkeley Park and here we were heading downhill.

The trail eventually stopped dropping and began climbing again below Mt. Freemont. Lodi Creek was on the opposite side of the trail between Mt. Freemont and Skyscraper Mountain. We passed through several small meadows with views of Skyscraper Mountain where we spotted a mountain goat.

We spotted a second mountain goat on the cliffs of the mountain a little further along the trail.

As we passed Berkeley Park Camp we found more frost covered plants and even saw a small pool with a thin layer of ice.

The trail continued to climb up the valley along the increasingly scenic Lodi Creek. We popped out of the shadow of Mt. Freemont into sunlight filled meadows and quickly warmed up.

As we neared the top of the valley we spotted a pair of marmots on the hillside. They were hilarious to watch especially when one of them plopped itself down on a rock and spread out its legs.

When we arrived at the Wonderland Trail I realized that I had forgotten that there would still be more climbing to do. I had been thinking we would be heading downhill from that point on and was disappointed when I realized my mistake. The .7 mile climb to Frozen Lake was probably the hardest for me because I had planned on coasting downhill at that point, but once we had reached the lake I was over my mistake and back to enjoying the scenery.

Near the lake I happened to say the word “goat” and two girls nearby freaked out. They thought I had spotted one and they really wanted to see one. They were disappointed to learn that I hadn’t really seen one and even more disappointed to learn that we had seen two on Skyscraper Mountain from Berkeley Park because that was where they had come from. We left them by the lake and turned up the Sourdough Ridge Trial. Shortly after doing so we did spot another goat. Three to be exact, a nannie and two kids.

We looked back to see if they were following but they hadn’t come around the bend yet. Heather considered running back to tell them about the goats but there was no guarantee that she could reach them before the goats disappeared.

We stopped a couple of times along the trail to take in the view to the north. This was the furthest north we’d been while hiking and were seeing Cascade peaks that we had never seen before including the snowy Glacier Peak.

After getting some pictures of the new mountains we began our final descent. The trail was full of hikers huffing uphill from Sunrise. We couldn’t believe how many people there were and we were becoming anxious to reach the car, get cleaned up, and escape the crowds. It was such a stark contrast to the peacefulness of the Northern Loop Trail.

We dropped our packs off at the car and then stepped into the snack bar to get a cold drink and a souvenir. We had discussed chocolate milk on the trail after some muddy water had reminded us of the drink and it had sounded really good. We wound up leaving the snack bar with the most expensive chocolate milk we’ve ever had. Mine was gone before we even got back to the car.

I don’t know when we’ll get back up to Mt. Rainier but I have a feeling we haven’t seen the last of that National Park. Happy Trails!

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/9319235@N02/albums/72157655104282083

Tags berkeley park, fire creek camp, Frozen Lake, glacier peak, grand park, hiking, lodi creek, marmot, Mount Rainier, Mount Rainier National Park, mountain goat, mt freemont, skyscraper mountain, Washington

Hiking Mt. Rainier Trip report Washington Washington Cascades

Mt. Rainier National Park – Northern Loop Day 3

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date August 21, 2015
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Day 3 started with the sound of water dropping onto the rainfly for our tent. We guessed by the sound that the rain had finally relented and what we were hearing was the water falling from the surrounding trees. We had managed to stay relatively dry inside the tent save for a small amount of condensation that had built up during the night. I ventured out to use the toilet and retrieve our bear bag and discovered we had guessed right. We decided to have a bar for breakfast instead of trying to cook under the dripping trees and then began packing up. There was another couple at camp who had arrived after the rain had started. We learned that they had gotten pretty soaked and it sounded like it had been a pretty miserable night.

We got our first good look at Yellowstone Cliffs as we headed back toward the Northern Loop Trail.

The clouds were breaking up and it looked like it might be a pretty nice day. The forecast had called for a slight chance of showers in the morning followed by a mostly sunny afternoon. We were treated to more great views as we passed through the meadows below the cliffs.

As we neared the end of the meadows we noticed a doe and fawn staring down at us. A third deer briefly appeared further up the hillside before disappearing back into the trees.

