Miscellaneous Sights
Unfortunately, several of the areas I was interested in seeing were closed due to snow and road conditions and likely won't open until July. However, there are so many things to see, I wasn't short of other options. This section contains some of the ones that stood out to me.
One that I wasn't able to capture in a photo was a marmot. I saw three of them, but they were either too far away or moved too quickly.
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| Mount Rainier |
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| Forest at Lower Elevation |
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| Nickel Creek |
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| Dash of Pink among the Green |
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| Box Canyon of the Cowlitz |
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| If You Can't Build the Road Around the Mountain |
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| Falls Creek |
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| Flowers Grow in the Riverbed Surrounded by Water |
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| Ohanapecosh River |
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| Stevens Canyon |
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| White River with Cloud Shrouded Mount Rainier in the Background |
Skyline Trail
The activity at the top of my list, the Skyline Trail, was accessible. And while it was difficult, I enjoyed it immensely. I hiked the loop clockwise around a ridge from, above, and back to the Jackson Visitor Center in Paradise.
As advertised, it was a very tough hike, all the more so because snow covered 95% or more of the trail. I had recently bought new hiking boots, and their tread served me well. Having clip-on spikes and trekking poles would have been even better, but overall, I faired pretty well.
The hike began climbing immediately.
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| Start of Trail |
But majestic Mount Rainier was right in front of me for a big chunk of the hike. This provided a great visual whenever I stopped to catch my breath or have a snack.
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| Mount Rainier |
From the start, the trail heads mostly straight forward and ascends steadily. This was probably the most slippery section of the trail.
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| Hikers Ascend |
Just as I neared the point called Glacier Vista, I saw the first switchbacks.
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| Hikers Zig Zag Up Slope |
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| Jon at Glacier View |
Here you can see hikers following the route I had just covered.
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| Looking Down and Back at Trail Below |
Once in a great while, I came to a point where you could see the physical trail instead of just boot prints in the snow.
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| There is Dirt and Rock Beneath All That Snow |
At the point called Mountain View, I was able to see Mount Adams in the distance.
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| Mount Adams Behind the Ridge of Mountains |
But of course, Mount Rainier was the primary attraction on this hike.
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| Mount Rainier Up Close and Personal |
Panorama Point was the highest, or near the highest point, of the hike. Its name is fitting.
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| Panorama Point |
After leaving it, the trail continued its loop around in a jagged arc.
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| Trail Circles Around to the Left |
Along the way, the views of Mount Rainier never got old.
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| Still Amazing |
While there were many points where I needed to be careful and take my time, only one point gave me pause as I had to step precisely along a 10-foot stretch on a steep ridge to avoid slipping and sliding down the hillside, into rocks, or into the gap under the snowbank.
On the flipside, here's a point that was simply interesting as the snowpack stopped abruptly at the trail.
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| Skirting Snowpack |
While atop the ridges, the views were spectacular.
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| Arc of Peaks |
On a return trip I'll hopefully get to see the beautiful nature that was hidden beneath the snow on this day.
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| Meadow Beneath the Snow |
During the second half of the trail, hikers had multiple options on the specific route to take. I took the path I felt most comfortable with which meant I didn't always follow the boot prints of previous hikers.
In this photo, you can hopefully see two things -- Hikers who are zigzagging down off the ridge (the route I took) and the grooves in the snow just to the left of the bare ground where some hikers took a more direct approach and slid straight down on their butts. There were several ridges along the way where you could see some hikers chose this latter method.
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| Different Descents Off Ridge |
Here I catch a glimpse of the Jackson Visitor Center and know I haven't too much further to go.
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| Jackson Visitor Center |
However, it was still a bit further than it looks because the trail needed to wind down and around off another ridge rather than traverse straight ahead.
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| Straight, Then Left, and Around to the Right |
When I came to end of the ridge, I saw a stream with a bridge amid the snow. Looking around, I realized I had to backtrack a little to make my way off the ridge and around to where I could use the bridge to cross the stream.
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| Bridge Across Creek Exposed Among the Snow |
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| Creek from the Bridge |
I was very fortunate at how clear the day was for almost the entire hike. It wasn't until close to the end when clouds started to roll in and obscure Mt Rainier. By the end of the hike, I could see less than half of the mountain.
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| Wisps of Clouds |
This area near the foot of Mount Rainier made for a beautiful landscape.
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| Beautiful Landscape |
And there was more variety than you might think at first. These were the only wildflowers I saw during the hike. There were plenty more at lower elevations and I'm told there will be plenty up here later in the summer.
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| Pasqueflower aka Western Anemone |
I was also able to enjoy several streams and runoffs created by the snow and glacier melt.
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| Stream |
After crossing the last stream, I had to ascend along one more ridge before completing the loop.
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| Broken White Slanted Line Marks Last Ascent |
Not far from the visitor center awaited a final attraction, Myrtle Falls.
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| Myrtle Falls |
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| View from Bridge above Myrtle Falls |
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