Sunrise Hike at Mount Rainier National Park
photo by @dylanspitz
Hello, hello! We are back, after a few weeks of not blogging (on vacation and hiking and work and maybe just being lazy…but no more, I am going to try to be more diligent about these blog posts)! But we are back! And we are here to share with you the most breathtaking and beautiful summer hike to date with some of the most amazing people on this planet, and we are so excited to be able to share this magical experience with you all!
“oh hello 2:30 am alarm”
Oh yes. I did not mis-type that one. We had to wake up at 2:30 am so we could make it to the trail to catch first light and sunrise at Tolmie Peak Lookout in Mount Rainier National Park. Of course a 2:30 am alarm sounds cringe-worthy, but honestly it was pretty easy to get up with all the adrenaline and excitement bounding inside of us. It was our first time doing a sunrise hike and our first time actually hiking inside Mount Rainier National Park (we have done a few hikes that skirt the edge of the national park, but never inside of it because it does not allow dogs and we usually always bring our dog kota on our hikes with us). And to put a cherry on top of it all, everyone kept telling us that it was one of the top hikes in the state of Washington. Ok! Ok! I’m up, I’m up! 2:30 am wake up call you can’t bring me down! I jumped out of bed, got ready, and grabbed our bags (that were strategically packed the night before, key for early wake up calls…also packing a hiking backpack half asleep at 2:30 am…yeah uhhh..probably not the best idea) and headed out the door—hitting the road by 3:00 am. We were lucky enough to be with 2 amazing friends from Philly that were visiting Seattle for the week AND we were meeting 2 amazing friends from Ohio at the trail to share this magical experience together! So we began our 2 hour drive to the trailhead, to the soon to be best day ever! Bring it on Tolmie Peak.
“a dark, bumpy, 45 minute dirt road…oh my”
As we sipped our coffee and played music to wake us up for our hike, we drove out to Tolmie Peak Lookout Trail at Mount Rainier National Park. As we got closer, we ended up turning down a dirt road with tons of potholes in the pitch black 4:30 am darkness. Thank gosh for Kev and his ninja-like driving, because it was the bumpiest, darkest, dirt road completely in the middle of the wilderness. He flipped on the high beams and dodged pot hole left and right. My hero. I rolled down my window in the passenger seat, and we were deep in the beautiful wilderness. The car was surrounded by evergreen trees and the smell of fresh pine filled the air. The clear, night sky had billions of tiny little stars twinkling and illuminating the dark forest night. We skirted around a mountain bend, and there I saw it (and I didn’t think I would see it in the darkness). Mount Rainier glowed a dull white in the darkness – reflecting it’s snowy peaks off the soft moon and starlight. We definitely need to go camping around Mount Rainier National Park in the summer and stargaze at night. It was unbelievable. I gazed down at the GPS and we were almost there! Just a few more moments until we would begin our sunrise hike at one of the most beautiful national parks in the world.
photo by @dylanspitz
“headlamps on!”
As we neared the end of the dirt road, a bright car light blinded us ahead – success! We made it! It was our friends Dylan and Jillian from Ohio (but should just move out here, cough cough) who were on vacation and car camping/photographing their way through the beautiful Pacific Northwest. They both are the most incredible photographers and the kindest people who love the Pacific Northwest just as much as we do and are starting a blog very soon to share their amazing adventures and photography. You’ll see Dylan’s beautiful work sprinkled throughout this post (it is seriously on another level). After our squees and hugs, we were all finally reunited. We clicked on our headlamps in the quiet, dark wilderness and headed up to catch a sunrise.
“mountains are easier to hike when hiked with friends”
As we began our incline up 1500 feet in darkness to the lookout, we all were chit chatting and catching up on life. Talking and joking around with friends while hiking up very dark, vertical trails seriously makes time go by so quick and takes your mind a little bit off the burning, screaming pain in your thighs (juuuust a little bit). I was also thankful for our friends to have by our sides in the dark (and kinda creepy) forest. Everything was pitch black unless otherwise illuminated from by our headlamps, and who knows what is lurking in the dark shadows of a Washington forest. I don’t think I want to know, ek! I honestly don’t think we could’ve done this dark hike without them. You just feel more safe hiking together in a group of close friends. Don’t mess wit us bears! One of us knows Jiu Jitsu! HAI YA!
photo by @dylanspitz
“it looked like someone was playing a sick joke on us”
As we continued making our way up the mountain we came to our first clearing, and then we saw it. Mount Rainier in all it’s glory peeking behind the forest. It was reflecting brilliant deep oranges and purples off it’s majestic and icy surface. The sky had transitioned from a deep blue to a warm orangey yellow. The sun peeked behind the dense forest and began to rise over the park. We finally had made it to flat, non vertical ground and our legs thanked us. The air got crisper and a little cooler – a sign that water was near. We skirted by a large dark lake in the middle of the mountain valley. Even in the dim morning light, we knew the lake was going to look spectacular once the sun would rise above it. It was so clear and pristine, starting to glitter and shimmer the first light of the morning sun off it’s surface. We knew that above the lake there was going to be a lookout at the top, so we gazed upward to see the lookout and we all cackled. HA! The lookout at the summit looked so far away and vertical that it was the size of an ant (literally) just sitting on top of this mountain we were about to climb and taunting us. It looked so incredibly far away. And our legs were already jello! It seemed like someone was playing a sick joke on us. But the sunrise waits for nobody, and we didn’t want to miss this once in a lifetime experience on such a beautiful, clear morning. We knew that the views at the top were going to be breathtaking. So we put it into high gear, ignored the burning, throbbing pain in our thighs, and carried on up another vertical mountain trail to reach the lookout.