As we climbed higher Mt. Rainier began to peak out from behind Crescent Mountain. The summit of the mountain was a pristine white having been coated in a fresh layer of snow overnight.

We had been climbing gradually toward Windy Gap where we planned on taking a .7 mile side trail to visit Natural Bridge, a rock arch high above Lakes Ethel & James. The scenery along this section of the trail was magnificent even without the flowers being in bloom.

We took the trail toward Natural Bridge which wrapped around an unnamed butte before descending to a viewpoint of the arch. The view included both Lake James and Lake Ethel as well as the West Fork White River which we would be crossing later in the day.

After returning to the junction at Windy Gap we began descending down the Northern Loop Trail to Van Horn Creek which feeds into Lake James. The alpine meadows gave way to a beautiful forest as we neared the lake.

We headed for Lake James to cook our breakfast which had now become brunch.

It was a little chilly at the lake but it was also very peaceful. The area is notorious for mosquitoes but we didn’t see any signs of them as we enjoyed our Mountain House Biscuits and Gravy.

After breakfast we sallied forth dropping from the lake and passing beneath the fireweed covered Redstone Peak.

We were in a lush forest with mushrooms and birds.

We were heading for the crossing of the West Fork White River. The footbridge over the river had been washed out and we would be crossing on a log that was acting as the temporary bridge.
We had met a couple of ladies who were hiking the Northern Loop in the opposite direction and they told us they had chosen to scoot across the log instead of walking across it. That had been my plan as well having once done that to get across the Muddy Fork River on Mt. Hood. When we arrived at the log I briefly reconsidered and started to walk across but quickly reverted to the original plan as soon as I looked down at the muddy water.

Heather scooted across after me and we were ready to continue. Looking back across the river we got a glimpse of the lowest portion of Van Horn Falls. Like Garda Falls on the first day the only decent view was from across the river. Looking at the falls on Google Earth it’s clear that there is much more to it than is visible from the trail but it was still a pretty waterfall.

We met another pair of hikers shortly after crossing the river. They had come up the primitive West Fork Trail and asked us what animals we’d seen so far. We told them about the mountain goats and deer as well as the pikas, marmots, and chipmunks. The asked about any elk or bears and we said we hadn’t seen either of those yet. We took our leave and continued on passing the junction with the West Fork Trail.

Not long after passing the West Fork Trail junction something off to my left caught my attention. I turned just in time to see a large black bear emerge from some huckleberry bushes and race off into the forest. He had only been about 20 yards away and when his paws hit the ground they made a loud thumping noise. He was only visible for a matter of seconds and Heather had missed seeing it. It was amazing how quickly something that big could disappear into the forest.

We had another big climb ahead of us to reach our next camp. Fire Creek Camp was located in a quiet valley part way along the trail up to Grand Park.

We took the .4 mile trail down to the quiet camp which was the most private of all the camps we’d seen thus far. A small stream draining from Grand Park above supplied a water source. We chose site #2 partly because we had chosen site #2 at both of our previous camps as well but it was also the nicest of the spots here.

We set up our tent and spread out anything that was still damp from the day before to dry.

It was a chilly evening and we wound up using our rain gear as a windproof layer to keep us warm. It was certainly a more peaceful evening than the rain filled one the day before. It had been a great trip so far and we were eagerly anticipating what the final day would have in store for us as we turned in for the night. Happy Trails!

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/9319235@N02/albums/72157657420370715

Tags crescent mountain, deer, fire creek camp, Fireweed, lake ethel, lake james, Mount Rainier, Mount Rainier National Park, natural bridge, Northern Loop Trail, redstone peak, van horn creek, van horn falls, west fork trail, west fork white river, windy gap, yellowstone cliffs

Hiking Mt. Rainier Trip report Washington Washington Cascades

Mt. Rainier National Park – Northern Loop Day 2

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date August 20, 2015
No Comments on Mt. Rainier National Park – Northern Loop Day 2

The possible thunderstorms forecast for our first night had never really materialized. We heard a few rumbles in the distance but nothing had seemed close and we didn’t experience any rain overnight. The sky was a little cloudy as we packed up our tent but they seemed to be breaking up. We stopped at Mystic Lake to eat breakfast and enjoy the beautiful morning that was developing around us.

