Mt. Rainier: a 3-day getaway

Julie and I have just returned from a 3-day vacation to Mt. Rainier National Park.  We had a wonderful time, staying at the historic Paradise Inn.  Day 1 was sunny and cool, the perfect weather for a good long hike.  We decided to hike the Skyline Trail, one of the most popular trails at the park. 

We should use this as our Christmas Card photo!

Here I try to ascend up the trail to the Nisqually Glacier Viewpoint.  Too snowy for tennis shoes and a walking stick.

this young man was nice enough to pose for our camera

Julie crossing the 2nd snowfield of our trip.  She does fine here, but on the way down she slips and slides down the ice. (luckily without injury)

Lobby of the Paradise Inn

The Paradise Inn looks like a miniture version of the Old Faithful Inn located in Yellowstone National Park.  The smaller size and fewer visitors made the inn feel much more welcoming.

Breakfast buffet at the Paradise Inn.  We both ate way too much food each morning, but we did so knowing we'd be burning off those calories on our hikes!

At the Myrtle Falls viewpoint.  It was foggy and 20 degrees colder than the day before.  No point in going up the mountain today, thankfully we had done it the day before. The sun never did come out, leaving some visitors disappointed at not actually seeing Mt. Rainier.

hummingbird lantern that Julie loved

It's a castle!  No, actually it's a restroom built right into the side of the mountain.  It's at Panorama Point, elevation 6,800 feet above sea level.  I'm sure we weren't the only ones glad to have use of the facilities.

Isn't he adorable?

On the Wonderland Trail

On our final day, we did a hike recommended by the park rangers in Longmire.  We hiked to two different waterfalls (Carter and MadCap) located about 500 yards apart.  They called it a 2 for 1 hike.  Part of that hike goes along the Wonderland Trail, which at 93 miles long, encircles the mountain.  Here Julie poses for a picture.