![]() ![]() No need for any guessing, if you know how to follow signs. The trail was very well defined throughout. But as you can see here, it eventually leveled out and became a very pleasant hike. The first part of the trail was paved and very steep. I recommend taking a photo of the map before you start your hike. Next to the steps, there is a map of the area. Those were the stone steps where we found the dying chipmunk. This is the trail head for the High Skyline Loop at the Visitor Center. Along the way the trail splits off into other trails but we kept following the signs for the Skyline Trail. But it didn’t last long, and soon it became a very pleasant hike as the trail became unpaved and the steepness eased out a bit. Let’s all be careful where we step or use our hiking poles.Īnyway, the first half-mile of the trail was paved and very steep. With the crowd and enthusiasm at this area of the park, it is so easy to overlook these little darlings. The chipmunk appeared to have been stepped on or stabbed by a hiking pole, and the blood trail implied that it had been dragged (or kicked?) from its accident spot to a few steps below. Our hike started on a low note as we found a dying chipmunk right on the stone steps at the trailhead. Plenty of parking at the visitor center and nearby picnic areas but they do fill up very quickly. Trailhead: Behind the Jackson Visitor Center. Elevation gain: 1,700 feet (highest point is 7,000 feet)ĥ. Note that we extended our hike to Pebble Creek which adds a little bit more distance and elevation to these stats.ģ. The network of trails at Paradise can be quite confusing. I’d highly recommend you take a photo of this map or grab a paper copy at the Visitor Center before embarking on your hike. At the trailhead, there is a board with a map of the trail. ![]() The High Skyline Loop trail starts behind the Jackson Visitor Center. It took us about an hour to get from White River to Paradise, but two things made it worth it: first, we saw a deer, and second, we caught reflections of Mount Rainier at Louise Lake! A surprise treat on our way to Paradise – reflections of Mount Rainier at Lake Louise! Since we were staying at White River Campground at the Sunrise area of the park, getting to Paradise meant exiting the park at White River and re-entering at the Stevens Canyon entrance. “Every one of these parks (meadows), great and small, is a garden filled knee-deep with fresh, lovely flowers of every hue, the most luxuriant and the most extravagantly beautiful of all the alpine gardens I have beheld.” – John Muir, Paradise, 1888 Contrary to the bare and rocky landscape at Sunrise’s Burroughs Mountains, with its waterfalls and its splashes of color in the subalpine meadows, Paradise reminded us that there is still life around Washington’s giant volcano. In the summer at our time of travel, beautiful wildflowers lined the trail and marmot sightings were not uncommon. We went to Paradise! This breathtaking southside area of the park was very popular with tourists and was significantly busier than Sunrise. But when the morning rolled around, neither of us wanted to make the 2.5-hour drive to Carbon River! What did we end up doing? So we started to make new plans around going to Carbon River, camping out there, and then hiking to Mowich Lake from Carbon River. He suggested that we visit Carbon River instead. Firstly, we learnt from the park ranger that the road leading to Mowich was unpaved and could cause significant damage to our rental car. Our original plan to explore the Mowich Lake area of Mount Rainier did not happen due to several reasons. ![]()
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