From Mystic Lake the Wonderland Trail climbed through gentian filled meadows to a saddle between the mountain and Old Desolate.

We were hiking with the animals this morning passing birds, frogs, chipmunks, and an owl who silently flew over our heads and down into a lower meadow.

The owl flying low over the meadow just before disappearing down the hillside.

Mt. Rainier was visible beneath the ever shifting clouds as we crested the saddle. The Carbon Glacier filled the valley before us and beyond that was Echo Cliffs and Mother Mountain.

Further down the glacial valley a mass of clouds covered the terrain. We were heading down toward those clouds and we remembered the rain that had been in the forecast for the day.

We followed the trail down to the meadows surrounding Moraine Creek. Along the way we spotted several pikas and had great views of a huge waterfall below Observation and Echo Rocks.

As we continued along Moraine Creek we entered the clouds.

About four and a half miles from Mystic Lake we came to the junction where the Northern Loop Trail split from the Wonderland Trail. The Wonderland Trail crossed the Carbon River on a suspension bridge while the Northern Loop Trail continued to follow the river down the valley. We took a short break here and took a peek at the bridge.

We continued on the Northern Loop Trail for another mile passing through a damp forest to another trail junction.

This junction was located near the lowest elevation point of our whole trip. From the junction the Northern Loop Trail turned uphill for a steep climb to Yellowstone Cliffs. We would be gaining some 2200′ in less than 3 miles to reach the spur trail to Yellowstone Cliffs Camp where we were to camp for the night. The park ranger who had given me our permits said the climb consisted of 38 switchbacks so we began counting them as we climbed. As we trudged up the hillside we were thankful for the clouds since they were keeping the temperature down. We were pleasantly surprised when we ended the switchbacks after about two dozen, well short of the 38 we had expected.

Heather coming up the switchbacks.

The trail became less steep after the swtichbacks before entering the meadows below Yellowstone Cliffs. The cliffs were shrouded in clouds as we started down the spur trail to camp.

By the time we arrived at the tent sites we were soaked due to the moisture on the plants. We quickly picked out our site and set up our tent.

Shortly after getting set up the rain began. It was early afternoon when it started and it wouldn’t let up until sometime during the night. This was our first experience with backpacking in the rain and we were a little concerned about our ability to stay dry. This became more of a concern when I noticed water pooling up outside of the tent near our heads. The ground was so dry and hard that the water wasn’t being absorbed at all. I quickly grabbed our trowel and attempted to drain and steer the water away from the tent. We’d also managed to forget to keep any food out for dinner. When it had started raining I ran the bear bag down to the bear pole and hung it without pulling anything out for dinner. We were left with some peanut m&ms, a small package of green olives, and a meat and cheese stick package apiece.

We stayed in the tent except for a quick trip the bathroom before attempting to sleep. Heather didn’t seem to have any trouble but I had a difficult time. The rain kept coming and I couldn’t stop wondering if we would stay dry and on top of that there was an occasional sound of large rocks falling from the cliffs. The camp was far enough away that I wasn’t worried about them at the time, but I wondered what would happen if they were still falling while we were on the trail in them morning. To top it all off my stomach decided that it really would have enjoyed dinner and that made it just a little harder to get any sleep. I managed to get a couple of hours of broken sleep waiting for morning to arrive. Happy (dry) Trails!

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/9319235@N02/sets/72157657416432875

Tags carbon glacier, carbon river, echo cliffs, echo rock, hiking, moraine creek, mother mountain, Mount Rainier, Mount Rainier National Park, Mystic Lake, Nothern loop trail, observation rock, old desolate, Pika, Suspension Bridge, Washington, wonderland trail, yellowstone cliffs, yellowstone cliffs camp

Hiking Mt. Rainier Trip report Washington Washington Cascades

Mt. Rainier National Park – Northern Loop Day 1

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date August 20, 2015
2 Comments on Mt. Rainier National Park – Northern Loop Day 1

