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Mt. Rainier National Park
Last Updated 8/29/2009
The beauty of Mt. Rainier National Park will leave you speechless. Whether it's the alpine lakes, temperate rainforest, charismatic megafauna, redolent lupines and other wildflowers, active glaciers, wild berry picking, or the massive monolithic mountain itself, Mt. Rainier is awe-inspiring.
Mt. Rainier National Park awards only 5 commercial backpacking permits every year. Fitpacking has been awarded one of them, so this is one of your few chances to participate in a guided backpacking trip to this famed destination.
We will be hiking the less visited Northern Loop Trail as well as small sections of the famed Wonderland Trail on our 6-day hike, where we may encounter elk, deer, eagles, pikas, black bear, and marmots. Experience the timeless wonder of Mt. Rainier with us during the short, relatively dry and temperate season.
Mt. Rainier
Menus
We don't believe in austere eating regimens. Backpacking is a rigorous, rewarding activity. You must feed your body in order for it perform. Your body will dictate that you eat often. It's important to have fuel to feed it. See what we have planned to eat. Note that this is not necessarily a comprehensive list. If you want to bring a big old chocolate cake, go for it. After carrying it over 40 miles through the mountains, your body will most likely not desire the empty calories.
Itinerary
The Mt. Rainier National Park Fitpacking Trip will be from Sep 5-12, 2009. Here is the proposed itinerary.
Equipment List
Here is a list of equipment we suggest you bring.
Trip Leaders
Heather Gillis spent over 7 years as a backcountry Ranger with Olympic National Park. She has guided Fitpacking trips to Olympic National Park and North Cascades National Park and is a certified Wilderness First Responder, Leave No Trace Master Educator, and certified Yoga teacher. Everybody loves Heather.
Cost
$1175 per person double occupancy. Here, double occupancy means that you will share hotel rooms with another trip participant. You may also want to share a tent with someone else. This part isn't a requirement, but it vastly will cut down on weight carried (and privacy) but allow you to enjoy hiking with a lighter load and will leave a smaller impact on the environment.
You will also be responsible for getting to and from Seattle as well as any restaurant meals during off days.
Covered expenses include 2 nights in a hotel, all trail food (3 meals per day), ground transportation, permits, satellite phone service, and two amazing guides.
Route
Our journey will begin at White River Campground on the East side of Mt. Rainier. We’ll quickly climb up to Glacier Meadows and head towards the North Loop Trail. We'll stay at Lake Eleanor and go by Redstone Peak before we drop down to the Carbon Glacier. Eventually we'll climb up through beautiful alpine Spray Park before ending our trek at Mowich Lake.
Please note that this is one of our most difficult and advanced trips.