This past weekend, I took a four day weekend trip up to Mount Rainier to go backpacking with Allen, Todd, and Jame. We did the Northern Loop trail, half of which follows the Rainier Wonderland Trail. This is only a 35 mile loop, but has a substantial amount of elevation. We had a good time, but not without problems.
Day 1 - Lake James Camp
We started our hike at Ipsut Creek on the North West side of the park. The first day started out with an easy 2 mile relatively flat warm-up. At about the 2 mile mark, we crossed a rickety bridge over a glacial-melt stream (picture below):
After crossing the stream, we hit our first substantial elevation with steep 2000 foot climb followed by another less-steap 1000 feet. This was pretty tough, but not terrible. Once on top, we did not have great views of Rainier, but there were some nice meadows and smaller mountains.
After getting to the top, we dropped down about 1500 feet to our campsite at James Lake. On the way down, Jame hurt his knee, which turned into a problem as we proceeded. The camp was okay ... but nothing to write home about. There was a decent lake nearby, but the camp itself was frankly boring. We played some cards and had a nice meal. Mmmm beef stroganoff.
Day 2 - Berkeley Camp
Day 2 started out with another 1000 feet elevation drop. Jame's knee was really bothering him and he had some problems getting down into the valley. At the bottom there was a waterfall and some hicks. They were quite amusing. Apparently giardia does not exist, and as long as water is moving and you don't see any dead animal near the water, you can just drink away.
After this we immediately had another climb up another few thousand feet. Luckily climbing was not as problematic for Jame's knee, and we were able to make some decent time. At the top were some spectacular views of Rainier -- our first real views of the trip.
This view is accessible by day hike out of Sunrise. If you head towards Grant Park from sunrise, and walk another 1/4 mile or so (past the camp) you will get to this view. It makes a long day hike, but something to consider :).
After getting to the top we had a nice lunch (I was a jerk and would not let us stop until we got to the top) and then walked a couple more miles to Berkeley Camp. This campsite was better than the first. It is situated next to a stream, which is always good for sleeping. Jame's knee was still bothering him a lot, and at this point we decided that him and Allen would head out the following day to Sunrise (a point of entry on the North East side of the park).
Day 3 - Mystic Lake
We got an early start on day 3 and headed about a mile to the split between Sunrise and Mystic Lake campground where Todd and I headed towards Mystic and Jame and Allen towards Sunrise (where we would pick them up after getting the car on day 4).
After splitting up, Todd and I headed up a ridge to a great view of the mountain. This is also a possible day hike (head towards Mystic from Sunrise) ... but the view is probably not that much better than the view from Sunrise. After this, we headed down a ways towards the Winthrop Glacier valley. We crossed the glacial melt stream just below the bottom of the rock-covered glacier (see below):
After crossing the glacier valley, we had some more elevation gain on our longest day of hiking. Todd and I finished the 10 miles before lunch ... we were hauling :). After lunch we had a nice nap and then went up to Mystic Lake and sat in the relatively warm lake water for an hour before heading back to camp for a second nap. Below is a picture of the lake.
Todd had acquired some nasty blisters on the first day, and we retreated them after the lake. They were looking quite nasty. We then had another nap, some dinner, and hit the sack for the nite.
Day 4 - Heading Out
On Day 4 we got an early start so that we could get back to the car as quickly as possible. Todd and I hauled down the mostly-downhill trail and finished the 8 miles in by 11am. One thing I would like to point out is that there is a trail split about .8 miles to the west of Mystic Lake. There is a sign at this point that points towards the lake. Instead of heading towards the lake, you can head towards the mountain for about 2 miles to what is supposed to be a ridiculous view of both the mountain and the glaciers (where the ice is exposed instead of being covered in rock). We did not get a chance to try this out, but will sometime in the future.
After getting out we had some Quiznos, picked up Allen and Jame from Sunrise, and headed home.
Good times with the guys :).
You can see all the pictues here.
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