Mount Rainier National Park

Snowshoe Trip Report

What a treat!  Will and I attended a 'snowshoeing basics' class at REI about a month ago and since then have gone on a few outings of our own.  Lucky for us, or me rather, we connected with the teacher of that class, Wayne.  He is a seasoned employee of REI, an Eagle Scout, avid snowshoer, hiker, bike mechanic, rock climbing instructor, cross country skier, chef, scuba diver, etc... the list goes on!  Plus, he's from Georgia so we had a connection there as well.  His only fault is that he went to UGA... sorry, Wayne! haha

Wayne invited me to snowshoe to Tatoosh Ridge, at Mt. Rainier National Park, this past Monday.  Very sadly, Will had to go to work so he missed out on this trip.
http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/tatoosh

It was the most incredible snowshoe/hike I've been on since moving here.  On the drive to Mt Rainier, I saw three elk and then in the parking lot I saw a fox (or, raynard, for those of you who know what that is).  It was a clear day and the sun was shining, it could not have been more perfect weather.  We hiked past Narada Falls, which were beautiful, then kept climbing and came upon Reflection Lake.  We then hiked up to the summit of the Tatoosh Ridge and I wasn't quite ready for what I saw.  Just seeing the magnificent Mount Rainier the whole day is enough natural beauty to be more than content, but once you come up on the ridge, you can see (on a clear day, which we had):  Mt Adams - 12,281 feet, Mt Hood in Oregon - 11,249 feet, and Mt St. Helens - 8,365 feet.  And if that's not enough, just look behind you and there's Mt Rainier, Reflection Lake, and Lake Louise!

I truly felt blessed to go on this hike and see God's amazing hand in nature.  I was also very lucky to have Wayne as my guide, and new friend, as an endless source of outdoor knowledge.  What a great day!

Narada Falls

Mt Rainier and Reflection Lake

Mt Adams (in the distance)

Guide & friend, Wayne.

At the summit, photo credit - Wayne.

Photo credit - Wayne.

Our nice lunch spot at the summit.  Wayne came prepared
(he has guided many hikes, so he knows what makes people
happy!) with a sit pad, hot chocolate, and sweets!

Hope you enjoyed the trip - the photos just can't do the views justice, but hopefully it gave you a taste of what I saw. 

*I know, I know... South Africa, Part 3.  Coming up!