Mt. Rainier - Fall in Paradise

On Labor Day, Jake and I went for an amazing hike on Mt. Rainier.  I've been so busy with back to school stuff, lesson planning for the computer classes I'm teaching, coaching soccer, and of course family, that I haven't shared much about that adventure, except the awesome video of the crazy squirrels.  Maybe when we get back from Disneyland I'll find time to share those memories.

In the mean time, if anyone is looking for a fall adventure, I want to highly recommend carving out a day to visit Mt. Rainier's Paradise to check out the incredible scenery and photo opportunities, easy walks to waterfalls, and spectacular autumn colors (until the first couple of weeks of October.)

There are numerous ways to explore Mt. Rainier National Park.  Here are some ideas, inspired by our recent visit.  If you only have 1 day, go to Paradise and park near the Jackson Visitor Center.  The Sunrise Visitor's Center and Ohanapecosh Visitor's Centers are currently closed until next spring.  Plan to stop at the National Inn at Logmire or the Jackson Visitors Center at Paradise to talk with a Ranger about the best route(s) for you.

Coming down the Alta Vista trail on Labor Day 2015.  The fall colors were just starting to pop.

Our Hike up Skyline
Since I was 5 months pregnant, Jake was 5, and I hadn't hiked at Mt. Rainier since I was about Jake's age, I had no idea what we would or would not be able to accomplish.  I printed out trails for Logmire and Paradise before we left (links below) and identified Myrtle Falls and the Nisqually Vista Loop ahead of time as very easy hikes we would be able to do.  I had my eye on Skyline, though, as that trail looked like the closest one to the side of the mountain.

We drove down on Sunday night and spent the night at the Nisqually Lodge.  It is located about 15 minutes away from Mt. Rainier's Nisqually entrance.  Since I wanted to scope out the area and talk with a ranger before deciding on where to go, after we checked in we drove to Mount Rainier National Park (the parking pass is good for up to 7 consecutive days so we didn't have to pay any extra go check things out that evening.)  After driving up to Paradise, we went to the Jackson Visitor's Center to find a ranger still on duty.

The visitor's center was a fun place to start our visit.  In addition to a cafeteria and a small museum-like exhibit, there is a small theater off of the lobby that plays a film about Mt. Rainier every half an hour.  We caught the last showing of the evening, and it was great to see pictures of the area and learn some stuff.  Jake learned that Mt. Rainier is actually a dormant volcano, so he kept calling it "Mountain Rainier the Volcano."  He loved the movie.

In addition, there is a small model of Mt. Rainier in the lobby.  It was fun to check out the trails and imagine where we might go.  It was even more fun to come back after our hike and see how far we actually made it!

If you click on this picture and find the word "Paradise," we took the yellow dotted trail closest to the mountain all of the way to Panorama Point at the top of the loop!  After our picnic up there, we came back down the way we came.

When the Ranger saw my big pregnant belly and little 5 year-old, he recommended that we try the Nisqually Vista Loop and Myrtle Falls.  It was a reasonable recommendation.  However, I've been wanting to try Skyline for a while, and after looking at the map, it looked like there were some natural "destinations" short of the full loop.  I decided we would try for the lower part of Skyline, and hoped we could make it up the Moraine Trail or maybe even the Deadhorse Creek Trail.  I figured if that was a total bust, we could always come back to the Nisqually Vista Loop or the Myrtle Falls trails as a backup plan.

We headed back down the mountain to the Nisqually Lodge.  I tried calling Andy from the parking lot to let him know we were settled, but my cell phone didn't have service.  We stayed in the car and I drove 15 minutes west to be able to tell him good night.  :)


The next morning, we had a yummy breakfast.  The Nisqually Lodge hosts a hot breakfast buffet, so we had a much better breakfast than what I would have packed for us.  Since we already had our path planned out, we headed up around 8:00 am, an hour or two before the Logmire ranger station opened.

Here is Jake as we start our hike.  Unfortunately, it was a cloudy Labor Day, so we never saw a full view of the mountain.  This is just after we saw some deer near the junction of the Skyline Trail & Alta Vista.

Here we are along the Deadhorse Creek Trail.  I tired pretty easily and my pregnant self had to take breaks every 5 minutes or so.  It was worth it to experience the mountain, though!

