With a mountain in the background, rustic buildings and fairy-tale
snow, nothing beats Paradise on a clear, winter day. However, Mount
Rainier can also play hide and seek as lenticular clouds race along
thermal freeways toward the peak, drawn to the mountain before they
drift away, clearing the way for those views.
The drive to the Nisqually Entrance of the park is always enjoyable and
often scenic - on our recent visit the sunrise tinted the sky in
pastels, frost sparkled on the road like glitter flung from a New Years
Eve bash though icy shadows interspersed with sudden beams of molten
sunlight made the driving a bit challenging (don't forget sunglasses!).
Given the sunny, dry conditions we hoped to get to Paradise without
needing to chain up at Longmire and our wish was granted. The plan was
to snowshoe to Bench and Snow Lakes via the Paradise Valley Road and the
Stevens Canyon Road but like the best laid plans of mice and men we ran
out of day before we ran out of enthusiasm.
We geared up and started down the Paradise Valley Road wondering what
kind of snow we'd find. We started out in snowshoes but also carried
traction devices. Poles will also come in handy though some prefer to
snowshoe with an ice axe. The snow was well packed along the road though
where it had melted, it had turned to ice. As the road gently descended
we enjoyed views of the Paradise Valley and Mazama Ridge under
cloudless,1 blue skies. Ski and snowshoe tracks criss-crossed the river
valley, the tracks enhancing the beauty of the snowy hummocks, subalpine
trees and shadowy indentations where tributaries lie under the snow.
The Paradise Valley Road is popular and used frequently by snowshoers
and skiers coming and going from Edith Creek Basin and/or Mazama Ridge.
It can be a challenge for those seeking solitude on a sunny weekend
unless you travel cross-country. In about .4 miles the road makes a big
bend as it contours Mazama Ridge and crosses the Paradise River on a
stone bridge (the bridge was totally buried in snow). On the other side
of the bridge you'll often see ski and snowshoe tracks heading uphill
toward higher points on Mazama Ridge.
Continuing on the road you'll reach a junction where a hard-to-miss
orange sign advises users to take the Mazama Ridge bypass trail (via
Mazama Ridge; N 46° 46' 36", W 121° 44' 14") rather than the road to
Reflection Lakes. This bypass is steeper but safer. If you do opt for
the road you'll be snowshoeing below a potentially dangerous avalanche
slope before you get to the lakes. The Mazama Ridge bypass is marked
with poles, is easy to follow and with a few abrupt ups and downs to
warm up your muscles. In the trees the snow was icy so I switched to
crampons where it was steep and changed back into snowshoes when the
trail leveled out followed by a level stretch leading to the Stevens
Canyon Road where we turned (left) east.
As we approached the lakes we enjoyed views of the Tatoosh Peaks,
especially Castle and Pinnacle Peaks. Pinnacle Peak looks impossible to
climb though in summer it can be scrambled without technical gear for
those with rock-scrambling skills. Castle Peak is considered more
technical and suited to climbers. Nearby Plummer Peak is considered an
easy walk-up in summer as is nearby Denman Peak. More intimidating is
Lane Peak which falls somewhere in that gray area between rock
scrambling and climbing, depending upon your level of expertise.
We also saw where skiers and snowshoers had crossed the lake rather than
following the trail. We opted to stay on the trail and road as crossing
frozen-over lakes can be hazardous. As we continued down the Stevens
Canyon Road toward the Bench and Snow Lake trailhead we stopped to
admire Faraway Rock rising above Lake Louise. From the road there is
also a view of intimidating Unicorn Peak which is usually considered a
climb.
By the time we'd reached a viewpoint above Louise Lake (N 46° 46' 11", W
121° 43' 2") we knew there wasn't enough time or daylight to snowshoe
an additional four miles (round-trip) to Bench and Snow Lakes. As a
consolation prize we concocted a loop by snowshoeing back to Reflection
Lakes and retracing our route back to the Paradise Valley Road.
Rather than retrace our entire route back to Paradise we left the
Paradise Valley Road and took the Narada Falls Trail (the junction is
well-signed; N 46° 46' 35", W 121° 44' 14") in order to connect to the
Paradise River Trail. This route was also wanded and easy to follow
though it's a steep pitch (600 feet of elevation gain in less than one
mile) before the Paradise River trail ends at Paradise. We turned around
several times to look back into the valley, still greedy for views of
the Tatoosh Peaks and finding it hard to say farewell.
On our way back to Seattle we stopped at Alder Lake and Wildwood Park
along Highway 161 to photograph the sunset and for a striking view of
Mount Rainier in alpenglow.
| Distance: | 6 miles, RT | |||
| Time: | 5-6 hrs | |||
| Elevation Gain: | 1,100 ft | |||
| High Point: | 5,400 ft | |||
| GPS Waypoints: | Paradise Parking Lot: N 46° 47' 08", W 121° 44' 08" Reflection Lakes: N 46° 46' 05", W 121° 43' 46" |
Visit Rainier is a
not-for-profit, non-membership destination marketing organization that promotes
tourism in the gateway communities around Mt. Rainier.
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