“Of all the fire-mountains which, like beacons, once blazed along the Pacific Coast, Mount Rainier is the noblest…and contains the most luxuriant and the most extravagantly beautiful of all the alpine gardens I ever beheld in all my mountain-top wanderings.”

— John Muir, 19th century Naturalist

Beautiful, yet deadly is a good assessment of this majestic mountain.

For hundreds of years, this sleeping giant was known as Tahoma (snowy mountain) or Ti’Swaq (sky wiper). At least six indigenous tribes have strong cultural ties to Mt. Rainier’s 14,411 foot tall precipice. But beneath these serene snow-caps is shrouded one of the most dangerous active volcanoes in the world. 

USGS geologists at the Cascades Volcano Observatory point to Rainier’s significant height, regular earthquakes, active hydrothermal system, hefty glacier mantle, and proximity to major urban areas like Seattle, as red-alert risk factors for a possible catastrophe. Usually, people fear the scorching 1,170 degree magma and the scalding gases/ash produced by an eruption. However, slurry mudslides known as “lahar” actually pose the biggest threat to the more than 3.8 million people who live in the stratovolcano’s vicinity. If even a small percentage of the mountain’s prodigious 26 glaciers melted in an eruption…. the flowing water would mix with debris to produce a wet-concrete-like mixture that could consume entire cities. Previous lahars at Mt. Rainier traveled as fast as 45-50 miles per hour and filled nearby valleys with debris 490 ft deep, according to USGS research. 

Hopefully a Mt. Rainier doomsday event won’t happen for a few million more years. While geologists continue to monitor the stratovolcano for clues to possible future eruptions, travelers from around the world continue to make regular pilgrimages to this magnificent mountain. 

Summer is the best time to explore Rainier. Pink mountain heather, gray’s lavage, false hellebore, and lavender broadleaf lupine light up the fields like fireworks. The park is an alluring place, particularly for the thousands of mountain climbers who flock to Rainier’s glaciated peak every year. 

Ascending Mount Rainier is on many adventurers’ bucket lists. On average, about 10,000 mountaineers attempt to summit Mt. Rainier each year. Only about half of these climbers succeed, according to the NPS. 

Typically it takes about three days to complete a summit. Beginners are strongly encouraged to hire experienced guides. You must be in prime physical condition in order to safely achieve this hazardous climb. For all of the peak-baggers interested in conquering this fourteener: outdoor adventure resource FitClimb has a helpful 12-week Mt. Rainier training plan here,

Local author Bruce Barcott described his experience climbing Mt. Rainier with snark: “Learning to climb a mountain is like repeating infancy. First you master the act of breathing, move on to walking, then accept the challenge of falling down without bonking your head.” 

EXPLORING MT. RAINIER NATIONAL PARK-

Mount Rainier’s colorful wildflower meadows feel like a scene straight out of a technicolor musical. These spectacular fields invite you to sing and spin around like Julie Andrews from the Sound of Music.

Accomplished naturalist John Muir described this lavish summer floral display as “the most luxuriant and the most extravagantly beautiful of all the alpine gardens I ever beheld in all my mountain-top wanderings.”

Paradise Valley’s 6 mile Skyline Loop trail was simply phenomenal. The popular trail loops through cold snowfields, verdant fields of flowers, rocky moraine terrain, several tumbling waterfalls, and multiple streambeds. A portion of the trail hugs Nisqually Glacier, providing excellent views of her icy depths. 

A friendly park volunteer gave us a great photo guide to identify some of the most common alpine flowers. My little sister Jennifer was entranced by the innumerable blossoms… she paused every three feet to examine each cheerful bloom. The silky Western Pasqueflower seed head was hands-down, our favorite wildflower. These quirky puff balls look like an illustration straight out of a Dr. Seuss novel. 