photo by @dylanspitz
“there are no words for this”
The trail was beautifully adorned with tall pines, with the massive and majestic mount rainier as it’s backdrop. The sky created a gradient of light pink to purple to blue. A calm and serene morning. We could see the silhouette of the lookout tower structure in the distance. And when you know you’re that close to the top, you forget about all the pain and exhaustion. Adrenaline and excitement kicks in. We booked it through the final stretch. And made it to the ant. Made it to the very tippy top. And OH. MY. GOOOOSH. That view at the top. Completely, utterly, unforgettably breathtaking. The clear, crisp, morning gave way to the most incredible view of Mount Rainier. It was massive and magical, bold and brilliant. It was a deep blue, purple, painted with snow and ice, mountain mist dancing across its surface behind a perfectly blue sky. We gazed east, and the bright, golden sun was rising over the tall mountain peaks. It was morning golden hour. We’ve only ever experienced golden hour in the evening. But golden hour in the morning might have made us fall in love with sunrise hikes. Immersed in this immense beauty you forget about it all. The early wake-up call, the burning legs, the exploding lungs. It was all worth it. It’s always worth it. Nothing beats that feeling of accomplishment, and there is no better reward than feeling like you’re on top of the world. And only you, yourself earned this. On top of this beautiful mountain, soaking in this once in a lifetime experience.
“time to relax and soak it all in”
After our strenuous hike to the top of this amazing summit, it was time to relax and soak it all in. We took as many photos as we could of this magical place and then headed over to sit on the lookout and have breakfast. We passed around mini champagne bottles and orange juice and snacked on energy bars, strawberries, and cheese. AW YEAH, we hike for that delicious, creamy, decadent cheese feast at the end. Beechers Flagship Cheddar and Murrays Havarti are our go to’s. The best flavors to ever hit your tastebuds! We actually got our friends from Ohio hooked on the beecher’s. It’s magically good. Maybe the best cheese ever. We sat back and gawked and swooned at the view, the large mountain top basking in the glorious, warm morning sunshine.
“crazy mountain weather!”
Large, billowing clouds rolled across the sky and through the mountain peaks towards Mount Rainier and a cold breeze nipped at our faces. It looked like there was some rain rolling in so we threw on our raincoats and backpack rain covers, snapped some last photos of the beautiful view, and headed back down the trail. As we hiked back down the hill the clouds kept on rolling through and ended up covering Mount Rainier. That early wake up call was so worth it. All the other hikers after us weren’t going to get the view we did! We definitely were very lucky that morning. It ended up not raining and we made it back down to the beautiful lake (Eunice Lake) that we passed by in the morning on our way to the top. We arrived back to the crystal, blue lake and we knew we had to at least dip our feet in (we knew it was going to be very cold, from previous glacial lake experiences). We threw off our shoes and freed our feet from tight, sweaty socks and hiking boots. We pranced into the (FREEZING) cold glacial lake, it was so clear, pristine, and beautiful surrounded by tall mountains and evergreens. If it was warmer, I definitely would’ve dove in and swam there all day. We explored barefoot on the sandy lake shore as the sun began to shine through again. We wished we could stay there forever. We enjoyed the last bit of sunshine and lake views, and then packed up our gear and headed back to the beginning of the trail.
“unexpected guests”
We all were giddy and chatty about our beautiful and magical day. Making headway down the vertical trail until HAULT – Kevin pushed me back protecting me from what mystery furry creature was in the forest in the corner of our eye. A deer. Ok safe, we are good! OH MY GOD. WILDLIFE! We never see wildlife! Like ever. I suppose it’s a good and bad thing. Don’t wanna see anything too big, and menacing. But a beautiful doe was grazing on grass just a few feet right in front of us! So close! We watched the beautiful creature in the forest and snapped photos of her. And then bam! Another doe! Grazing deeper into the brush. 2 deer! We moved closer to them and they seemed completely comfortable with us being there. They were used to people on the trail. And that was just fine with us, we inched closer to get better shots with our cameras. I then saw something else move in the corner of my eye. A fawn! A baby deer grazing in the forest with two does. I couldn’t believe my eyes. The golden sun was beaming through to the forest floor as three magical deer grazed right in front of our eyes.
“bittersweet”
The end of the trail came closer and closer, and this day was coming to an end (Oh wait, it’s only 11:00 am because we got up so early to do this hike). But we were tired. And hungry! It had been hands down one of the best days of our lives. Surrounded by immense beauty and close friends. This is what life is all about. When they say experiences are best shared with loved ones, they couldn’t be more correct. Shared with a group of loved ones, that’s an experience of a lifetime. And I’ll always cherish and remember this day for the rest of my life. Thanks for getting up early with us, for sweating with us, feeling the burn with us, experiencing the most immense beauty with us, for being the kindest, the most encouraging, and most creative beings. Thanks for being the raddest of friends who climb mountains at 5 o’clock in the dang morning with us. You’re all what a true friend truly is defined as. Come back again soon.