At the beginning of the year Mt. Rainier National Park was near the top of our list of places we still needed to visit. On our initial hiking schedule I put down four days at Mt. Rainier and began researching possible hikes. The Northern Loop Trail looked to be the perfect choice coming in at close to 40 miles. We decided to submit a request for the necessary wilderness permits in hopes that we would be lucky enough to acquire them. In order to camp in the parks wilderness we needed to have permits and the number of permits are limited due to the limited number of designated camp sites available. The park began accepting permit applications on March 15th and ours was in the mail that day. All requests submitted between 3/15 and 3/31 were collected and on April 1st they began to process them. We found out on May 1st that our application had been accepted and our planned itinerary approved. We had requested Thursday 8/13/15 thru Sunday 8/17/15 with our camp sites being Mystic Camp, Yellowstone Cliffs Camp, and Fire Creek Camp.

We had been excited about the possibility of this trip even before finding out that we got our permits and that excitement only grew when we got the good news. As the date of our trip approached we kept a close eye on wildfire and weather information. Although it has been a bad year for fires none were affecting the park which was good news. The weather news was a little less exciting. The forecast called for a chance of showers or thunderstorms Thursday afternoon and evening and rain on Friday, possibly up to half an inch. There was also a slight chance of showers Saturday morning before becoming sunny for the rest of the weekend. We had our reservations though so we made sure we had plenty of waterproof gear before heading to the park.

The weather was beautiful when we arrived at the Sunrise Visitors Center on Thursday morning. Mt. Rainier was as massive as we’d been led to believe and we couldn’t wait to get started.

We took the Sourdough Ridge Trail up toward the Wonderland Trail (the 93 mile trail that loops the entire mountain) marveling at the views along the way.

In a typical year the flower displays would have been near their peak but just like the rest of the Pacific Northwest they had bloomed at least a month earlier than normal. It didn’t matter though because the scenery and views were spectacular and the few flowers that remained gave us an idea of what it might look like in full bloom.

We met the Wonderland Trail near Frozen Lake. This lake acts as a domestic water supply and was roped off.

Two other trails met at the junction, the Mt. Freemont Trail and the Burroughs Mountain Trail. Both of these looked interesting but would have to wait for another day.

We took the Wonderland Trail which passed below Burroughs Mountain where we spotted over two dozen mountain goats lounging in the shade of the cliffs.

We continued down to another junction, this one with the Northern Loop Trail. This would be our return route to complete the loop on Sunday.

From the Wonderland Trail we had a good view of the climb that awaited us on that final day.

The Wonderland Trail then climbed to a pass on a ridge below Skyscraper Mountain where we took our first snack break where we were joined by a marmot.

From the pass the trail then headed downhill into a forest passing Granite Creek Camp.

We were on our way down to the Winthrop Glacier and to a crossing of Winthrop Creek. The sky had become rather hazy by the time we made it down to the glacier making it difficult to see the mountain. The glacier was much larger than any we’d been around on other mountains in the Cascades.

We passed under Garda Falls which was hidden from the trail, but after crossing Winthrop Creek on a foot bridge and climbing a bit we could look back and see the falls in the forest.

We climbed out of the glacial outwash plain and back into the forest.

Shortly after reentering the forest we arrived at a sign announcing Mystic Camp where we picked out a site and set up camp.

The camp was below Old Desolate and near Mystic Lake. The rocks on Old Desolate were very interesting.

After setting up camp we headed up the trail to Mystic Lake. It was a pretty alpine lake nestled between Mineral Mountain and Old Desolate. The lake shore was dotted with gentians.

We decided to have our dinner at the lake but hadn’t brought it with us so Heather headed back to camp to get our stove and food. When she got back she told me she met a doe and her two fawns along the trail. After dinner we headed back to camp and discovered the deer were still in the small meadow where she had seen them earlier.

Back at camp we found another deer. This one was a buck who was leisurely passing through camp eating as he went.

The showers had never materialized as we turned in for the night. We did hear a couple of rumbles of thunder during the night but never saw any lightning and it never did rain. It had been a great start to the trip and we were looking for to the rest of it. Happy Trails!

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/9319235@N02/albums/72157657389155121