We had to climb almost a thousand feet of elevation to make it up to Glacier Vista, but the scenery was beautiful - even with the crowds and the fog.  Along the way, we sometimes saw peek-a-boo views of the mountain top when pockets of cloud cover thinned.  I *need* to go back to this trail on a sunny day!

Photobomb in 3... 2... 1...

By the time we had reached Glacier Vista, I was tired, although Jake wasn't.  He wanted to keep going.  By this point, I could see Panorama Point almost directly above us and I wanted to make it so we tried to go a little further.  Between Glacier Vista and Panorama Point it is only .28 miles, but there is over 400' of elevation gain in that quarter mile.  In general, more than a thousand feet in a mile is considered steep, and this part of the trail left a burn in my hamstrings, quads, calves, feet, and just about everywhere else.  However, knowing we were close motivated me.  The change in the scenery added some interest to this part of the trail, and the porta potty at Panorama Point definitely enticed this pregnant hiker!

We left behind the Alpine meadows for a rocky path that literally cut into part of the hillside.  With the cool, misty fog obscuring the world below, and with the bulk of the other Labor Day hikers turning around at Glacier Vista leaving us alone on the trail for minutes at a time, I imagined we were exploring in some forgotten Viking land.  It was an incredible feeling.

Finally, after about 1400 feet of elevation gain and several miles, we made it to Panorama Point!  Here we stopped to catch our breath, stretch our legs, take off our packs, and enjoy a picnic lunch.

It was cool to check out the snow field directly east of Panorama Point.

While we had our picnic, I told Jake that it is important to not feed the local chipmunks.  As hikers, it is important to "Leave No Trace" and part of that philosophy means to not feed animals people food.  Clearly, not everyone shares that idea and those chipmunks *expected* to be fed.  We tried our best, although some made off with some of Jake's cheese and crackers.  Fortunately I always pack enough food and water to supply a small army so we did not go hungry, even after the cutest little robbers got us.

It started getting chilly sitting around, so after we refueled we headed back down.  I can't believe my camera only had 1 picture of a marmot.  We saw so many.  I still haven't gone through video yet, but I will have to try to pull some screenshots of Jake getting way to close to several marmots.

As we came down the Skyline Trail, we decided to take the Alta Vista trail back to the Visitor's Center for a little change of scenery.  It's hard to describe how beautiful the colors are in the fall.

Once we returned to the Visitor's Center, we stopped to grab some dinner to go before our 3 hour drive home.  We checked out the model of Mt. Rainer, or "Mountain Rainier the Volcano" in the lobby to see where we had gone that day.  Here is our path outlined on a map:

As we drove down the mountain, we drove out of the clouds (we spent the day hiking in that ball of clouds on the lower right side of the mountain.)  I wish we could have had that view while hiking, but it is an excuse to get in good hiking shape and come back on a sunny day!

Mount Rainier links & info: Easy hikes and sights
While Jake and I hiked up to Panorama Point, that hike was challenging and not for everyone.  Here is a list of some easy ways to see the mountain.
Christine Falls - 4.5 miles east of Logmire, or about 11 miles into the park from the Nisqually entrance, look for stone bridge that crosses a river and a small parking lot on the other side.  There is a small sign that says "Christine Falls."  Look at the Logmire trail map for more info.  Check out trip reports on WTA's Van Trump Park page for recent photos: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/van-trump-park

Christine Falls parking area

Narada Falls - Narada Falls is farther uphill from Christine Falls.  Look at the Paradise trail map for general location.  Check out the trip reports on WTA for recent photos: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/narada-falls-loop 

Narada Falls parking area

Nisqually Vista Loop - The Nisqually Vista Loop is a 1 mile loop off of the trailhead parking lot SW of the Jackson Visitor Center.  Check out the Paradise trail map for general location.  Check out the WTA site for recent photos.  This trail goes right up against the mountain.  http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/nisqually-vista-loop?searchterm=Nisqually+Vista+Trail 
Myrtle Falls - Myrtle Falls are located only a half a mile north of the Paradise Inn (1 mile roundtrip) along a paved path.  Check out the Paradise trail map for general location.  Myrtle Falls are located on the Golden Gate Loop trail, so check out trail reports on WTA's Golden Gate Loop page for possible recent photos of the falls.  http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/golden-gate-loop


