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| Entering Mount Rainier National Park via Highway 410. |
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| National park sign directly across the street from turnoff to the Sunrise area trails. |
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| Arrived at the trailhead. |
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| Follow the Mt. Fremont Trail. |
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| Take the Sourdough Ridge trail to Frozen Lake and then to the Mt. Fremont trail. |
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| Mt. Rainier, my constant hiking partner today! |
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| Even though it is later in the season, the wildflowers were in full bloom. |
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| The wildflowers were so fragrant in places.....It was practically intoxicating. |
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| This marmot was so unalarmed by my presence it just went about enjoying the ample meadow vegetation. |
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| Frozen Lake. |
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| Trailhead sign for Mt. Fremont, just past Frozen Lake. |
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| Trail to Fremont lookout, if you look closely you can see the lookout tower from here. Mt Rainier will be behind you now for the rest of your hike to the lookout.......don't worry, you can still turn around a steal a few glances of its magnificent beauty. |
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| Fremont Lookout |
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| On clear days such as today you can view Mt. Baker, Glacier Peak (pictured center), and Mt. Stuart (pictured right). |
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| View of Mt. Rainier from Fremont Lookout. |
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| Me and Mt. Rainier |
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| Last view of Mt. Rainier for today......couldn't have asked for a better day. |
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Today I went to
Mt. Rainier National Park to do a solo day hike. The weather was beautiful, the kind of day we wait all year for! (Especially here in Seattle.) Because I was alone, I made sure to stop at the Ranger station and give them my name, the date and my planned route. I also had given my hiking itinerary to my friend James. It is especially important to let someone know of your plans including your return time, so that if something happens to you someone knows to look for you.
At the start of my hike I made conversation with a Park Ranger. He was working with volunteers of the
Washington Trails Association for the day. They were going to repair part of the Huckleberry Creek trail which was damaged by flooding back in 2007. He gave me some insight into how he had come to work for the park and I told him about my quest to become a Mountaineering guide. At the trail junction for the
Huckleberry Creek he wished me luck in my pursuits. I then continued down the
Sourdough Ridge trail heading toward Frozen Lake.
Once past Frozen Lake you will see the trail marker to Mt. Fremont off to your right (north). The trail heads down a beautiful meadow where the wildflowers were in bloom and fully fragrant. Then you start gaining a bit more elevation. The trail is rocky but in very good shape all the way out to Fremont lookout.
It was a fantastic day, and I didn't even mind all the other hikers sharing the trail. (I really couldn't blame them for wanting to take in the breathtaking scenery on such a wonderfully sunny day!)
Start time: 09:00
End time: 13:30
Total time: 4.5 hours
Approximate Speed: 1.24 miles/hour
Distance: 5.6 miles
Peak Elevation: 7,200 feet
Elevation gain: 800 feet
Note: This trail is quite popular, so if you'd like to avoid he crowds start early, as the middle part of the day is the busiest.
Driving Directions: From Enumclaw, drive east 43 miles on State Route 410 to the Mount Rainier National Park White River Entrance. Veer right onto the Sunrise Road and follow it 17 miles west to the large parking lot and visitor center at the road's end.
Note: Sunrise Road usually doesn't open until early July.
Links:
http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes-of-the-week/hikes/mount-fremont-lookout
http://www.visitrainier.com
www.nps.gov/mora/
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