We saw three mountain goats grazing on the slopes, dozens of chipmunks, and a few golden-mantled ground squirrels. Our first marmot sighting was also at Rainier. The chubby rodent is quite large--about the size of an overfed house cat! He sprawled out on a rock in a lackadaisical manner, napping in the warm afternoon sun. (These “hoary marmots” are sometimes called “whistling pigs” due to their rather startling screams.)

Some mountain trails can be a bit of a slog, but the Skyline Loop packs an impressive amount of diverse scenery into a fairly short trail. There are some steep sections,totalling about 1,700 feet of elevation gain, but it is a perfect day hike that can be completed quite easily in just 4-5 hours. The only downside is that this trail’s gorgeous reputation is well-known… it can be quite crowded between 10am-4pm which detracts from the setting. If you don’t want to elbow through gaggles of tourists, wake up early to enjoy the climb with a little more solitude.

Another fantastic trail at Rainier is called “Summerland”, which Adam once hiked during a college internship in Seattle. We hiked 12 miles of the far less crowded Summerland Trail to Panhandle Gap, following the gurgling Frying Pan Creek. We enjoyed this pleasant 3,000 foot ascent through shady old growth forests, before meandering through meadows, streams, and rocky moraine. 

Two pika scurried around the talus boulder field. Nimble chipmunks chattered from their stump perches, while fat tadpoles wriggled in puddles of glacial meltwater. The 6,800 ft tall summit cast a cool shadow which preserved pearly patches of snow and a turquoise blue alpine lake.

With more than 260 miles of trails to conquer, Mount Rainier is clearly the star of the Cascade Mountain range.

OUR FAVORITE PLACES-

#1: Skyline Loop in Paradise Valley (Breathtaking views of Nisqually Glacier and Mount Rainier. Moderately challenging 5.5 trail winding through vibrant wildflower meadows, babbling streams, moraine boulder fields, and waterfalls. Some steep and rocky sections with 1,700 feet of overall elevation gain. Opportunities to take additional trail spurs to more overlooks.)

#2: Summerland Trail to Panhandle Gap (Rewarding day hike through established hemlock forests and meadows to a vibrant alpine lake. Great views of glacier fed waterfalls and the valley.)

#3: Grove of the Patriarchs (Short and easy stroll through ancient trees. Quaint suspension bridge over a river.)

Beyond Mt. Rainier NP, we hung out with friends in Seattle, explored Yakima Valley, and explored the Oregon Coast. Follow us on social for more of those PNW adventures!

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RAINIER NATIONAL PARK STATS:

Established: March 1899      /      Size: 235,625 acres

Annual Visitors: 1.2 million     /       Location: Washington

~Safe Travels, Nathalie

UNUSUAL ADVENTURES-

Packwood, WA was our base for exploring Mount Rainier National Park. We stayed in a cute, sleepy little RV park near the stoplight that served as “downtown”. Late one evening, we were startled awake from our beds by the thundering sound of large rotor blades hovering over our trailer. We stumbled outside in our pajamas, to see what the commotion was all about. It was difficult to obtain a visual. The mystery aircraft was completely dark… all navigation lights, beacons, and strobes were off. It’s typically against FAA regulations for general aviation pilots to fly incognito like that. It turned out that, unbeknownst to us, our RV site was about 200 yards from a tiny municipal airport.  As we ran over toward the area where the craft was apparently landing, the rotating beacon of the airport revealed brief, veiled flashes of a large shape on the dark runway… clearly revealing it to be a military aircraft. 

Our midnight visitor turned out to be an enormous, heavy-lift Chinook helicopter. This famous twin-engined, tandem-rotored bird can carry up to 36 people in some configurations! Chinooks are so powerful that they can carry up to 25,000 lbs of sling load. These monstrous birds have been seen literally lifting entire fighter jets, blackhawk helicopters, and humvees in their talons. The pilot paused on the airstrip for a few fleeting minutes, before taking off again and disappearing into the night. Our campground host (who had also run outside in her bedroom slippers) said that it was not uncommon for the military to conduct covert training missions in the area at random hours of the night. It was a phenomenal sighting!

5,900 miles traveled and 11 national parks explored