Mt Rainier … Noblest in Form

Wednesday, 23 May 2018
Gig Harbor RV Resort — Gig Harbor, Washington
Temps: 77F (25C) / 52F (11C)

Of all the fire-mountains, which, like beacons, once blazed along
the Pacific Coast, Mount Rainier is the noblest in form.
~ John Muir … conservationist … 1906 ~

With the forecast calling for a glorious blue-sky day all across the state, today we headed to Mount Rainier National Park (MRNP) …  the fifth national park of the nation … and home to the 14,411-foot (4,392 m) tall mountain for which the park is named.

When we visited the park in 1982, it was on May 29 … just about a week later in the year (Blast from the Past post at this link).  There was lots of snow then … we expected it to be no different this time.  We checked the NPS website for road conditions and the weather forecast, of course, but you never know with these big mountains … they tend to create their own weather systems.  We lucked out.  The weather board at the Henry M Jackson Visitor Center at Paradise showed a high temp of 67F (19C).  Where we ‘played’ — at around 5,420 feet (1,652 m) and below — it felt downright hot in the sun.

We were off on our outing a little later than we had hoped @ around 8:00a.  The 68-mile (109 km) drive to the park was uneventful.  Because we were heading south from Gig Harbor, there was little to no traffic to contend with along the way.

Not knowing then that Mt Rainier would be “showing herself” all day, we didn’t dally along the way, making just two quick stops.  The first was at a turnout to get a glimpse of the 24-story high Alder Dam … built in 1945 as part of Tacoma Power’s Nisqually River Project.

According to nearby signage, the dam holds back Alder Lake, which is formed by
the Nisqually River.  The river is fed by five glaciers on Mount Rainier 27 miles away.

Our second stop was a quickie photo op in Elbe to photograph a cute historic church that was built to support the German settlers who founded a Lutheran congregation here in 1893.  The church, which dates to 1906, has a railroad locomotive bell in the steeple.  From the station nearby, one can take an 18-mile (29 km) ride on the Mt Rainier Railroad … on a train pulled by a vintage logging locomotive.  This wasn’t on the agenda today, but we rode the train back in 1982 and I remember it as being fun.  (The Blast from the Past link above has photos from the train ride as well.)

The brilliant white Elbe Evangelische Lutherische Kirche makes a photogenic backdrop.

We entered MRNP through the Nisqually Entrance.  There was a short line of vehicles ahead of us that moved relatively quickly.  We didn’t have to shell out the $25 entrance fee — good for up to seven days — since we now have the lifetime America the Beautiful Pass … picked up at Crater Lake National Park just over two weeks ago.  While we’re still in the hole on the price of the pass, today’s park visit made a nice dent in getting us closer to making us whole.

Since we were at MRNP to enjoy the mountain, we skipped the Longmire area and continued up about 18 miles (29 km) to what is probably the most popular area on the mountain — Paradise.  As we drove up, we waited with bated breath for the trees to part and give us that first magnificent view of Rainier — the tallest volcano of the Cascades.  We were not disappointed.

First glimpse … the view just gets better from here on out.

With nary a cloud in the sky, the summit of Mt Rainier quickly became visible above the green clad slopes.  The further up we went, the better the views became.  We stopped at every turnout along the road, crossed the bridge that spans the Nisqually River, detoured to the one-way loop road overlooking Paradise River, and kept climbing and climbing.

The dry bed of the Nisqually river was once occupied by a glacier that has
retreated beyond our view from this vantage point on the bridge.
Today just a sliver of water runs through here, but in 2006 the river
flooded and destroyed a campground inside Mount Rainier National Park.

If you look closely, you can see the bridge from which I took the previous photo.

The first thing we noted when we arrived at Paradise was that the road past the VC was still closed.  We were expecting that to be the case, but one can always hope, can’t one?  Oh well.  We went inside the VC — changed from the circular building that used to stand here 36 years ago — and spoke with the ranger on duty about our plans to go to Reflections Lake.  She gave us directions for an alternate route.  She also pointed out that the lakes were still ice- and snowbound … but still beautiful.

Paradise … with the Henry M Jackson Visitor Center to the left.

Before leaving, we noted that a 20-minute movie runs on a loop in the theater, but decided to return after we enjoyed our outdoors time.  Good idea to stay out while the weather was cooperating, but we completely spaced out the movie later and never did see it.  Oh well … another time.  But we did remember to climb on a snowbank and play in the snow a bit.

The scenery in the opposite direction from Mt Rainier is not shabby either.

