“Oh, what a Paradise!” That
is what an early settler proclaimed when she came to this subalpine meadow on
Mt Rainier. So we are in the Paradise
section of Mount Rainier
National Park. It is known for its views. Most of the day the views were obscured by rain
and clouds. Nevertheless we found things
to do.
We walked to Myrtle
Falls.
We followed the path even over snow (it’s July 22!) to the
viewpoint for Nisqually Glacier. We
didn’t see too much of the glacier, but saw lots of alpine flowers.
Bill hiked 5.6 miles (2,200ft elevation gain) on Comet Falls
trail and Van Trump Park, seeing a high (300’?) cascading waterfall and subalpine
meadows. With over 50’ average snowfall per winter, the trees grow tall with
short branches.
Barbara went to Christine
Falls
and Narada Falls.
At the end of the day, when the sky was beginning to clear
we could see some of Mt Rainier.
Most days we try to write a post. Yesterday we didn’t as it
was a travel and logistics day. And wifi is about an hour away so we may not post for a little while.
