Mount Rainier
Washington
September 19, 2009
Day 3 of Pacific Northwest Journey
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day! Especially if you are going to climb a mountain. Well, I say climb, but technically it’s hike. I really shouldn’t say climb. Climbing is hard core. We are hiking. We are staying flat footed on paths, not hanging from the side of cliffs. So if I say climb, I mean hike, but climbing just sounds so much cooler!
But anyways back to this breakfast - it’s massive! This plate is a mountain man’s plate. Easily, it could feed four, maybe five people. Cheese omelet, hashbrowns, a biscuit, mini blueberry muffins, and fruit are all sitting in front of me to be eaten. There’s no way. There’s eight of us at the table: mom and I, Travis and Penny, Libby and Eric, and Libby’s parents, and none of us can finish our food. We are in a little sleepy town about an hour and a half from Mount Rainier National Park, and we are all humming with excitement. Not even the blanket of fog and drizzle of rain outside can discourage us!
Driving down the road with a wall of trees lining the way like soldiers at attention, we are welcomed by a sign, that reads “Mount Rainier National Park”. We are entering a world that is all about the nature. Beautiful, untouched nature. Nature, we want to conquer! It is still raining. Something which we are moaning about. None of us want to hike in the rain, but right now we don’t have a choice.
Our first stop is the Grove of the Patriarchs, a mile and a half loop, that takes us through a green wonderland complete with giant red cedars, western hemlocks, and douglas firs. Giant isn’t really giving these trees justice. Think of the ents in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, these structures are beasts. Some of these trees are hitting 1,000 years old and are averaging 25ft around.
Forget the jungle! Welcome, to the forest.
We encounter fallen trees that really bring these trunks into perspective. We take many candid shots with our heads next to the trunks just to put their width into perspective. Red bark! These trees have red bark! My curiosity gets the best of me, and I can’t help but pick at it. But then I am reminded by my fellow hikers of a sign at the beginning of the trail, “Please leave the nature as you found it....”
Yeah...
Eric points out the largest slug I have ever seen. Everything about this placed would be considered value size.
Turning a corner, I spy the unexpected - a suspension bridge. This is like something out of a dream for me. I run to the halfway point just as it starts shaking. My friends think it’s funny if they swing me back and forth. We’ll see who is laughing later. Surprisingly, we actually obey the one person at a time rule and continue deeper into the forest.
We come upon another fallen tree, this time with the actual roots sticking out onto the path. There is a whole in middle leading into the hallow inside. Penny and I look at each other, and both immediately know we are crawling in.
I’m speechless. This forest is like nothing I have ever seen before. I feel like I have stepped back in time, into a world that is nothing but nature. I am so lost in the wonder that I, along with everyone else completely forget about the drizzle. Of course, that may be due to the giant canopy of leaves and branches overhead that are drinking up every single drop.
Driving on through the park, we stop again at Box Canyon where we peer down a mere 180ft drop and watch water surging through the rock crevice below. The water is rushing so fast, it has rubbed the sides of the mountain smooth. Beautiful, and jaw dropping in its own right, but this is not our destination. For that, we have to return to our cars and drive. Drive up, up, up.
Welcome to Paradise, the unofficial gateway to the mountain, and perhaps the most popular launching point for those who actually want to climb this mountain. We will not be doing that today being none of us are trained to climb this 14,410ft active volcano; however we are going to take advantage of the hiking trails that emerge from the inn and deluxe visitor center located here.
The rain has thankfully subsided, but the wind, the wind is brutal up here on the mountain. We all trudge into the visitor center to have a look around and to freshen up before heading up. Penny and mother encounter a group of college students warming by the fire. The girls recount how rough the wind was up there, so bad that they had to stop.
That was all it took.
Mom and Penny were not going up the mountain!
What??
“Mother, explain to me how you can justify flying across the country, driving here to the park, coming this far up the mountain only to give up now at the base of the trails?” I ask unbelievingly.
“Simple, I’m cold! I’m going to take a nap in the car. You guys have fun.” And with that she smiles lovingly and with Penny following her, heads back to the car to take a nap.
A NAP!
I look at the others, “please tell me, we are going hiking!” I moan childishly.
“Of course we are!”
So now the six of us head up the hill.The trail leading out of the Paradise Inn is called the Skyline Trail - a name that would definitely earn its meaning later.
It’s easy going. We meander our way up the trail drinking in the beauty of the surrounding views. Despite it being mid-September, some wildflowers are still in bloom, giving us a gift of vibrant colors ranging from red to blue. Firs and hemlocks make our perimeter a beautiful rich green. Fog still hangs low preventing us from viewing the actual mountain peak, but knowing that I’m actually on it - despite what level - is an exuberant feeling.
We take a rest at Myrtle Falls. We stand on the bridge looking into the plunge below and take photo after photo.
Once a tourist...always a tourist...
There is now a fork in the the trail: Golden Gate or Skyline?
Looking at our maps, we see that they end up connecting at the top of the ridge. So I am told to just start walking in a direction and that’s the one we will enjoy.
Golden Gate is straight ahead and from the looks of it reaches the ridge sooner than Skyline does, so I opt for Golden Gate wanting a challenge.
Continuing on, the climb begins to get steeper.
Running six miles a day at home is starting to pay off.
I notice that everyone is starting to huff around me. Well...it should be fine. The wind is picking up the farther up we climb, making the air considerably cooler.
We meet a stream, our only option is to “pebble” our way over.
Jump from stone to stone.
This is childishly thrilling for me.
Now we are at the base of a near vertical hike. The path zig zags up the mountain up into the fog. The people ahead of us are turning into dots as they press forward into the distance.
My adrenaline starts pumping. This is the kind of thing I have been looking forward to. This is the kind of adventure I’ve had in mind when I imagined being at Mount Rainier. This is what I have been so eagerly awaiting!!
I start walking and suddenly realize that I’m alone. I look back. Everyone is standing there looking at me and then looking at the top of the ridge.
“Yeah, we don’t think we want to go up there.”
“What?” I ask gobsmacked. Immediately, I tell myself to be calm. I mean we are all up here together. Don’t freak out. Just listen to what they have to say. After all, we aren’t meant to do everything in life. Sometimes we miss out on things. It wouldn’t be the end of the world if I didn’t go up to the top of the mountain. Would it?
Oh man, but I really, really want to go. I really want to go up to the top. I really want to see the views. I really want hike!!! I have been imagining this in my mind for months, blood pumping, breath flowing, body moving up up up. And now...
Instead of saying anything I just stare up towards the top of the ridge while the others discuss what they want to do.
Some want food, some want water, some don’t like the wind and the cold. All completely understandable reasons. After all this is no walk in the park by any means.
They make a decision.
“We’re going back,” They say and turn to go.
Disappointed, I hang my head low, but I have to be a trooper.
“You really want to go up there don’t you?” Travis suddenly says.
I look up hopeful. “Yes...”
“Then let’s go. We can go up to the top at least while they go get some food. If you want to...”
I eagerly nod.
It’s a plan. The other four are going to go get nourishments and Travis and I are going to the the top of the Golden Gate Trail, straight up the zig zag path. We are going up the mountain.
Travis and I are both runners so we figure this would be a test of endurance and strength. We join in with the few others who are braving this trail and head up.
Zig
Zag
Back and forth.
Up and Up.
The path got steeper, rockier. I notice our breathing became shallower.
We pass some people and then some people pass us.
Suddenly a shrieking sound pierces the air.
I freeze and immediately look around.
“WHAT WAS THAT?” I exclaim.
“Marmot.” Travis replies laughing.
“A marmot?” I scan my brain for any references. Nothing. “What is a marmot?”
“There” He points to a white fur ball perched on a rock below. The ball moves. The creature reminds me of a giant guinea pig, or a white flapless beaver. He scuttles over the rock to another one and again the shrieking.
“That’s my first marmot.” I tell him. “I’ve never seen anything like that. THAT’S so cool! I’ve discovered a new creature at the age of 20! Woo hoo! Life experience!”
“Well, then it was totally worth, hiking up here.” He smiles.
We make it to the top, I admit, a little breathless, but regardless we did it! I look at the trail signs and I look at my map. I was secretly hoping we could just finish the loop, but I wasn’t sure if he would buy it. “You know the distances are almost the same.” I tell him. (And they are. Well, ok the loop is maybe a half a mile longer, but what’s half a mile when you run six every day?)
“The views will be worth it.” He resigns.
And oh are they!!!
From the top of the ridge we can look out and see the valley below from which we have just come from. To think, that the tiny dots of people below was us perhaps an hour earlier is exhilarating. On the other side the mountain continued up, but obviously that would have to be put off...
One day...one day, I think to myself.
We begin our descent into another beautiful valley complete with wildflowers and gurgling streams. Thankfully, the great keepers of Mount Rainier National Park have erected wooden bridges for crossing. On our way down, we have two extremes: the remains of glaciers from the previous snow and ice season on our left and a precipice on our right. Travis repeatedly warns me to keep away from the edge.
“Your mother will never speak to me again if you fall off.”
I get as close as I possibly can. The views are jaw dropping. I am now in the midst of the fog. This is as close to God as you can get in nature. Standing on a precipice, overlooking a valley that appears only when the fog drifts out, I have to hold my hat down from the whipping wind. If it flies off, it’s gone for good.
Is this what it’s like to drift above the earth? I thank God for this nature, for the beauty in every detail. The trees, the rocks, the flowers, the wind - all of it is evidence of His beautiful design.
Travis and I decide to make the downhill hike interesting and run! I do NOT recommend this. We are foolish, foolish people who will sprint any chance we get. But while we are running, I start thinking about what would happen if one of us fell. If we broke something, miles up on this mountain, the other would have to go fetch help. Looking back, this was not smart...at all, but during, it was a absolute rush. The other hikers we pass look at us like we are crazy...which we are. Entering the meadow below, I am instantly hit with the resemblance the landscape has to the Lord of the Rings. I know Tolkien never visited here, but it’s almost as if he sat in this valley and wrote Frodo’s adventure.
Travis and I remark this to each other (we’re both huge fans) and almost feel like we are on our own adventure, nothing as important or significant as carrying a forbidden ring to Mount Doom; but you know not all of us can have such an important job as the hobbit.
We circle back around thinking we are done, but we start climbing again. Now the running is getting to me. The rising altitude and the lack of water are suddenly hitting me. We are now on the other side of the hill and the drop is now on our left. On our right is forest leading up into the mountain. We cross another bridge over a waterfall. It would not be good idea to monkey around and fall off this bridge.
I take more and more photos. This is something I want to remember for the rest of my life. This hike is becoming one of the best things I have ever done.
Just when the exhaustion is hitting me, we emerge and are back at the crossroads. The map showed that we would circle around. We leave the skyline trail and head back to the inn. The trail earned its name, we were one with the sky. We were lost in the fog.
To reward ourselves, we pick up our friends and eat an absolutely, positively, necessary greasy, yummy, gigantic plate of fish and chips on the drive back toward Seattle.
The day started with a giant breakfast and ended with fish and chips, but what better way to reward yourself, when you’ve conquered the beast of a mountain.
Happy climbing ; )
I love this one ......
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