pnw trip: mt rainier national park

we made it! mt rainier has always been an elusive mountain for me. i saw the tip from an airplane above the clouds once. i saw a glimpse of it on a largely overcast day from the seattle space needle once. but the only other time i tried to see it while driving nearby, it was shrouded in absolute cloud cover. it's such a beast of a volcano, towering over all it's neighbors in the cascade range. i was so excited to see it, and it was clear and sunny as we approached the park, and we saw it in all it's glory!

but by the time we entered the park and made the drive up the top (well, the highest visitor center, anyway), some afternoon clouds had clustered around the peak, and again the peak hid from us...

BUT then, i discovered that this national park is about so much more than this one peak, and the ranges around mt rainier were staggeringly impressive. the tatoosh range, pictured below, is like a jagged razor's edge, just minding its own business across the valley from rainier, just looking awesome. 

we did an easy loop near the top, and stopped to consider the snow. we didn't realize how lucky our timing was: most facilities had JUST opened as COVID cases stabilized, and most moutain pass roads had JUST opened as the snow melted. had we come in june, we would have had go just turn around and go home. 

oooh look! the peak of mt rainier!

gah, clouds again.

the river valleys running down from the mountains were impressive wide beds of stone, with trickles of melting glacier picking their way down. it's easy to imagine this river running fast and cold and wide in the spring and early summer. even easier to imagine a bear or yeti along the banks, but no such luck 

the campsites in the park were full, and our early reservation was cancelled by the park service so they could remove hazard trees--it was very disappointing, i'm not mad, WHATEVER--but we were able to find a site at the big creek national forest campground just outside the park, and it was really a beautiful site. 

spaghetti dinner was perfect,

and the sleeping arrangement for this chilly mountain night was cozy .

here's a little glimpse of the morning picnic table routine: 4 oatmeals, 2 coffees.

we woke to rain, and found shelter in the van at the campsite,

and then found even better shelter on the porch of the lodge in the park, sipping overpriced hot cocoa.

back up to the top in the rain for some hiking along a river,

some hoary marmot spotting,

a little suture removal in the parking lot of the visitor center,

and then the hike we were most excited for: the 5 mile loop up the mountainside to comet fall. expectations were high; we were told it was "amazing."

oh yeah. it was. that's a 300 foot waterfall, plunging straight down, and creating a river than runs beneath a snow field, right through a lush green valley. 

happy hikers. even if we never really saw the full mt rainier view. it's fine. WE WILL BE BACK.

and that evening, it was still cold, still raining, and we were ready to be fed by someone else. we found a very sweet little cafe on the road back to the campsite, where we licked our pie plates clean. literally.