Before you go
1. Be aware that there is essentially no cell service within the park.  Print out anything you need ahead of time and/or plan on stopping by a visitor center to talk with a Ranger.
2. Check out operating hours of visiting centers at http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/hours.htm
3. Print this Paradise trail map: http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/upload/Paradise-Area-Trails-Aug11.pdf
4. Print this Logmire trail map: http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/upload/Longmire_Cougar-Rock-Area-Trails-Aug11.pdf
5. Print out any other Mt. Rainier maps of interest: http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/maps.htm#CP_JUMP_141604

Getting there
1. To get to the Nisqually park entrance to Mt. Rainier National Park, use this address: 39000 State Route 706 E, Ashford, WA 98304.  Note that there is a $20 or $25 entrance fee per car, regardless of number of occupants: http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/fees.htm

2.  To get to Logmire, drive 6.5 miles into the park from the Nisqually entrance: http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/longmire.htm
3. To get to the parking lot at Paradise, try one of these addresses: 98368 Paradise-Longmire Rd, Ashford, WA 98304 or 98368 Paradise Rd, Ashford, WA 98304.  http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/paradise.htm. Map: https://goo.gl/maps/CuLy9hk3rKP2
4. There is a parking lot between the Paradise Inn and the Jackson Visitor Center.  However, this lot has a 2 hour limit and is patrolled.  There is a another parking lot to the SW of the Visitor Center called the "Trailhead Lot."  There is no time limit for this one and it's only a 5 minute flat walk to the Visitor Center.
5. Plan to stop in the Jackson Visitor's Center.  There is a free 20 minute movie that plays on the quarter hour, along with restrooms, a gift shop, and some cafeteria dining.
6. If you have extra time, walk up to the historic Paradise Inn to peek in the old log dining room.  It feels so rich with history and I would love to have time for a meal there someday.

Bellevue Botanical Gardens in Autumn

After the topic of the Bellevue Botanical Gardens came up in a local photography club this morning, I decided to check it out.  I haven't been there since the 90's (outside of Garden D'Lights holiday displays) and remembered it being a nice park and a fun place to attend galas, but nothing with particularly interesting to a non-gardener.

Today I learned that they have done significant renovations over the past 10 years, and even have a suspension bridge on one of the back trails.  Bridges and streams are pretty much the best thing ever with a little one, so we had to go exploring!

After stopping by the Visitor's Center and picking up a map, we wandered started out in the Short Ground Cover Garden where we checked out a water feature and what appeared to be a Japanese Tea House building.

From there we walked through the Fuchsia Garden and over to the Perennial Border, where we saw some flowers in bloom.  These were the only flowers in bloom that we saw today - the rest of the garden focuses on native plants rather than blooming flowers.  I wish I had brought a camera with a "macro" setting (it usually looks like a little flower.)  I only had my phone with me and missed some fun opportunities for shooting flowers up close.

Next, we went down the service road to the "Ravine Experience" trail across from the Native Discovery Garden, and out to the suspension bridge and back.  It was so fun!

After coming back to the main part of the garden, we walked through the Yao Garden, a twist on a traditional Japanese Garden with some native plants mixed in.  He was really fascinated with the stone lanterns.

Finally, we wandered through the Rhododendron Glen and back up through the Short Ground Cover Garden, where we saw another water feature and a fun little door, reminiscent of a hobbit home.  After tentatively knocking, Jake whispered that he hopes that a big, gigantic spider didn't live there and answer the door.

Before you go
1. Check out current hours of operations at http://www.bellevuebotanical.org/location.html. 
2. There is no admissions fee - everything is free (except during the Garden D'Lights displays November through January.)
3. There are restrooms on-site, although they may only be unlocked during open Visitor Center Hours.
4.  When you arrive, stop in the Visitor's Center to pick up a map.  Especially if you visit the suspension bridge (which you should), a physical map will be handy for finding your way around.
5.  Note that the Natural Area in the SW corner, between the Perennial Garden and the western part of the loop that leads to the Suspension Bridge is essentially a service road.  It is wide, flat, and great for strollers, but there is not much to see.


Getting there
1. Located just east of Downtown Bellevue, this is easy to find with any GPS:
12001 Main Street, Bellevue, WA 98005

Zoomed in map of main garden:

Zoomed out map of garden, showing suspension bridge location.  This map looks large, but the park really isn't that big.  You can walk through each of the colored gardens within a few minutes, so it really takes less than 15 minutes of direct walking from the visitor's center to the bridge: