Hikes and Hiking
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MPG V2.7, January 2010
There are 240 miles of maintained trails in Mount Rainier National Park which offer the full range of hiking experience. About 105 miles of these trails constitute the Wonderland Trail which circumnavigates Mount Rainier. The rest encompass the range from short loop trails for showing some of the NP's unique nature to half to one day trails to get into the backcountry or get to specific areas of unique nature and to multi-day trips which connect to other trails and the Wonderland Trail.
Background
Trails on and around Mount Rainier have existed for centuries, going back to the indian tribes discovering the beauty and resources of the different meadows, rivers and wildlife. After the initial settlements, camps and homesteads by the settlers in western Washington, those trails were used and new trails were established starting in the 1880's for access to homesteads and mining claims. After those trails new trial were established by surveryers and scientists.
And it was the surveryers, scientists and adventurers who expanded the trails into many areas not previous explored or established in the NP. The first of these was the Grindstone Trail from Wilkerson to Spray Park and follows the now Mowich Lake Raod to Mowich Lake and the Spray Park trail. This was one of routes for later scientists and climbers.
In addition to the trails in the northwest quadrant, those in the southwest were being established from Ashford to Longmire and Longmire to Paradise, which eventually become the current road. The first circumnavigation of Mt. Rainier was by J.B. Flett in 1911. Trails and roads into the other quadrants followed in the 1910's and into the depression era under the Civilian Conservation Corps.
Information
In general there are four types of trails. The first are short loop trails to showcase the different environments in the National Park, such as twin Firs, Carbon River Rainforest, Trail of the Shadows, Silver Falls, Box Canyon Overlook, Grove of the Patriarchs, and Emmons Overlook. The second are the trails to other natural features, such as waterfalls, lakes, viewpoints, etc., such as Gobbler's Knob, Spray Park, Tolmie Peak, Rampart Ridge, and High Lakes/Mazama Ridge.
The third are the connecting trails. These are trails that connect trailheads to the Wonderland trail or to other trails into the backcountry which eventually connects to the Wonderland trails or trails outside the NP. The last is the Wonderland trail. All of these two types of trails require backcountry permits, especially the Wonderland trail which has designated campgrounds. Scrambling and off-trail hiking is one option for the experienced backcountry hiker under the restrictions for camping outside established campgrounds.
Additional Resources
Below are some books and Websites for additional information on the history of trails in Mt. Rainier NP. The first book is available from local or on-line bookstores and the second is out of print. There is a longer list in the List of Books.
- Books in Print
- "Mt. Rainier Trails", Paul Hodge, Sound and Mountains Publishing, 2006.
- "The Big Fact Book about Mount Rainier", Bette Filley, Dunamis House, 1996.
- Websites
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