Following the directions the ranger gave us, we drove back the way we came and found the turn off for Stevens Canyon Road.  Ahhh!  What gorgeous landscape in every direction … with Mount Rainier playing the starring role.  Beautiful winter wonderland scenery all around us.  We knew the road was closed after a certain point, but decided to drive as far as we could go before finding a spot for lunch.  We made it as far as the Snow Lake trailhead before turning back for a stop-and-go-photo-op drive.

Louise Lake … still ice bound … sits in a bowl surrounded by trees and mountains.

Signs of the spring melt are everywhere … if you look closely.

Sunbeam Creek

No mirror images at Reflections Lake … yet.

The spring melt … the harbinger of summer.

If there were any picnic tables around, we didn’t see them … probably all buried under the snow.  But that didn’t matter since we had our own picnic table in the trunk of the car.  Ideally, we would have set our table right on top of the snowbank overlooking Reflections Lake.  However, though we could walk on the snow, the combined weight of the table with us sitting on the benches would have caused the legs to sink in.  So we set ourselves up on the paved sidewalk just past the overlook parking area.  The few people that stopped at the turnout never ventured our way, so it turned out to be good spot for us.  Our picnic was a simple one — snacks mostly — but the setting in which we ate made it a feast worthy for royalty.

The umbrella is not for show … the sun is hot and we need the shade.

The reflection of the mountain on the lake on a clear and wind-free day must be amazing.  Except for the tiniest reflection of Rainier's summit on a narrow strip of water where the ice is breaking up, we got no reflections.  But the winter-wonderland landscape on a beautiful sunny day was breathtaking.  Here and there the amazing aqua-colored meltwater from the spring break-up had pooled to add color to the scene.  On either side of the mountain, big puffy clouds moved in as we ate our lunch, but Rainier refused to put on its cloak … so the clouds did little more than add more texture to the scenery.  Just breathtaking.

We watch the clouds move in, but Mt Rainier refuses to don a cloak.

After lunch, we resumed our exploration of the park, but scrapped plans to walk the trails as they were still covered with slippery, iced-up snow.

Our first stop on the way down was at Narada Falls, where Paradise River plunges over a lava flow to the valley floor 168 feet (51 m) below.

One last glimpse of majestic Mt Rainier … with Narada Falls in the lower left as a bonus.

Two different views of Narada Falls … on the right from the overlook by the falls.

Upper Narada Falls from the bridge that spans the gorge.

Paradise River … just before it goes under the bridge and tumbles down the lava flow.

There were more people here at this time of the day than there were when we passed by earlier, but few ventured down the .1-mile trail to an overlook that takes in the full height of the falls.  With good reason.  Except for the very beginning of the trail, the path was under slushy, slippery snow.

We took it slow and easy.  Digging into the snow with our heels, we created steps in the snow that minimized the slipperiness.  Should have left the camera behind as there was too much mist coming off the waterfall when we reached the observation platform.  Our smartphones had to suffice for our photo ops — enhanced by a lovely rainbow where the sunlight was being reflected off the water droplets in the air.

For making the effort to get to the lower observation platform, we are
rewarded with a rainbow.  we get a wee bit wet in the process … worth it!

Our next stop was at Christine Falls, just about 4.5 miles down the road from Narada.  This waterfall is not as high — just a 60-foot (18 m) plunge.  It is best viewed from the platform at the bottom of a steep, but very short path right off the road … snow-free today.  Thanks to the trees filtering the light and a log fence providing a steady platform, I managed to get a ‘silky’ photo of Christine Falls … my favorite way of photographing waterfalls.

It was after 3:00p when we arrived at Longmire.  Even going against rush hour, we knew there would be traffic to deal with on the way home.  Since we had explored this area in ’82, we skipped the trails around the historic village and took a quick peek inside the museum before leaving the park.  

This cross section of a Douglas fir is now over 700 years old.  It looks to me like a
few more pins identifying historic events have been added to it since we saw it in 1982.

The forecast board at Paradise had called for a chance of snow and thunderstorms in the late afternoon.  Not sure if there was snowfall, but we did hear the thunder as we were finishing up at the museum.  Time to head home … which we did by detouring through Eatonville.

A detour through Eatonville yields a mural art project entitled “Past, Present, and Future.”  This mural was designed by a 6th grader by the name of Steven Hamilton and painted by David Craig.

We got back to Gig Harbor right around 5:00p.  As anticipated, there was plenty of traffic heading north, but nothing like the chock-a-block vehicles in the southbound lanes.

We had a truly fantastic day at Mt Rainier.  I love big mountains — craggy and frosted with snow.  I really would like to return in the fall some year for an extended stay … maybe after we downsize to a smaller rig.  Can’t get anything bigger than a 37-footer into the campgrounds inside the park … and that’s only in one of the three campgrounds.

If you’d like to see more photos from our day at Mount Rainier, click here to visit my online gallery.

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