Mt. Rainier in Washington is an active volcano that towers over the diverse vegetation of subalpine and alpine flora. Besides Alaska, Mt. Rainier has the largest alpine glacial system and is the highest volcanic peak in the United States at a height of 14,410 ft.
It’s safe to assume that visiting this iconic National Park in any season would be worthwhile, but we decided to visit the Thanksgiving long weekend and witnessed the widespread autumnal colours from the forest trees to the wildflower meadows. We stayed in Greenwater, 30 minutes from the nearest town of Enumclaw. Enumclaw is just under a 4-hour drive from Vancouver, south of Seattle and is doable for a long weekend and definitely worth the journey. In terms of grocery stores, there’s not a whole lot of other options once you get outside of Bellingham, so I recommend stopping here to get prepared.
We stayed at an amazing Airbnb – a wooden cabin, equipped with a fireplace and a hot tub outside on the back patio overlooking the garden which was nestled in amongst the trees. There were signs of deer in the garden which wasn’t surprising as it was a remote, secluded location with a gushing river at the end of the property.
There are campsites available in Mt. Rainier that operate from May-early October and there is also the possibility to backcountry camp as long as you have a Wilderness Permit. (more info here: https://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/wilderness-camping-and-hiking.htm)
Mt. Rainier is divided into four regions that are accessible without entering the backcountry. These regions are Paradise, Sunrise, Ohanapecosh, and Mowich Lake. Paradise is the most popular region located on the southern side of the mountain as it has a lot of day hikes. Sunrise is on the east side of the park and also offers a variety of trails. Since we were only in the area for a long weekend, we did two hikes – one in Paradise and the other in Sunrise.
The Skyline Loop trail is probably one of the most popular hikes in Mt. Rainier as it is located at the Jackson Visitor Centre. I have a detailed post about the hike here: https://just-another-mountain.com/the-skyline-loop-trail-mount-rainier/
Tipsoo Lake & Naches Peak trail in Sunrise is another amazing day hike that you can read more about here: https://just-another-mountain.com/tipsoo-lake-naches-peak-washington/
